LOWEST PRICED HOMES
The secret is out – the lowest Priced homes in Israel are in Judea-Samaria. This is the area behind the green line, called the settlements.
How low are the prices?
In Maale Levona, in Judea-Samaria, where Yossi and I live, you can buy a brand new townhome for less than $300,000. The same home would could a million dollars or more in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv.
In Maale Levona, you can also buy a single family home on its own lot for $400,000, if any are available. The same home in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv would be in the millions.
Why is Judea-Samaria priced so much lower?
Because there are risks.
One risk is that if Israel decided to go with a “two state solution,” your home in Judea-Samaria might be given away to the Palestinians. You would be reimbursed for the loss, but no one knows how much, or where or when.
Currently, the political sentiment in Israel is that Judea-Samaria is going to remain a part of Israel forever. For that reason, many native born Israelis are now choosing to buy homes in Judea-Samaria, given the price advantage, and the healthy life style. There is building going on in the settlements, with buyers waiting to purchase new homes.
The second risk is that is not safe driving the roads for much of the time I’ve lived here, and there are still challenges.
So, given the above risks, why did I buy a home in the settlements?
First and foremost, because I admire the Jews living in Judea-Samaria. They are a hearty bunch, with real “amunah.” They walk the talk.
I started my search to purchase a home 20 years ago, when I became an Israeli citizen. I asked every settler I met, including Yossi Maimon, “What are you going to do when the Israeli government gives away your home?”
No one in the settlements wanted to answer that question, and I asked everyone I met there – close to a hundred people. Many got angry with me.
Finally, a young man from New York, living in Eli, who made Aliyah, walked up to me. He was watching and listening to me aggravate his neighbors and friends, then he said. “You’re wasting your time, Zalman. You’re looking for a logical business answer, and there is no logical answer.”
I shook my head in disbelief, and stared at him.
“These people are here because of faith – amunah,” he continued. “They have faith that God will watch over and protect them, in the biblical land of our forefathers … If you want to purchase a house here only because it makes good business sense to you, then don’t bother … but if you believe in God, the God that wrote the Bible, our Torah, where God gave Judea-Samaria and all of Israel to the Jewish people forever, and you have faith He will not let us down … then welcome aboard.”
So I bought a home in Maale Levona, down the street from Yossi.
I took the plunge, and bought on faith, which for me is extremely rare. I’ve been in the real estate business for 40 years now. I have taught thousands of people how to invest in real estate, logically and methodically.
Because of the risks I mentioned above, we at Your ISRAELI home are not going to “sell” you on buying a home in the Judea-Samaria, in the settlements. We would prefer to have you purchase a less challenging home … similar to how many rabbis tell non-Jews who ask to convert, why they should not convert, because it is so challenging.
Yes, being Jewish is not easy, it is challenging, but it’s still a blessing.
That’s how I feel about living in Judea-Samaria.