Building Permits Hit Record High as Tel Aviv Tops Housing Starts

New Central Bureau of Statistics data show Israel's housing market remained strong despite the war, repeated rounds of fighting with Iran, and broader economic uncertainty. Between April 2025 and March 2026, permits were issued for about 82,570 apartments, a record high and a sign of the large number of projects nearing execution.

Housing starts also stayed elevated. In the same 12-month period, construction began on about 76,470 apartments, up 1.7% from April 2024 to March 2025. Completions were stronger as well, with roughly 62,140 apartments finished, a 15.7% increase year over year.

Urban renewal continued to gain weight in the industry. Such projects accounted for 30% of all housing starts in the latest period, compared with 27% to 28% in earlier CBS releases, meaning nearly one-third of new construction now comes from renewal schemes. By district, permit issuance rose in Central and Tel Aviv districts, while the North, Jerusalem and South districts saw double-digit declines, and Haifa recorded only a slight drop.

Tel Aviv-Yafo remained the country’s leading city for housing starts, with 7,120 apartments, ahead of Jerusalem with 6,080. Jerusalem's starts fell 25.4% from the previous 12 months. Lod ranked third with 2,730, followed by Netanya with 2,600, and Kiryat Gat with about 2,590 after a 232.5% jump. Ofekim fell to the bottom of the top ten after a 33.5% decline, while Netivot also made the top ten, and the ten largest cities included four southern municipalities, among them Ashdod. Construction timelines also lengthened, with the average build time rising to 32.1 months from 30.2 months, and the weighted average to 37.5 months from 35.4. Active construction at the end of March 2026 reached about 211,710 apartments, up from 207,200 at the end of 2025 and 188,800 a year earlier.