Shlomi Batan attacks Kochav Yair

Unlike usual with contractors and developers, Shlomi Batan decided to get involved in local politics as well. He may not have estimated that this could be an entry into a field of thorns. In 2008, he joined the party of veteran mayor Adi Eldar, and was elected to the city council. Batan, who wanted to work with clean hands, announced with his elected representatives: “From now on, I will not build in Carmiel!”. Elder sought to promote the contractor, whom he values. The mayor worked for Batan to be appointed a member of the tenders committee and a director of the municipal economic company, and asked to be appointed chairman of the subcommittee for planning and construction as well.

Here it turned out that Elder and Batan had stepped on a minefield: the municipal attorney general had argued that there was a conflict of interest in the appointment, and vetoed it. Batan, who served on the city council voluntarily, claimed that he had stopped building in Carmiel, and that he did not see a problem of conflict of interest. But it did not help him. The attorney general explained his position, and the appointment did not materialize. “The real boss in local authorities is the attorney general, not the mayor,” protests one of Batan’s associates.

Then another small affair arose, when Batan’s daughter was appointed part-time secretary of the economic company, whose father is, as I recall, one of its directors. Opinions were heard that this was not appropriate.

At first it seemed that Batan would continue in the city for another term. In August 2013, two months before the local elections, Eldar introduced his team, after uniting his party with that of Rina Greenberg. Elder himself stands in first place, Greenberg in second place, and Tan in respectable fourth place.

Shortly before the October 22 election, however, Batan announced that he was resigning from the list and from municipal activities. He officially explained: “I want to get rid of the urban occupation and make it my home.” His associates say he was hurt by the treatment he received at the municipality.



The daughter continued to work in the economic society?



Batan: “No. She no longer works there. My daughter has moved to the center of the country, and works elsewhere.”

The truth is, indeed, that Batan has really stepped up his business activity in recent years, and may simply not have enough time for urban pursuits. At the beginning of 2013, Ofek Betan won the tender, and purchased a plot of land on 3 Pinsker Street in the Neve Sha’anan neighborhood of Haifa, near the Technion campus. Batan decided to build something innovative and special – apartments for rent for students only, under innovative conditions regarding Israel. He did so with the support and encouragement of Mayor Yonah Yahav.

Thus, quietly, quietly, Shlomi Batan became after the big developers of apartments for rent in Israel.



What did the company build?



Batan explained: “Two buildings, each 7 storeys, and in both together 128 small apartments.



What is special?



Batan added, in conversations that existed at the time: “These are mainly one-room and two-room apartments, with a high level of finish. The buyers of the apartments undertook to rent the apartments for five years, and only to students from the Technion. Investors undertake to rent each apartment to one student, not partners. The buyers are investors from the center of the country and the Krayot. “

What are the prices and what is the economic bill?

A News1 survey revealed the following data: Studio apartments, a room and ancillary services, with a finish level described as high, 44 square meters, were sold to investors for an average of NIS 390,000. The apartments were rented to students for NIS 1,500 per month, a yield of 4.5% per investor, more From what is common in apartments for rent in Israel.

Larger apartments, with 2 rooms, were sold for NIS 480,000 to NIS 690,000, and were rented at higher rents, which reflects similar profitability. The deal is probably good for all parties – with reservations.

• Students can rent a new apartment at a high level and with reasonable rents (although students were happy about the rents being too high for their liking). In addition, the contracts are for five years, until the end of their studies, which of course makes it easier.

• Investors get a higher return than usual. After 5 years they will be able to sell the apartments and probably enjoy capital gains, given the rise in apartment prices across the country. But they have a risk: if they do not find a student-tenant, the apartment will be empty for a while, and there is no income. The risk is not great, because according to the data, the demand for such apartments in Haifa is greater than the supply.

• Ofan Batan sold all the apartments. Apparently made a profit, but since it is a private company, there is no data.

• The Haifa municipality and the mayor have earned good public relations.

In May 2014, Ofek Betan entered another project. She purchased, apparently from private individuals, a plot of land in the center of Nahariya for the construction of 41 luxury apartments, not far from the beach. It was estimated at the start of construction that 110 square meters of apartments would be sold for NIS 1.3 million, and larger apartments, including penthouses, would be sold at prices of up to NIS 2.7 million.

What is the status of the project?

Betan: “All right. The construction is according to plan, and all the apartments have been sold.”



What else are you building?



Concrete: I am building 27 apartments in Herzliya, and I will soon start building 40 apartments in Tel Mond. ”

He is soon about to enter his most prestigious project to date, a cottage neighborhood in Kochav Yair. The scope of Shlomi Batan’s activity raises the question of whether his company will become public and issue shares on the stock exchange. This will allow, of course, to get more details about her business and his business.

But Batan clarified (Friday, August 19, 2016), in response to a News1 question: “I have no intention of going public.”

why?

Batan: “Simply, it does not interest me.”