Apartment price list editor Levy Yitzhak claims a survey he conducted reveals that the real estate market in areas not located near the conflict region have remained virtually unaffected by the fighting. “The range of properties for sale or advertised in most cities was similar to that in the weeks prior to the outbreak of hostilities in the north” he says.
Yitzhak surveyed 500 participants, among them real estate agencies, new project websites and daily print and web-based advertising columns in the central and Sharon regions, from Netanya in the north to Ashdod in the south, as well as the greater Jerusalem region. The goal of the survey was to examine the effect the war, now in its fourth week, was having on the real estate market, including potential apartment sellers and buyers.
The survey revealed that apartment owners are not waiting until the war subsides, but are continuing to advertise apartments for sale or rent. The survey also found that the response levels of potential buyers over the last month remained unchanged, with no sign of a slowdown among buyers or in the rate of visits to properties for sale.
”So far, there have been no cancellations in the central region of deals in the pipeline,” says Yitzhak. “Moreover, even foreign investors with six-figure investments have not suspended their plans. While it would be fair to say that none of the pending deals are in the north but rather, in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Herzilya Pituah or Caesarea, no one has backed out of any deal.”
The survey also found a marked increase in demand for one and two room-apartments in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan and Givatayim, with prices rising 4%. There was also an increase in demand, mainly by foreign residents and investors, for apartments on the sea front in the direction of south Tel Aviv. Jerusalem continued to lead with record demand for new and second hand apartments, although the high demand cannot be considered a bubble, despite the substantial increase in property prices over the last two years.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on August 9, 2006
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