Please Note: The company has elected to not provide the reporter with pricing and prices quoted here are his estimates only. This article was published December, 2006 and these estimates were a fair estimate by the writer on the publication date only. Dreams Come True in Karkur The review of the big real estate projects that are under construction in Zichron Yaacov, Binyamina-Givat Ada , Pardes Hanna-Karkur areas is continuing. You have already read that it's not needed to have at least half a million dollars in order to move and live here. You also don't need to be exited when you see big advertising boards of entrepreneurs, addressed primary to target public including accountants, advocates, doctors etc. Even if you are a young couple, you are acquiring your first apartment, and your name is not attached to an academic title, you have a chance for a house of your own in the area. Here, in the "Karkur Dreams" project of the "Shikun Ovdim" company that we are reviewing, you can find an apartment starting at 640 thousand... Shekels! Yes, in Karkur, in a quiet rural area, close to Kibutz Mishmarot and adjacent to the existing rural construction of Karkur, near the Hanassi, Hagalil and Deganya Streets, Shikun Ovdim is building the "Karkur Dreams" project. A project that we expect to be terminated in 3 to 5 years, and once terminated will be home for 420 families. The land was acquired by "Shikun Ovdim" already 45 years ago, in 1961, as we were told by the company, and the initiative of beginning the land improvement now is a consequence of approval of the city construction plan Shin/24/Alef six months ago, in July 2005.  Stage A consists of 2 residential towers (buildings 6 and 7). The construction has not started yet and in fact the project has not been formally launched yet by Shikun Ovdim. On the other hand, the apartment purchasers show a lot of interest in the project, and the sales have begun before the anticipated festival launch of the project. An example apartment has been constructed and in a short time, once it will be furnished, it will be possible to visit it and get an impression of the finishing quality proposed by "Shikun Ovdim" in this project.
In total there will be 14, 8 stores residential towers in the project, with 30 apartments in each. A typical floor contains 4 apartments. The towers' design, by architect Dany Eyal, is very esthetic. The graduation of the first floors and a decorative roofing tiles cover of the circumference of each tower are an expression of the integration effort into the neighboring rural environment. But the plan of the towers is not only esthetic. The architect paid a particular attention to the functionality and to the privacy of the future towers' residents. Each typical apartment has three exposures and the buildings are constructed so that they are partly graduated. Therefore, for instance, a family living in a garden apartment doesn't see the residential tower standing out from its yard, and they may be exposed to at most one balcony of the 1st floor neighbors situated above them and no more. Moreover, the architect took care that the common wall between two adjacent apartments of the same floor will be a kitchen wall, to provide greater privacy for the residents. A separate entrance is designed for each of the garden apartments, to increase their privacy. We expect that the population date will be at the beginning of 2009. It's worth noting that the land is private and registered in the land registry office. The back of Shikun Ovdim Who is searching a financially solid contractor will have difficulty to find a construction company in Israel more solid than the entrepreneur that builds the "Karkur Dreams". Shikun Ovdim was established 70 years ago and is the executing arm of Shikun ve Binuy Holdings controlled by the Business woman Sherry Harrison (by the way, her father, Ted, was born in Zichron Yaacov). The company is known as the biggest real estate entrepreneur in the country. Until today the company has lodged more than 170,000 families all over the country, including in single homes and entire neighborhoods, such as "Kiryat Onno Dreams", "Givataim Dreams", "Givat Shoham", "Ir Yamim" in Ramat Poleg and The Island project in the Marina of Herzliya, which was built on a parcel of sea that was dried for the project. In our region the company is building the "Zichron Yaacov Dreams" project in Zichron Yaacov, partnering with "Amirey Gan" company; a project we will review in our series about the "real estate treasures". By the intermediary of Skom, its daughter company, Shikun Ovdim is active in non residential construction, such as commercial real estate, tourism, leisure and offices. Shiku Ve Binuy Holdings, the mother company of Shikun Ovdim has many operations abroad. It's also the mother company of "Solel Boneh" and holds half of the shares in "Carmel Tunnels", and "Stone and Lime Industries" and more than a third of "Crossing Israel" Company's shares. Shikun Ovdim will also build a Park! Shikun Ovdim is known as a company that doesn't build only residential units, but provides its apartment purchasers a neighborhood with all that is implied by this word. Also in the "Karkur Dreams" project the company intends to build a park on a surface of 9 dunams, with many public green areas, sitting corners, paved paths and amusement parks for the numerous children that will are supposed to live in the "Karkur Dreams". At the time of the delivery of the project to the residents, Shikun Ovdim will transfer to the local council of Pardes Hanna-Karkur the responsibility for the maintenance of the public areas. The public infrastructures of the project (water, sewage, etc.) will be performed by the local council, among others from the taxes and contributions that the council collects from Shikun Ovdim. The company will not build as part of the project educational institutions and public buildings. Those are located at a short walking distance from "Karkur Dreams". The elementary national school "Alonim" is located on the Habanim road not far away from the project. The religious elementary school "Morasha" is located at the Shabazi Street. Daily shopping will be probably done by the residents at the supermarket on the Meyasdim Street or in Pardes Hanna's center. Bigger shopping may be done after a short drive to the Iron junction ("Alonit"), or to Gan Shmuel. These shopping centers are open 7 days a week until late at night. The middle and upper high school are at the agriculture school in Pardes Hanna, a walking distance from "Karkur Dreams". An Ashkenazi and Sephardic synagogues are located at the Habanim Street in Karkur. The construction of year 2006 The two first buildings of stage A are just before the beginning of construction, and the apartments are on sale now. Two fast and comfortable 8 passengers' elevators are located in each tower. The elevators' control enables to operate them in Shabbat mode, thus allowing the residents respecting the Shabbat to continue and use them (not a negligible thing for residents at the upper floors of the towers). Each building will have a luxurious lobby and a 20 m² room that may be used as a club for the residents' convenience. The size of the residential area and the park ensures that from all the buildings there will be a spectacular view in all directions, and of course especially from the upper floors.  Each building will have a central supply of gas. Each apartment includes a secured residential space. All apartments, except the basic 4 room apartments will have a storage room which is included in the price. For some of the apartments the storage room is located on the same floor as the apartment. Most of the penthouses have an additional storage room. A garbage room is located in each tower and is designed so that its access for the residents is from the inside of the building and the access for the service personnel is from the outside, without a need to enter the building. Each of the first towers has a parking lot. Each purchaser of an apartment will have a reserved parking space and Shikun Ovdim promises that parking space was allocated also for visitors. For the second car and the visitors, parking bays will be available along the street. The organization and membership in a building committee is reserved to the future residents in the "Karkur Dreams" towers and the company have not taken any commitment in their name to any managing company or management agreement.
