Over the past nine months, the Ministry of Housing and Construction and the Israel Land Administration (ILA) have run an aggressive media campaign to flood the market with land zoned for thousands of new apartments in order to lower housing prices. However, words are one thing; deeds are another.
An investigation by "Globes" found that no tenders were ever published for land for hundreds of apartments. Neither the ILA nor the Ministry of Housing published the tenders, or they published tenders for only part of the promised homes.
At a press conference in September 2009, Minister of Housing and Construction Ariel Atias announced his plan "to flood the market with land for construction". He and ILA director general Yaron Bibi presented the first "blitz" in which they promised to market land nationwide for 5,300 new apartments in a single act.
Since the first blitz, the ILA nor the Ministry of Housing have launched four more major marketing schemes: tenders for land zoned for 5,900 apartments in November 2009; land for 6,500 apartments in December; land for 2,800 apartments in March 2010; and land for 3,000 apartments in May.
However, "Globes" found that many of Atias's promises, including for homes in Jerusalem and in high-demand areas in central Israel, never resulted in tenders, regardless of his unceasing public declarations about their importance.
Since Atias announced in November 2009 of the marketing of land in Jerusalem for 1,117 apartments, tender have been published only for land for 20 apartments. Political and diplomatic reasons that are beyond Atias's control are partly to blame.
In the three months since March, when Atias announced that land would be marketed in Rishon LeZion for 540 apartments, no tender has been published. No tender has been published either for land for 320 apartments in Kadima-Zoran in the Sharon.
In December 2009, Atias promised 1,000 new apartments in Yehud. No tenders have been published. 1,000 apartments were promised in February for Tiberias; tenders for land for 16 apartments have been published. The problems also affect Israeli Arabs: land for 316 apartments in Umm el-Fahm was promised, but no tenders have been published.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 28, 2010
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2010