Minister Litzman to the Prime Minister: remove barriers, increase the stock of apartments, invest in infrastructure
Minister Litzman.
The auctions mark a future rise in housing prices
Photography:
Courtesy of a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health
Produced by the Department of Special Supplements
Minister of Construction and Housing Yaakov Litzman officially warns Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against the expected rise in housing prices.
"In the last month, this gap has begun to show in the results of recent land tenders published by the Israel Land Authority and the Ministry of Construction and Housing, indicating a significant future increase in housing prices, as long as no immediate steps are taken to remove infrastructure barriers," Litzman wrote.
The Minister appealed to the Prime Minister to allocate NIS 2.5 billion for an economic plan that will address the field of housing and infrastructure.
Litzman notes that the appeal to Netanyahu comes after a number of previous appeals to the Minister of Finance and the Ministry of Finance and officially requests the integration of the construction industry in the special economic plan for dealing with the corona crisis.
This is in order to prevent the deterioration of the housing market into the reality of a crisis accompanied by a shortage of apartments and a possible rise in housing prices.
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"As Minister of Construction and Housing, trust in the construction and housing sector in Israel, and in view of the data presented to me for a long time regarding the slowdown in housing supply in the face of growing demand, and now the data on housing prices published by the Central Bureau of Statistics, I fear the direction the housing market Housing.
The Minister expressed his concern about a situation of shortage of apartments and a rise in housing prices, which will lead to a further burden on the household economy in Israel.
'Time is pressing and making the need for government support to change these trends even more urgent.
"As long as we do not rush into intervention and these trends continue, they could lead to a situation in which the government will be required to make a larger budget investment and adversely affect the state of the entire economy," the minister wrote.
According to him, investment is needed in infrastructure projects in the fields of transportation, drainage and sewage treatment, budgetary investment in classrooms and kindergartens, and an additional pulse to encourage buyers of apartments in the periphery (second-hand apartment grants).
"In my previous inquiries, the urgent need for government support in the construction industry was presented, among other things, in light of the gap that is beginning to form between construction starts and the increase in households," Minister Litzman added.
According to him, this increase will join a trend that has already begun in the housing market, a 3.2% increase in the price of apartments in the past year.
"In light of all the above, I would like to include in the economic plan our budget requirement detailed above so that we can act efficiently and optimally to publish tenders throughout the country, including tenders at a reduced price, and with the aim of increasing supply, as broadly as possible, and addressing economic needs." Lest it be too late, "Litzman concluded.
Produced by the Department of Special Supplements
