Bulding in Rehovot. Growth expected
צילום: אבי מועלם
TA outskirts to become new real estate hotspot
Real estate expert says government should begin investing in area around Tel Aviv to accommodate new demand for lower apartment prices
New real estate ventures will focus on areas on the outskirts of Tel Aviv rather than the city itself, according to the Geocartography research institute.
"Because the desired prices of apartments, especially for young people, range between NIS 80,000-90,000, not everyone who wants to live in Tel Aviv will be able to, even if Tel Aviv's population starts to live in little matchbox apartments, like in Manhattan," says Rina Degani, CEO of the institute.
Therefore, Degani says, the rise in prices will lead to growth in other cities in Israel's center, such as Rehovot, Gedera, Ramla, and Hadera.
Degani believes the government should begin investing in these areas as well as providing easier access to Tel Aviv from the surrounding cities.
"In Netanya there is land enough for 20,000 apartments, as in Hod Hasharon and other cities. All that has to be done is to make it available, and this is possible," she says.
Degani adds that she does not believe real estate prices are poised to rise in the near future, in contrast to general belief. She says investors who have previously saved the market from crashing will slow down investment due to decreasing profit margins.
"If government policy would just direct the demand to the (city) outskirts using attractive prices and other incentives, transportation infrastructure and tax benefits, we will all stand to gain," Degani says.
