Housing snapshot: Home sales and rentals across Israel

The specter of a housing shortage, due to a lack of building starts, is behind a renewed rise in house prices, after they declined from mid-2022 and for most of 2023 amid a surge in interest rates.

According to data published by the Central Bureau of Statistics on March 15, housing prices rose 1.2 percent in December 2023-January 2024, after also rising 0.7 percent in November-December 2023, which was the first two-month increase since December 2022-January 2023.

Price rises in December 2023 and January 2024 were seen across the board, with Jerusalem seeing a price increase of 1.4%; the north of Israel 1.1%; Tel Aviv and the center of Israel 1.1%; Haifa 1.5% and the south 1.8%.

When comparing the data to the same period a year earlier – December 2022 and January 2023 — housing prices rose 3.8% in the north of Israel; 2.9% in Haifa; 1.6% in the south and 1.1% in Jerusalem. In Tel Aviv, they decreased by 3.7%.

Sales

To provide the housing snapshot below, we make use of the Israel Tax Authority’s database, which records the actual prices paid for properties, and we focus on sales over the last month (February 26 to March 25) to bring you the most up-to-date picture of what is going on in the market. Where available, we use the exchange rate at the time of the purchase as it appears in the database.

1. In Tel Aviv-Jaffa, a 61-square-meter (657 sq.-ft.) two-room (one-bedroom) apartment in a 1950 building at 72 Mazeh Street, between Menachem Begin Street and Rothschild Avenue, on the second floor of four, without parking, sold for NIS 4,000,000 ($1,108,340) on Feb. 26.

On March 18, a 61-square-meter (651sq.-ft.) three-room (two-bedroom) apartment on the third floor of four in a building at 47 Shazar Zalman Street sold for NIS 1,850,000 ($503,894). There is no parking in the 1970-built building, which borders the municipality of Holon and is close to the Wolfson Medical Center.

A 99-square-meter (1,066-sq.-ft.) four-room (three-bedroom) apartment at 7 Friedman Shraga Street built in 2006 sold on March 5 for NIS 4,800,000 ($1,337.047). The fifth-floor unit, out of seven floors, has parking for one vehicle. The building is situated in the north of Tel Aviv, close to Ramat Aviv and between Namir Street and Levy Eshkol Boulevard.

2. In Jerusalem, a four-room (three-bedroom) 60-square-meter (645 sq.-ft.) apartment at 9 Shevet Tzedek Street sold for NIS 3,400,000 ($931,762) on February 26. The apartment is on the first floor out of two, and there is just one other apartment in the building. There is no parking.

An 83-square-meter (893-sq.-ft.) three-room (two-bedroom) unit at 2 Panim Me’irot Street, close to the central bus station, sold on March 13 for NIS 1,740,000 ($473,987). The unit is on the third floor, out of six, in a building built in 1970.

3. In Haifa, a 112-square-meter (1,206-sq.-ft.) five-room (four-bedroom) apartment at 26 Raanan Street, a 10-minute drive from the Baha’i Gardens, was built in 2023 and sold for NIS 2,750,000 ($753,631) on Feb 26. The unit is on the sixth floor out of seven, without a parking space.

A 68-square-meter (732-sq.-ft.) apartment at 14 HaTishbi Street sold for NIS 1,560,000 ($423,797) on March 20. The unit is on the third floor out of three of the 1960 building and comes without a parking space.

4. In Netanya, a 128-square-meter (1,378-sq.-ft.) four-room (three-bedroom) apartment at 20 Sokolov Street sold for NIS 3,026,288 ($842,977) on February 27. The unit is on the seventh floor of a 23-floor building.

A 110-square meter (1,184 sq ft) four-room (three bedroom) apartment on 14 Shazar Zalman Street sold for NIS 3,125,000 ($851,962) on March 19. The unit is on the third floor of a 14-floor building built in 2004. It has parking spaces for two vehicles.

5. In Beit Shemesh, a 130-square-meter (1,399-sq.-ft.) five-room (four-bedroom) apartment at 7 HaAliya Street sold for NIS 2,670,000 ($739,817). The unit is on the 10th floor of an 18-floor building built in 2012. There is a parking space for one vehicle.

Rentals

We used the database of Madlan, a website for real estate deals, to compile this sample of rental apartments on the market, with a focus on three-room — two-bedroom — properties, suitable for a couple, two roommates, or a small family.

In Tel Aviv, an 80-square-meter (861-sq.-ft.) three-room apartment at 3 Yavne Street, in the heart of the city, was on the market for NIS 11,500 ($3,131) monthly. In a building slated for conservation, with high ceilings, the unit is on the first floor out of three. It has a master bedroom with a bathroom and a balcony, air-conditioning, and a balcony that overlooks the street.

In Jerusalem, a 60-sq.-meter (646-sq.-ft.), three-bedroom apartment on the ground floor on King George Street, in the city center, was just put on the market for NIS 5,500 ($1,498) per month. The recently renovated unit has a balcony, is air-conditioned and is quiet, as it does not face the busy street.

In Haifa, a 90-square-meter (969-sq.-ft.) apartment at 7 Raanan Street, in the old Carmel area, was put on the market for NIS 3,700 ($1,007). The unit, on the second floor of two, was recently renovated.