Buyers Sue Developer for $1.6 Million Over Delayed Apartments in Bat Yam
Translated & summarized from Globes by baba
Twenty apartment buyers in Bat Yam are suing their developer for 6.5 million shekels due to significant delivery delays. The buyers claim the project was already behind schedule before the "Swords of Iron" war, which they argue the developer is using as an excuse. An Iranian missile strike in June 2025 further damaged the site, causing additional delays. The developer claims force majeure due to the war and labor shortages, but buyers dispute this, pointing to pre-war delays and insufficient mitigation efforts.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Twenty Bat Yam apartment buyers are suing for 6.5 million shekels over delayed home deliveries.
- Buyers claim delays began before the "Swords of Iron" war, disputing the developer's excuse.
- An Iranian missile strike in June 2025 caused further damage and extended the delay.
- The developer cites war-related labor shortages and force majeure as reasons for the delay.
- One buyer, 87, is paying rent for years while waiting for her apartment.
Twenty apartment buyers in Bat Yam have filed a lawsuit seeking 6.5 million shekels (approximately $1.6 million) in compensation for significant delays in the delivery of their new homes. The buyers signed purchase agreements for apartments in a Tama 38/1 project on Daniel Street, with expected delivery dates in 2023 and early 2024. However, they claim the project has not been completed, with Form 4 (occupancy permit) still pending and finishing work unfinished.
The buyers allege that the delays predate the "Swords of Iron" war, citing poor planning and issues with contractors. They argue that the war, while disruptive, cannot be used as a blanket excuse for all delays, especially since construction was already behind schedule. They also contend that the shortage of workers, cited by the developer, could have been mitigated, as was done on other construction sites.
The war, which began in October 2023, halted construction nationwide for months. The developer, Merkaz Ha'ir Achzakot Ve'nisim, and its parent company, Mivne Eitan Daniel 12, claim that the war and subsequent events, including an Iranian missile strike in June 2025 that damaged the project, fall under force majeure clauses in the contracts, exempting them from paying compensation for delays.
One buyer, 87-year-old Adina Baruch, described her frustration, stating she bought the apartment in 2022 expecting to move in by February 2024. She is currently paying 6,000 shekels in rent while waiting, and the missile strike caused further damage and an estimated additional 12-18 month delay.
The developer argues that the sales agreements were with an independent company and that the contracts included clauses allowing for exemption from compensation due to circumstances beyond their control. They also claim that the construction industry's labor shortage, exacerbated by the war, made it impossible to prioritize this project. The court will examine the causal link between the war and the delays, requiring the developer to provide evidence of efforts to mitigate the impact and adhere to the contract.
