At Mזרחי טפחות’s national real estate conference, held this year under the slogan “Changing Priorities,” a panel asked how to build a deal that works in a buyer’s market, during war, and as profitability erodes. The discussion included Michal Gur, CEO of Peretz Boney HaNegev, Penina Ela, head of construction and real estate at Mזרחי טפחות, and Bernard Raskin, founder and CEO of RE/MAX Israel. It was moderated by Hila Tsyon, Ynet and Yedioth Ahronoth’s real estate editor.
The panel’s main conclusion was that the market is not dead or frozen, but it is more complicated. Deals are being examined more carefully, construction timelines are stretching out, and margins are shrinking. At the same time, activity remains strong in some areas and among products with high demand. Ela said about 40% of the projects financed by Mזרחי טפחות are urban renewal projects, compared with roughly 30% of national housing starts, reflecting long-delayed projects now reaching execution. She also said developers are asking apartment owners to soften terms because costs have jumped, and that deadlines are repeatedly pushed back by three months, six months, or even a year.
Gur said her company focuses on the second and third rings around central Israel, especially in price ranges of 1.5 million to 3 million shekels, where sales move faster. She criticized the government’s “Apartment at a Discount” program, saying nearly 50 billion shekels went to about 100,000 selected winners instead of spreading support more broadly. In her words, the scheme “spoiled” young buyers by making them expect a new apartment in a desirable neighborhood and a quick million-shekel windfall, instead of moving gradually up the housing ladder.
Ela said the 20/80 payment model, common in 2024, was limited by a March 2025 interim order from the Banking Supervisor until the end of 2026, although Mזרחי טפחות data still show it is used in about 25% of a project’s units, mainly at the pre-sale stage. Developers are also using contractor loans and targeted discounts. She said cancellations have risen only from 0.5% to 1% or 2%, which remains low.
Gur said her company is expanding reinforced safe rooms into safer rooms with toilets, saying the change is both a security and sales advantage. Raskin said the second-hand housing market is performing differently, noting that May was RE/MAX’s best May in four years and that buyers value immediate occupancy, an existing safe room and more flexible pricing. He rejected the term “freeze,” saying, “There is always a deal, in every situation,” and added that even during the peak of the coronavirus lockdown, offices were closing deals daily. He said Tel Aviv is now first in RE/MAX’s thirty-year history, ahead of other markets, and argued that the market needs calm, because once there is “quiet,” prices are likely to rise given the limited supply. He also said overseas buyers remain an important, if less visible, source of demand.
