Investors seek Anglo-Saxon neighborhoods
Past few months see rise in interest in apartments located in areas affiliated with Anglo-Saxon community. Anthony Galgut, who specializes in real estate marketing, estimates some 2,500 flats to be sold in near future to immigrants and returning citizens from US, Canada and Britain
"Several factors are coming together these days," he explains. "The global financial crisis, anti-Semitic acts in the different countries and the Madoff fraud scandal have greatly damaged the Jewish communities' image. These factors may soon accelerate processes of immigrating to Israel."
According to Galgut, the low supply of apartments and the isolated building starts in Israel will lead to a rise in the demand in concentrations of Anglo-Saxon communities.
"These places already have a community, which attracts more immigrants to come there. According to data I have collected, based on information from the Jewish communities and the Jewish Agency, this year's forecast is for about 15,000 immigrants compared to 12,000 last year. Why? Because they think it will be a lot less bad here."
If this estimate is realized, Glagut says, quite a few people will need apartments.
"In total, we are talking about some 2,500 apartments destined to be sold in Israel to new immigrants from the Anglo-Saxon community. Due to the specific locations of demand by these communities, this could prompt a price-hike in these particular cities."
The Anglo-Saxon communities are located in South Africa, England, the United States, Canada and Australia. According to Galgut, France and South America are also included on this list, despite the language differences.
"The financial crisis mainly influences well-established Jewish communities," he says. "I have been approached by more people recently. We are not only talking about new immigrants but about investors as well. They believe that purchasing an apartment for investment in Israel is the start of immigrating to Israel."
Simple apartments or large cottages
Israel's Anglo-Saxon communities' demand for housing focuses on a number of specific cities: Raanana Modiin, Beit Shemesh, Ashdod, Netanya, north Tel Aviv, Ramat Hasharon and Herzliya.
Galgut says that according to figures recorded in recent months, several additional places are slated to join the map of demands, including central Tel Aviv, Petah Tikva, Rishon Lezion and Bat Yam.
"In Raanana there is mainly a concentration of South Africans, British and Americans, but the South Africans are the majority," says Joe Cohen, a franchiser of the Anglo-Saxon real estate agency in the Sharon regional city.
"The assets they are looking for include simple three or four-room apartments in new buildings with balconies, or larger cottages for $1 million and more."
According to Cohen, the recent period since the financial crisis began is mosly characterized by deals signed with the more adult population.
"People in their late 50s and 60s are going retiring and are interested in spending the second half of their life here. They want to be close to their family members who have already immigrated or fulfill their old desire to immigrate.
"The vast majority of them is looking for luxurious apartments for $700,000 and more. The families interested in assets usually seek older cottages or apartments for up to $1 million. A slight slowdown is felt among this audience recently, due to the drop in their financial ability or the fact that they are stuck with assets whose value has been reduced."
