When you are about to purchase a new apartment, you probably already know that you must conduct comprehensive research regarding the living environment, but it is not enough to check the current situation, you must also know what the future holds and how this future will affect the value of the apartment. To know what tomorrow will bring, you do not need special predictive powers but rather online research, since all this information is today in government databases that are open to everyone, on the websites of local authorities and news sites. Ready to surf?
Read the map
Want to know whether educational institutions or commercial areas are expected to be built in the new neighborhood you are building? Will the green area opposite the dream apartment you found remain that way or might a noisy and polluting factory be built there? This information is available on the outline plans, also known as 'city building plans' (TABA). These plans are a statutory document whose purpose is to regulate the use of land located in various areas.
The plan includes a map divided into lots, indicating the land uses such as commercial, institutional, open spaces, roads, or residential. It is also possible to see the intended use of the area, such as industrial or commercial, and the existing building rights, for example, how many floors and how many square meters each floor should have.
Don't worry, to obtain these plans, there is no need to go chasing after this or that official at the municipality, in 2019 they are available on the Internet, whether on the websites of the local authorities, the Israel Land Authority website, and the Israel Maps website. In addition to the urban development plans, you can find a lot of information on the Israel Land Authority websites regarding expansion plans, urban renewal plans , various projects such as neighborhood rehabilitation projects, and so on. Detailed information on construction plans throughout the country can also be found in the Israel Land Authority's knowledge database on the government databases website.
A matter of mobility
After you have examined what the future environment of the potential apartment will look like, it is also worth checking the level of accessibility to the apartment. Good public transportation has a huge impact on the value of the apartment, for example, studies have found that the arrival of a train has led to an increase of tens of percent in the prices of apartments located within 50 to 500 meters of the station. This is why you should check whether your potential apartment is in an area that is going to be more accessible to public transportation in the coming years.
On the NTA website, you can check whether one of the lines planned to be built between Herzliya and Holon and between the coastal plain and the Ono Valley will one day also enter your future residential area. On the Israel Railways website, you can stay up-to-date on the various development plans , and on the website of the National Public Transportation Authority of the Ministry of Transportation, you can follow developments regarding public transportation in other areas of the country.
Looking for an apartment in the Dan Gush? The Ministry of Transportation and Road Safety has uploaded the supplementary plan for busy routes in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area for 2023 on the government databases website. Municipal initiatives such as the Auto-Tel initiative can also make a residential area more accessible, so it is worth following various publications on the subject, whether on news websites or in municipal publications in various media.
An economy that is good for the value of the apartment
After you have carefully examined what is going to happen in the residential area near the apartment you want to purchase, you should check the income status of the local authority where the desired apartment is located. Local authorities that enjoy high incomes can afford to improve the various services for residents, from cleaning to cultural services to investing in your children's educational institutions.
One of the factors that lead to an increase in the municipality's income is employment and industrial zones. The high property tax required in industrial zones significantly increases the municipality's income. The residents of the area also benefit from the establishment of these zones, which provide them with jobs close to home, which may also affect the socio-economic level of your neighbors in the future. You can find information about future industrial and employment zones on the websites and in publications of local authorities.
Neighborhoods and cities are constantly changing, population shifts, construction processes, and economic changes will affect the value of your apartment in the coming years. These are factors that you must take into account and try to anticipate as much as possible to make your investment more profitable.
