New home sales fell in October, together with a decline in this figure for the three months ending in October 2017, compared with the three preceding months, according to figures reported today by the Central Bureau of Statistics. According to the figures, 1,895 new homes were sold in Israel in October, 4.7% less than the 1,990 sold in September and 3% less than the 1,956 sold in October 2016.
The Sukkot (Tabernacles) holiday fell in October in 2017, meaning that there were fewer workdays in the month, but the holidays of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot all fell in October 2016, meaning that more new homes were sold during even fewer working days in October 2016 than in October 2017.
According to the figures, 5,750 new homes were sold in August-September-October 2017, 14.4% fewer than in the three preceding months. At the same time, a downtrend is also evident in the yearly figures, with 15.9% fewer new homes being sold in November 2016-October 2017 than in November 2015-October 2016.
The Central Bureau of Statistics has not yet resumed publishing an integral part of its revenue of demand for and sales of new homes by contractors: the stock of unsold homes at the end of the reviewed period. The Central Bureau of Statistics stopped publishing this figure several months ago, claiming that a problem with the data had been discovered resulting from a lack of up-to-date figures from the Ministry of Construction and Housing, among other reasons.
The Central Bureau of Statistics also addresses this question in the review itself, saying, "The figures published in this announcement include the demand for new homes, but do not include figures for the number of homes remaining for sale at the end of the period. The Central Bureau of Statistics will resume publication of these figures if and when it obtains up-to-date figures." In a recent press briefing, senior officeholders in the Central Bureau of Statistics referred to these figures, saying that as of now there were no plans to publish them.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on December 13, 2017
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