Hof Hacarmel Cummunities

Hof Hacarmel (the Carmel region beach area) is one of the most beautiful areas in the country, and one of the last places where you can still get a good seaside house for a reasonable price. Its location near Zichron Yaacov and Haifa, and its accessibility to highways 2 and 4 heading north and south, and the railway, makes it highly attractive even for people working in Tel-Aviv or Haifa.

General

Hof Hacarmel region encompasses a large area (With Tirat Hacarmel in the north and Caesarea in the south) containing settlement of different types (Kibbutzim, community settlements, communal Moshavim, and minority settlements, and also includes settlements located away from shore or right on the ridge (Such as Bat-Shlomo and Beit Oren). Generally, and in spite of its large area, there are very little real-estate transactions of buying and selling. There are two explanations for this: one is the very low population density (mostly single houses), and the number of homes in the area is low in relation to the area's size. Second is that many of the area's residents are long time residents, their estate is basically their home, and they do not move to different places in the area, region or even in the settlement itself. And third, many of the settlements do not have any real-estate activity because they are Kibbutzim, for instance. Most of the activity is in the Moshavim and in Ein-Hod, and the two will also be the focus of this article.

What makes the area so attractive?

The attractiveness of Hof Hacarmel settlements is a result of several elements: mainly it is closeness to the shore and shoreline (and for settlements located on the Carmel ridge it's the view of the sea), accessibility to major transportation routes (Highways 2 and 4) which enables easy, time-saving and comfortable transportation to the country's major employment, commerce and culture centers, whether it is north of Tel-Aviv or on the outskirts of Haifa (MATAM for instance); second, living in a community usually not more than 200 family in size; third, the inventory of secondary farms and real farms, a large plot of land of several square kilometers close to home, and in cases of real farms dozens of square kilometers for agriculture (usually not attached to the house but grouped with other farming fields of settlement residents).

Many settlements in the area have luxurious single homes ("villas") built right next to "agency" homes from the 1950s that were not renovated. Located in many yards in Moshavim are small farms still working. Some find this alarming, and others are drawn to this rural aspect in these settlements. The area's settlements are close to the sea and are topographically flat. The ground is but a few meters above sea level. In the past these settlements were famous for their winter floods, a problem that is gradually resolved as the infrastructures improve, but still exists in several settlements.

Moshavim Expansions

In a number of settlements (such as Beit Hananiya and Kerem Maharal) new expansion neighborhoods have been founded in the last few years, and the expansion plots have been tendered to "next generation" residents from the settlements with certain benefits, but also to the general publics. All lots were sold. Luxurious single family homes were built on those 500 - 750 square meters lots. The infrastructures in neighborhoods such as this are usually better developed than the infrastructure in the "core" settlements. The neighborhoods look more like villa neighborhoods than rural settlements.

Most of the lands in Hof Hacarmel are owned and leased by the Israel Land Administration. Purchasing a house in a settlement may be conditioned by passing the settlement's acceptance committee. In Ein-Hod, the artist village, there is a specific requirement that the union member will be an artist, although it seems that the definition of an "artist" has been expanded beyond plastic arts in the last years, and architects, journalists and such are accepted to the community. It's important to mention that purchasing a house in Hof Hacarmel settlements usually means handling three elements: the seller ("landlord"), the settlement ("union") and Israel Land Administration, the ultimate owners of the land. This makes purchasing a house in the area more complex than purchasing one in the city, and also longer.

Pricing

As for prices, it's very hard to draw a single conclusion for Hof Hacarmel. Some settlements have turned to actual "brands" (for instance Ein Hod and Kerem Maharal) and others still offer real deals, considering how close they are to the sea or if they have a view of it. Still, here are a number of examples: The price for a 200 m²  sized homes constructed on about 1 km² and above constructed in good standard in Ein Hod starts in $480,000 (but a more spacious and upgraded home on a better lot will cost $800,000, and the price, depending on the house and its location can also reach $1,000,000). In Moshav Ofer a "moderately" located lot with good accessibility was sold about six months ago for $180,000. 200 m² homes constructed on 1/2 km² in the Beit Hananiya Expansion are sold for $400,000 and over, depending on the size and quality of the house. 40 km² farms, including 4-6 km² attached to the residential home in Kerem Maharal, are offered for $1.5 million and more. In the Kerem Maharal expansion it's possible to purchase a house on a 700 m² lot for about $400,000. In Bat Shlomo, a house with a 30 km² farm will be sold for almost $1 million. In Moshav Dor a 6.5 km² farm with an old 220 m² home and an additional small residential unit in a good location will be sold for $1 million, but usually homes can be found in the area of $450,000 and over. In Tzrufa, on the other hand, 1/2 km² houses are sold starting from $350,000.