Even though "Shikun Ovdim" has not yet definitively contracted with sub-contractors and suppliers, it promises already now that the technical specification will be very rich and will include an external rigid coating to the building, a designed lobby, a preparation to apartmental air conditioning, kitchen cupboards with Caesar stone surface, acrylic sink, preparation for a dish washer, a cupboard in the bathroom, glazed porcelain paving in a color chosen by the purchasers, intercom with closed circuit television and a telephone and cable connection point in each room of each apartment. Also, each apartment contains a designed entrance door, semi-parquet floor in the parents unit and electric blinds in the living room. Advantages Apartments' prices in the "Karkur Dreams" project start at a very attractive price compared to the price of houses in the area. The "Karkur Dreams" neighborhood is affordable for first apartment purchasers and the neighborhood is very attractive for young families with children. Who doesn't dispose of an unlimited budget, but still looks for a life style in a rural calm environment, close to parks and nature reserves, and at a reasonable distance from Israel's employment, commerce and leisure centers, will have to inquire about "Karkur Dreams". Like the entire region, the "Karkur Dreams" neighborhood is very accessible. The entry to and exit from the locality in the direction of route 65 (Wadi Ara) and from there to the Iron junction and route 6 is easy. A short drive brings you to the railway station located in the industrial area of Caesarea, (which now, after the termination of the works there, is easily accessible also from the direction of Pardes Hanna) and to routes 4 and 2. Once segment 18 of route 6 ("crossing Israel") will be terminated, the drive northward from "Karkur Dreams" to the Ein Tut junction, by the Hagit site on route 70 ("Wadi Milek") in Yokneam's direction, and in the future towards Kiryat Shmona and Nehariya will be shortened significantly. And what about public transportation users? Lines 4 and 34 have bus stops nearby the project, at the Meyasdim Street. Prices Representatives of Shikun Ovdim that we have met preferred at this stage not to publish the pricelist of the apartments, except the basic 4 room apartment which is proposed for 640,000 NIS. This is a 113 m² apartment with a balcony of 11 m². This is the only model of apartment that does not include a storage room. We are assuming (without having a confirmation from "Shikun Ovdim") that the price of the most luxurious apartment, the 5 room penthouse of 147 m² and a 74 m² balcony will attain 828,000 NIS. In the table below we have tried our best to estimate the prices for the other types of apartments. All prices are attached to the consumer price index. The price of each apartment includes one attached parking space registered in the land registry office. The prices include VAT of 15.5% and development. The price does not include the attorney's fees which are 2% of the price and purchase tax as required by law. The company supplies a banking guarantee for the purchasers' money as collateral required by the law of sale (apartments). The order of payments is flexible, as usual in the "Shikun Ovdim" projects and is adapted to the possibilities of the purchasers. Model | Rooms | Toilets | Shower | Bathroom | Surface (m²) | More | Price in NIS(including VAT) | Apartment | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 113 | 11 m² balcony | 640,000 | Apartment | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 134 | Storage room + 13 m² balcony | 719,000 (*) | Terraced apartment | 4.5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 134 | Storage room + 28 m² balcony | 720,000 (*) | Terraced apartment | 5.5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 148 | Storage room + 32 m² balcony | 775,000 (*) | Garden Apartment | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 141 | Storage room + 134 m² garden | 790,000 (*) | Penthouse | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 147 | Storage room + 74 m² balcony | 828,000 (*) |
The difference between floors: at least 7,000 NIS for the normal 4-5 room apartments (*) The company decided not to inform us about the prices of these apartments and the price given here is just our estimation! Who is purchasing Shikun Ovdim reports about a lot of interest in the project all over the country. Purchasers in the project arrived from Kfar Saba, Rishon Letzion, Hod Hasharon, Haifa, Hakrayot, and even from Jerusalem. For most of the purchasers in this project, this is their first purchase of an apartment. For the company this is an advantage, as the purchasers don't need to sell their existing apartment in order to buy the apartment in "Karkur Dreams". We are expecting that apartment improvers from the area of Pardes Hanna and Karkur will also join the project. The hot market in the area guaranties that they will have no difficulty to sell their apartment and to realize their dreams in the "Karkur Dreams".
A version of this article by Yoav Etiel appeared in the Magazin Hamoshavot ("The Colonies Magazine") weekly Yoav Etiel is a Partner at BarEl Properties, Ltd. © 2006 BarEl Properties, Ltd. All Rights Reserved
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