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In This Edition

1. Welcome
   
   
2. Featured Article – Comparison between Israeli and U.S. Residential Real Estate Transactions
   
   
3. Tip of the Month – Recent Events Cause Legislative Changes
   
   
4. Legal Vocabulary – 'Madad Benia' (Building Index)
   
   
5. Subscription Information
   
   
6. For Further Information
   
   

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Welcome to Israel Real Estate Law Insights
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Welcome to the latest issue of the Israel Real Estate Law Insights, published by Nicole Levin Law Offices, experts in all aspects of real estate law in Israel. You are receiving this newsletter because you signed up for it on our website or because you filled out a form at a housing fair. Our newsletter focuses on the legal aspects of buying, selling and renting property in Israel.

For the convenience of our US and UK customers, you can now contact us via a local telephone call. Our number in the US is 718 305 5470 and in the UK it is 0208 819 7394.

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Comparison between Israeli and U.S.
Residential Real Estate Transactions ==============================

Many people are nervous about entering into Real Estate transactions in Israel for many reasons. In Israel, real estate transactions are conducted in Hebrew, a language they are not completely familiar with. They are not used to Israeli business mentality. Purchasers who are not native Israelis feel that the process is different in Israel than in their native countries, thereby exposing them to more risk. Below you will find a list of practical differences between U.S. real estate transactions and Israeli real estate transactions.

	ISRAEL	U.S.A.
Real Estate Agents’ Fees	2% of the price from both buyers and sellers, plus V.A.T.	Sellers pay fees. Negotiable, but usually between 2% - 6% of the price.
Lawyers’ Fees	Fees vary between 0.5% - 2% of apartment price, plus V.A.T.	A flat rate of $1000 - $1500 per deal.
Title Search	Completed by the lawyer. Title insurance exists but...	Completed by the insurance company which issues...

Read the complete article in our articles section.

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Tip of the Month
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In light of recent events involving a large construction company that went bankrupt leaving many purchasers in the lurch, the Bank of Israel has been exploring ways to prevent this happening in the future. Recently it was decided that payments to construction companies would be made directly into each project's escrow account exclusively via vouchers that will be provided to the purchasers. This would prevent purchasers from making the mistake of making payments that do not reach the escrow account and therefore are not covered by the bank guarantee. This decision should go into effect in the next few months. If you are planning to buy an apartment from a construction company, ask your lawyer about this.

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Legal Vocabulary
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'Madad Benia' (Building Index)  – This index is published by the Israeli Bureau of Statistics on the 15th of every month. In most purchase agreements with construction companies the price is linked to the building index. It is important to understand how this works in order to plan the payment schedule. If you would like to see how the building index has behaved over the past few years, click here.

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Subscription Information
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For Further Information
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Additional information can be found at:
http://www.levinlawoffices.co.il/free.shtml

Further interesting articles can be found at:

http://www.levinlawoffices.co.il/articles.shtml

Previous newsletters can be found at:

http://www.levinlawoffices.co.il/articles.shtml

If you have any further queries please feel free to make use of the Contacts page on our website:
http://www.levinlawoffices.co.il/contact.shtml

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