"Stagnation in the housing market deepened in September led by investors and buyers moving into bigger homes with the number of homers being purchased reaching an historic low," says the Ministry of Finance chief economist in the September review of Israel's real estate market, which was published today.
It should be taken into account that the data was strongly influenced by the holidays and reduced number of workdays during the month - the lowest number of workdays in September for the past three years. However, the amount of real estate purchasing activity was the lowest since 2002 - during the second Intifada and accompanying recession.
According to the Ministry of Finance chief economist, the number of homes bought by investors during September fell to just 686, an historic low and 50% down from September 2017. The sharpest falls were in Jerusalem and Netanya, two cities that in the past have enjoyed high demand from overseas residents, especially during the holiday season. The number of homes purchased by investors in Jerusalem was down 57% in September 2018 from September 2017 and down 75% in Netanya in September 2018 compared with September 2017.
Sales of homes by contractors on the free market fell to their lowest level since October 2011 and purchases by buyers moving into bigger homes were at their lowest level since January 2012.
The overall number of housing deals in September fell to 5,400, down 22% from September 2017.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on November 14, 2018
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