FAQs
Foreigners, movers, tax, mortgages, and Sde Dov in 2026.
Can a foreigner buy an apartment in Israel?
Yes. There is no general ban on non-residents buying residential property. You sign under Israeli law, pay mas rechisha, and register at the Tabu. Agricultural land and some other categories are different; Sde Dov apartments are not.
Do I need to live in Israel or become a citizen?
No, not to buy. Residency changes your tax band, and citizenship, which olim receive, changes your mortgage ceiling under Bank of Israel Directive 329. They are not a condition of title.
What purchase tax does a foreigner pay in 2026?
Plan for 8 percent up to ₪6,055,070 and 10 percent above that, the same investor schedule a resident pays on an additional home. The rates come from a temporary order listed as in force to 31 December 2026; Globes reported on 7 September 2026 that the election extends it to February 2027 and that the first bracket would fall to 5 percent if it lapses. On a ₪3.75 million contract that is about ₪300,000. On ₪11 million, about ₪979,000. Confirm at signing.
What if I am making Aliyah?
A qualifying oleh on a sole Israeli residence can sit on 0 percent / 0.5 percent / 8 percent bands instead, within one year before Aliyah or seven years after, subject to the August 2024 rules; on an apartment worth more than ₪20,183,565 the relief does not apply at all. The savings on Sde Dov prices are large. Eligibility is personal.
Can I get a mortgage from abroad?
If you are not an Israeli citizen, up to 50 percent of the lower of price and appraisal: Bank of Israel Directive 329 treats any purchase by a non-citizen as an investment dwelling. An Israeli citizen living abroad buying a sole apartment can in principle reach 75 percent. Foreign income must be documented to an Israeli bank. Start the file before you reserve.
Can I buy without flying to Tel Aviv?
Yes, with a notarised, apostilled power of attorney to an independent Israeli lawyer. Expect original documents, not only PDFs, and a specific (not blanket) mandate.
When do I pay, if the tower is not built?
On the payment schedule in your off-plan contract, which varies by project. FIRST's accelerated track, for example, was reported as ₪50,000 at the purchase request, 7% at contract, a top-up to 35% at the building permit, 12.5% twice at two-year intervals and the balance six months before Tofes 4. For contracts from 7 July 2022 only the construction inputs index may be used, on at most 40% of the price, and never after the contractual delivery date. Purchase tax is still assessed on the full contract price after signing, not on the 20 percent.
How is my money protected?
The Sale (Apartments) (Assurance of Investments) Law 1974 bars the developer from taking more than 7 percent of the price without one of five securities: a bank guarantee, an insurance policy, a first-ranking mortgage, a caution note under the law's conditions, or transfer of ownership. In practice it is a bank guarantee for each payment made through the voucher book, issued within 14 business days. Your lawyer checks which security you have and registers a caution note (heara azhara).
Are asking prices on this site live?
Not until a developer price list or a confirmed source exists. Unknown stays unpublished. Registry pages say when a figure is missing. The public-prices guide is the ledger of what is actually published, with confidence labels, including the GINDI VOGUE equivalent-area table and the district's March 2026 averages.
Is a district average the same as a starting price?
No. The Sde Dov district FAQ (March 2026, Israel Tax Authority data, option deals excluded) reports average closed prices: about ₪3.79 million for 2-room units, ₪6.87 million for 3-room, ₪9.54 million for 4-room, ₪11.59 million for 5-room, and about ₪82,000 per sqm. Those averages include later and larger stacks. A marketed "from" on a two-room can sit well below them.
What is equivalent area?
Equivalent area (שטח אקוויוולנטי) is a developer marketing sqm that can mix interior, balcony, and sometimes other components. GINDI VOGUE publishes rooms × equivalent area × ₪/sqm. Multiply those columns for a comparison number; do not treat the product as the contract price of a named apartment, and do not compare it to a net-interior figure from another tower.
What is Shavnu?
Sourced market intelligence for Sde Dov. We do not sell apartments, take commissions, or hold deposits. We read the Hebrew record and put it in English, French, and Russian.
What should I check on a Sde Dov lot in 2026?
Permit stage for your building (marketing can run before a full heter bniya), whether your migrash is one of the nine plots the Environment Ministry named on 23 July 2026 (103, 105, 106, 107, 301, 303, 2102, 2206, 2207), and the approved PFAS investigation report for it, the developer's construction financing, the payment table versus CPI, and whether inclusive-housing units in the same complex are a different product from the one you are being shown.
What ongoing costs sit on top of the price?
Purchase tax, legal fees, mortgage costs, then arnona (municipal tax), va'ad bayit (building committee), parking/storage if not in the contract, and later mas shevach if you sell. Ask for a year-one cash picture, not only a price per square metre.
Want this answered for your situation?
Tell us which project you are looking at and what you need. We answer with sourced facts, not sales scripts.