Hapoalim receiver selling Herzliya house for NIS 50m

Herzliya house for sale Photo; Eyal Izhar

The Metro is really happening

The house, foreclosed from a Belgian businessperson, is located on Israel's most expensive street.

Bank Hapoalim (TASE: POLI) is offering a luxury home on the most expensive street in Israel for sale. A receiver of behalf of the bank is likely to publish an advertisement calling for bids to buy the luxury home at 13 Galei Tchelet Street in Herzliya Pituah owned by Belgian businessperson Michel Pierre Salomon Teman, who owes money to Bank Hapoalim. The house is opposite the residence of the US ambassador to Israel, near the home of businessperson Teddy Sagi. Real estate specialists estimate the house's worth at NIS 50 million.

The split-level house is built on two lots with a combined area of 1.5 dunam (0.375 acres). The house itself, which has 500 square meters of built-up space, is located on a one-dunam (0.25-acre) lot, while the second lot (0.5 dunam - 0.125 acres) contains a swimming pool. The lot on which the house is built faces Galei Tchelet Street, while the lot containing the swimming pool faces Hama'apilim Street and is more elevated than the plot containing the house.

Teman got into economic difficulties and stopped payments on the loan he took from Bank Hapoalim. His debts exceed NIS 50 million. Although he signed a debt settlement with the bank in January, he failed to make even the first payment under the settlement. Following a number of warnings, Bank Hapoalim invoked the clause in the agreement stating that its bailiff proceedings could be renewed.

In April, Law Enforcement and Collection System Authority Registrar Keren Bakshi accepted Bank Hapoalim's request and appointed Adv. Mor Nardia from the Levy Tyller & Co. law firm as receiver for the purpose of selling the house. Teman appealed the appointment of a receiver to the Tel Aviv Magistrates Court, where Judge Moshe Sobel dismissed the appeal.

Teman is a Jewish businessperson residing in Brussels. His appeal, filed by Adv. Yigal Harrar, his legal representative, argued that the loan was taken a decade ago for the purpose of buying and building another house in Herzliya Pituah, which led to prolonged legal proceedings and liquidity problems. The appeal also stated that more rigorous regulation in Israel made it difficult for Teman to transfer money from Belgium to Israel in order to repay the loan. In his appeal, Teman said that his original plan was to use rent from renting out the new house to repay the loan, but was unable to do so because construction on the new house had not yet been completed..

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on August 13, 2018