House prices continue to climb, increasing 7.2% from last year
House prices in Israel continued to advance in April and May, surging 7.2% on average from the same period last year, according to the latest data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).
Prices increased across the country, with the highest peak in the north at 8.8%.
In Tel Aviv, prices have risen 1.3% since the March-April period alone.
New Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman said this week he was very concerned about soaring housing prices and was working alongside Housing Minister Ze’ev Elkin to provide solutions.
CBS data also showed Israel’s consumer price index rose 1.6% year-to-date.
Housing prices in Israel have continued to rise in recent years, and the rising cost of living in the country has fueled a series of protests in Israel over the past decade.
Home sales fell to their lowest level in nearly two decades during the COVID pandemic last year. There were 16,800 apartments purchased in the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 27% from the same quarter in 2019.
Sales rebounded over the summer and Israelis ended up taking out a record amount of mortgages in 2020, despite the economic chaos caused by the pandemic.