As for the future, in Moshav Ofer it was decided to cease expansions, and Kerem Maharal will probably also cease its expansion. Future expansions are expected in Nahsholim, Hahotrim and Moshav Dor. These will obviously draw many interested persons nationally and internationally.

About Hof Hacarmel

Hof Hacarmel regional council is located on the Carmel mountains hillside, south of the city of Haifa.

Council borders:

North: Haifa, Tirat-Hacarmel and Zevulun Reg. Council

South: Hadera, Pardes Hana - Karkur, Gan Shmuel and Menashe Reg. Council

East: Megido Reg. Council, Jezreel Valley Reg. Council and also Wadi Ara settlements.

West: The Mediterranean Sea

And in the middle: Binyamina, Zichron Yaacov, Faradis and Jiser A-Zarka

Council settlements:

Moshavim: Beit Hananiya, Bat Shlomo, Geva Carmel (established in 1947 by Turkish immigrants, named after the ancient settlement Geva that was preserved as the abandoned village of Jeva), Dor, Kerem Maharal (established in 1949 on the abandoned Arab village Igzim. Its founders were immigrants from Romania and Czechoslovakia), Megadim (about 200 families, under expansion, established by a group of immigrants from North Africa), Ofer (established in 1950 by Indian immigrants, and when most of them left native settlers replaced them as part of the movement "from the city to the village"), Ein Ayala (established on part of the land of the abandoned Arab village Ein Razela), Tzrufa (established in 1949 on the abandoned Arab village of A-Tzarfand. Its founders, 80 families from Bischara, an oasis city in northern Algiers; originally settled in Ein Hod).

Kibbutzim: Beit Oren (about 200 families, undergoing privatization and shifting from a Kibbutz to a community village, founded by the Hebrew Socialist Adolescence movement, immigrants from Poland and Russia. Over time they were joined by other groups from the Hebrew socialist adolescence, Dror and Alyiat Hanoar, and a group of members from Kibbutz Maagan), Hahotrim (about 200 families, founded on lands of the abandoned Arab village of A-Tira. Its founders are members of the "Immigrating Youths" movement, joined by members of Hanoar Haoved and Dror members from Czechoslovakia, Argentina and Uruguay), Maagan Michael, Maayan Zvi, Neve Yam (founded in 1938 on PIKA lands with the help of Keren Hayesod as part of the "Tower and Stockade" activities. Founded by members of "Gordonia Maapilim", joined by natives, members of Hanoar Haoved. In 1993 control of the farms was transferred to Hadasim, an external company they will operate the Kibbutz and restore its financial management methods. The Kibbutz's member meeting approved a 50% partnership with the company. According to the agreement the farm will be separated from the Kibbutz community), Nahsholim (established on lands of the abandoned village of Tantura, which is considered to be the biblical Dar. Its founders were native Hanoar Haoved members and Turkish immigrants), Ein Carmel (founded in 1947 by Ein Hayam Kibbutz members in the colony of Atlit, and some of Ramat Rahel's members), Sdot Yam.

Communal Moshavim: Nir Etzion (an Hapoel Hamizrahi communal moshav of about 200 families. Founded by Kfar Etzion settlers on parts of the abandoned Arab village of Ein Chod), Habonim (established in 1949 by members of Habonim organization, South African and English immigrants, and Mahal members during the war of liberation).

Community settlements: Atlit, Caesarea, Ein Hod (about 200 families, founded on the abandoned village of Ein Chod. Started as a Moshav in the Moshavim and organizations movement, and after its abandonment was settled by painters and other artist who turned it into an artists' village).

Boarding Schools: Yemin-Orde, Zvi Sitrin village, Meir Shefia (youth village)

Artist village: Ein Hod

Minority village: Ein Chod