Exclusive property - 3 rooms apartment in Tel Aviv - Gordon Street

Exclusive penthouse for sale in Tel Aviv - Rotchild area

3-room apartment for sale in Tel Aviv - Dizengoff area

Dollar, Euro or shekel - Real Estate contracts in Israel

This article has been written by Nicole Levin Law Office, and may be very useful for you if you plan to buy a property in Israel. It emphases the consequences of the fall of the dollar on the Real Estate Contracts in Israel. The conclusions of Nicole Levin Law Office may also be applicable to Euro or other currencies, considering the strength of the shekel :

As the Israeli shekel strengthens against the US dollar, real estate transactions in Israel are now frequently quoted in Israeli shekels rather than in US dollars, as used to be the case.

How does this trend affect Israeli real estate contracts?

When the US dollar was on the rise, rather than the shekel, contracts were usually quoted in US dollars and sellers would get more shekels for their apartments as the dollar rose. Foreign purchasers did not lose out as long as they converted their dollars on the day of payment. The only losers were those purchasers who were holding Israeli currency. As the dollar exchange rate rose, they needed to find more shekels to make their payments.

Needless to say, this situation caused an enormous amount of tension between the parties to real estate transactions. If the purchaser was late in making a payment, a reason would often be found to blame the seller, so that the purchaser would not have to foot the bill if the dollar rate increased during the delay.

In the last two years, however, the US dollar has fallen considerably and the situation today is very different. From an all-time high of 4.7 shekels to the dollar at the beginning of 2006, the rate has recently fallen to below 3.4 shekels to the dollar.

This has caused a new trend in real estate transaction in Israel. Some sellers have been insisting on quoting the price in shekels with no linkage to the dollar. Others have continued to link the price to the dollar but are stipulating a particular rate of exchange as a floor below which the rate cannot go. This means no risk for the seller and all the risk for the buyer. If the rate of the dollar goes up, the seller receives more shekels, and if the rate of the dollar goes below the rate on the day the contract was signed, the seller receives the rate set in the contract and no less.

This new trend makes life difficult for foreign purchasers who have dollars or other foreign currencies whose rate is falling against the shekel. Foreign purchasers of Israeli real estate have to change the way they look at the deal so that they can navigate their way financially.

Firstly, as soon as the contract is signed and the price in shekels is set, a purchaser from abroad should take stock of how much of his own currency he needs to pay the price of the apartment and the rest of the closing costs. At this point it would be wise to convert the money to shekels to ensure that there is sufficient money to cover the payments.

Many purchasers are accustomed to leaving their money in foreign currency and converting it as needed. This was reasonable when the dollar rate was on the rise, but when the dollar rate is constantly falling this could be disastrous. If the money for the apartment is kept in foreign currency in a situation where the price has been set in shekels and the rate of exchange of that foreign currency falls, the purchaser may end up paying more for the apartment than he may have budgeted.

Of course the opposite is also true. If the purchaser converts his foreign currency as soon as the contract is signed and the dollar rate happens to rise he will have lost out.

The possible issues with foreign currency exchange can be negated if a purchaser can find a seller willing to accept dollars. The price in the contract is written in dollars and all the payments are made in dollars. However, this is only possible when buying a property second hand. Construction companies write the shekel amount in the contract and the payments are made in shekels, linked either to the Israeli Consumer Price Index or the Building Index.

In most instances the price of apartments purchased from a construction company are linked to the Building Index. On 15th day of each month the Israeli Bureau of Statistics publishes the building index for the previous month. If the index goes up, then the outstanding amount owed on the price of the apartment goes up as well. Anyone studying the behavior of the building index over the years will see that the building index goes up a lot during the summer months and not so much, if at all, during the winter months. It is therefore wise to make the bulk of the payments before the summer months begin. Your money is protected by a bank guarantee.

Many people convert their money into shekels immediately and then make the bulk of the payments before the end of May.

Whether you are planning to buy a new property, or a second hand apartment, it would be prudent to consider how the state of the economy may affect your transaction and plan accordingly.

Article reprinted with permission from
Nicole Levin Law Offices

Real Estate in Israel 2008

That you are apartment owner or purchaser, real estate investors or tenant, www.realestatelaviv.com places at your disposal a rigorous selection of real goods in Israel on the best sites of Tel Aviv, Herzelia, Eilat, Cesaria, Jerusalem and Jaffa .

To advise our customers perfectly and to answer their waiting specifically, the international realestate collaborators of www.realestatelaviv.com privilege the knowledge of the market of the real estate in Israel and ensure a fully-personalized service, from the search until the transaction has been realized.

It is with our knowledge to make real estate business and our professionalism which enable us to have a wallet very diversified of goods in Israel, by their surfaces and by their localizations.

Buy a property in israel

Penthouse in TEL AVIV, ISRAEL :

A penthouse apartment or penthouse is an apartment or condominium that is on one of the highest floors of an apartment building . Penthouses are typically differentiated from other apartments by luxury features.

In architecture, the term penthouse is used to refer to a structure on the roof of a building that is set back from the outer walls. These structures do not occupy the entire roof deck. High-rise buildings will often have penthouse structures enclosing mechanics such as those in an elevator machine room.

While European designers and architects long recognized the potential in creating living spaces that make use of rooftops and such setbacks, in US cities, exploitation of these spaces began in earnest in the 1920’s. It was a matter of news when the development of a rooftop apartment at the Plaza Hotel overlooking Central Park was announced in 1923, but this was followed by rapid development of luxury penthouse apartments in the following years.

When used as private outdoor terrace spaces, setbacks can allow for significantly larger and more protected spaces than cantilevered balconies. Due to the desirability of this outdoor space, buildings may be designed with such setbacks on more than one of its uppermost levels, to allow apartments on several levels to feature such terraces. Not all penthouses have such terraces, but they are a desired feature. One such space may be divided among several apartments, or one apartment may occupy an entire floor. A penthouse apartment may also provide occupants with private access to the roof space above the apartment, instead of or in addition to terrace space created by an adjacent setback.

A penthouse apartment may have additional exclusive features not found in the majority of apartments in the building, such as a private entrance or elevator, or higher ceilings. In buildings consisting primarily of single level apartments, a penthouse apartment may be distinguished by having two or more levels. They may also have such features as a balcony, gas fireplace, more square footage, over sized windows, multiple owner suites, office space and more. They often times boast luxury kitchens with features such as stainless steel appliances, granite counter tops, breakfast bar and more.

Penthouse apartments are generally expensive, and are often associated with a luxury lifestyle. Thus, those wishing to market or otherwise inflate the prestige of a particular apartment may use the term. The term penthouse is sometimes applied to apartments that are no different than others in a building, other than being on one of the uppermost floors. The term sub-penthouse is sometimes used to describe apartments near the top of a building, when the term penthouse is reserved for the uppermost floor.

Villa in Israel :

A villa was originally an upper-class country house, though since its origins in Roman times the idea and function of a villa has evolved considerably. After the fall of the Republic, a villa became a small, fortified farming compound, gradually re-evolving through the Middle Ages into luxurious, upper-class country homes. In modern parlance it can refer to a specific type of detached suburban dwelling.

Apartment in Tel Aviv, Israel :

Ben Yehuda appartement, Dizengof appartment, Rupin 3 rooms, Rotchild penthouse, Shenkin shop, Old North of Tel Aviv residence, Gordon apprtment, Cokhav Hatsafon luxury, Jaffa old port, Florentin appartement, Kikar Rabin loft, Ayarkon sea view 4 rooms appt…