Jerusalem Overtakes Tel Aviv: 2025 Israel Real Estate Market Results
In 2025, Jerusalem surpassed Tel Aviv for the first time in total apartment sales volume within the Israeli real estate market. This is according to official data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), published in early 2026.
Total Market Volume in 2025
By the end of the year, approximately 90,690 apartment sale transactions were concluded in Israel—an 11.9% decrease compared to 2024, but a 26.9% increase compared to the crisis-ridden 2023. The market experienced a significant downturn, primarily due to high interest rates, economic uncertainty, and reduced mortgage affordability.
- New Apartment Sales (Developers): Plunged by 25.5%, with only about 34,030 units sold. Excluding subsidized programs, the decline in the private free market reached 34%.
- Second-Hand Market (Yad Shniya): Remained relatively stable with only a 1% decrease, totaling approximately 56,660 apartments sold.
Sales Leaders: Jerusalem Pulls Ahead
For the first time in many years, Jerusalem became the leading city in total apartment sales:
- Jerusalem: 5,638 transactions (approximately one-third were new constructions).
- Tel Aviv: 5,159 transactions (46% were new apartments).
Notably, Tel Aviv remained the leader specifically in new apartment sales (2,372 units), followed by Ofakim, Jerusalem (1,911), Lod, and Netanya. Tel Aviv also maintains its status as Israel’s most expensive city, while Jerusalem shows price growth in specific segments.
