Court Rules Against Building Safe Room Without Majority Neighbor Consent

An Israeli court has ruled that residents cannot build a protected space (mamad) in their apartment without the required majority consent from their neighbors, even in light of security threats. The ruling came from the Registrar of Land Affairs in Petah Tikva, who dismissed a lawsuit filed by owners of two apartments seeking to build a mamad.

These residents, living on the third floor of a five-unit building on HaTish'im Ve'shalosh Street in Petah Tikva, faced opposition from the owners of the other three apartments. According to Israeli property law, a 60% majority of apartment owners is needed to approve an apartment expansion for a mamad. In this case, only two out of five owners agreed, falling short of the required threshold.

The plaintiffs argued that the opposition was disingenuous and motivated by bad faith, especially given the ongoing missile threats. They sought permission to build the mamad despite the lack of majority consent. However, the opposing neighbors, who are elderly, argued that the construction would negatively impact their well-being and that they had purchased their apartments knowing the building's residents were older and opposed such changes. They also claimed the plaintiffs were not permanent residents but rather renovators looking to profit from a future sale.

Registrar Meir Porat rejected the lawsuit, stating that the law's majority requirement was established through a complex balancing of interests and that courts cannot override it through broad interpretations of good faith. He found the neighbors' objections to be reasonable and legitimate, particularly citing the potential physical and emotional distress to elderly and medically vulnerable residents. The court also noted that the plaintiffs had recently purchased their apartments, aware of the existing residents and their potential objections. The plaintiffs were ordered to pay 4,000 shekels in legal costs to the defendants.