Mortgage volume since the start of the year jumps 14%, nearing the 2021 peak

In depth

Mortgage volume taken out since the start of the year reached NIS 97.5 billion, a jump of about 14% compared with the same period last year. In October, mortgages worth about NIS 9.2 to 9.3 billion were taken out, according to Bank of Israel data. This is a volume similar to the real estate peak year of 2021, but the pace of transactions is about 40% lower.

The central bank reveals that despite the slowdown in apartment sales, the volume of housing credit has jumped since the start of the year and is approaching the historic highs of 2021. The Israel Association of Mortgage Advisers explains that borrowers are now paying for past transactions, and points to a public that is abandoning the index and gambling on the prime.

In October, apartment buyers took out mortgages tied to the prime interest rate worth NIS 2.27 billion, almost four times October last year, and about a quarter of mortgages in that month, the highest since April 2023. The volume of housing mortgages rose 7.1% from September to NIS 9.28 billion. The Israel Association of Mortgage Advisers said the gap between mortgage volume and the scarcity of transactions in the housing market stems mainly from past transactions under contractor financing promotions, which buyers are now completing financing for.