The Israel Real Estate Show will be taking place on Sunday, November 14, in Brooklyn, New York, a unique event to be held in cooperation with Arutz Sheva.
The event will feature lectures and one-on-one meeting with a variety of experts, consultants and representatives of projects from all over Israel.
The Israel Real Estate Show’s producer, Gidon Katz, asks Israeli mortgage consultant Be'eri Gurtler Har-Tuv about the process for an American interested in buying property to get a mortgage in Israel.
It’s very common for foreign citizens these days to get a mortgage in Israel, explains Har-Tuv.
He adds that it can even be done before actually coming to Israel, via power of attorney or via the applicant’s Israeli consulate.
“The process is done very frequently. It’s easy and it’s becoming very common with people today,” Har-Tuv says.
However, there are many differences between mortgages taken by Israelis and those by non-Israelis.
The long term value ratio (LTV: the mount borrowed divided by the appraised value of the property) and how much mortgage one can get are not the same.
An Israeli can get a much higher mortgage that those who reside outside the state, Har-Tuv explains.
This difference is “not an obstacle that cannot be overcome” but “an issue that needs to be addressed” when looking to buy property in Israel.
There are also some misconceptions due to the many differences between Israeli and American mortgages.
The three most common:
1– A contract In Israel is binding and not dependant on obtaining a mortgage. So in Israel, people get a mortgage approval before signing a contract.
2–As opposed to the U.S., in Israel it’s “almost mandatory” that mortgage lengths are based on age.
3–In Israel, you need an ongoing income to obtain a mortgage, not just assets.
Why are one-on-one meetings important for Americans interested in buying property in Israel?
“Each buyers and each borrower has their specific situation,” Har-Tuv says.
While googling mortgage related questions can be helpful, the answers are not person specific.
“The generic answer is not always the correct answer for something specific,” Har-Tuv says. “In the conference, in additional to lectures and workshops that speak to the general population, me and several other lawyers, relators and project managers are going to be there to answer specific questions for situations in a one-on-one setting.”