Property Not Registered with the Tabu in Israel: Buying Safely
In Israel, not all apartments are listed in the land registry. A significant share of homes, especially in newer buildings and on state land, are registered elsewhere: with the Land Authority or in the books of a "housing company." For the French-speaking buyer, this changes the checks to be carried out and the way to protect oneself between signing and final registration.
I. Why So Many Properties Are Not (Yet) Registered with the Tabu
The Tabu (ืืืื), or Land Registry Office, is the public register where ownership of a property is legally established. When an apartment is registered there, the buyer files a warning note upon signing, and later becomes the registered owner. But three common situations fall outside this framework:
State-owned land. More than 90% of Israeli territory belongs to the State, the Jewish National Fund, or the Development Authority, and is managed by theLand Authority (ืจืฉืืช ืืงืจืงืขื ืืฉืจืื, Rami). One does not buy full ownership there but a very long-term lease, the hakhira le-dorot (ืืืืจื ืืืืจืืช).
New buildings not yet registered as a condominium. As long as the plot has not been subdivided and the building has not been registered as a bayit meshoutaf (ืืืช ืืฉืืชืฃ), buyers' rights are held in a private register by a hevra meshakenet (ืืืจื ืืฉืื ืช), generally the developer or its law firm.
Undivided land, where each person holds a share without a specific apartment assigned in the register: the most delicate case.
In the first two cases, the purchase is common and safe, provided other tools than those of the Tabu are used.
II. The Rami Lease: What You Are Actually Buying
On state land, the "owner" is in fact a very long-term tenant, usually for 49 renewable years. This lease is sometimes registered with the Tabu, in which case the usual registry mechanisms apply; sometimes it exists only in Rami's records. Before signing, several points must be checked:
the rights certificate (ืืืฉืืจ ืืืืืืช) issued by Rami, which indicates the leaseholder, the remaining term, mortgages, and any restrictions;
whether the lease is capitalized (ืืืืื ืช), meaning whether the fee has been paid in advance for the entire term: an uncapitalized lease may result in consent fees (ืืื ืืกืืื) payable by the seller upon transfer;
the compliance of the construction with the lease terms, failing which Rami may require regularization before approving the sale;
the property's eligibility for the reform that allows, for many urban homes, converting the lease into full ownership.
The transfer of rights must be approved by Rami, after submission of tax and municipal clearances: this additional delay must be factored into the payment schedule.
III. The Hevra Meshakenet: A Private Register
When you buy a new apartment whose building is not yet registered as a condominium, the seller does not hold title with the Tabu but contractual rights, recorded in the books of the hevra meshakenet. It also issues a rights certificate (holder, mortgages, notified sales). Three precautions are essential:
obtain a certificate dated the day of signing, then an updated one before paying the balance;
check the progress of the building's registration: the law on the sale of apartments requires the developer to register the condominium within a certain period, and a prolonged delay is a warning sign;
ensure that the developer's mortgage to its bank has indeed been released on the apartment in question (the well-known exclusion letter, ืืืชื ืืืจืื).
The main risk lies in the private nature of this register: its reliability depends on the company's diligence, and a developer's failure complicates everything.
IV. Securing the Purchase Without a Warning Note
Without the possibility of a warning note at the Tabu, the buyer's lawyer reconstructs equivalent protection by combining several instruments:
registering a lien (ืืฉืืื) on the seller's rights, in favor of the buyer, with the Lien Register (ืจืฉื ืืืฉืืื ืืช) : it is this register, not the Tabu, that makes the transaction enforceable against third parties;
the notification of the transaction to the hevra meshakenet or to Rami, which records it in its books and subsequently refuses to register a competing sale;
an irrevocable power of attorney (ืืืคืื ืืื ืืืชื ืืืืจ) from the seller allowing the transfer to be completed even if the seller becomes unreachable;
for bank financing, an undertaking to register a mortgage (ืืชืืืืืืช ืืจืืฉืื ืืฉืื ืชื) signed by the housing company in favor of the bank;
a staged payment schedule, with the balance held in escrow until the certificates and transfer approval are obtained.
V. Points of Caution for a Buyer Residing in France
From abroad, these cases require special organization. Approval timelines from Rami and the housing company are longer and less predictable than those of the Tabu: the contract must set realistic dates and clear consequences in case of delay. The power of attorney given to the lawyer must expressly cover dealings with Rami, the hevra meshakenet, and the Lien Register. Finally, final registration with the Tabu may only occur years later, upon registration of the condominium: powers of attorney and certificates must be kept so that this step does not require the buyer's presence.
Conclusion โ Why Get Support from a Lawyer When Buying a Property Not Registered with the Tabu?
An apartment registered with Rami or a housing company is not a second-tier property, but one that is secured differently. The lawyer identifies the exact status of the rights being sold, reviews the rights certificates, anticipates the fees that Rami or the company may charge, sets up the lien, notifications, and powers of attorney that replace the warning note, and follows the case through to final registration with the Tabu. Where the land registry cannot yet protect the buyer, legal support makes all the difference.
