Reserve Soldiers Win Majority of Discounted Housing Lottery Units in Israel

The Israeli Ministry of Construction and Housing began sending out winning notifications for the 11th lottery of the "Discounted Apartment" program on Sunday. The lottery, held last week, allocated 7,922 housing units across 19 communities nationwide. A total of 114,848 eligible households registered, submitting approximately 1.7 million entries, as each household could apply for up to three communities and all available projects within them.

A significant highlight is the success rate of reserve soldiers, who benefited from a dedicated quota under the "From Reserves to a Key" initiative. Of the 25,394 reserve soldiers who registered, 4,734 won the chance to purchase discounted apartments, representing an 18.6% success rate, nearly one in five applicants. Overall, reserve soldiers make up about 60% of all winners, with half of the reserved quota specifically allocated to combat soldiers. The remaining winners among reservists qualified through the regular eligibility tracks.

The largest number of units was offered in Ma'ale Adumim with 1,663 apartments, followed by Kiryat Gat with 1,433 units and Kfar Saba with 1,045 units. Additional apartments were distributed in communities including Mazkeret Batya, Beit Shemesh, Rekhasim, Beit Dagan, Kadima-Zoran, Bat Hefer, Hadera, Ashdod, Nahariya, Bnei Ayish, Rishon Lezion, Kfar Manda, Yehud, Eilat, Yokneam Illit, and Rehovot.

The lottery was conducted via a computerized system under the supervision of an accountant and managed by the Ministry's lottery committee. All registrants will receive a personal SMS with their results and can also check their status on the program's website through their personal account area.