An Israeli real estate agency is opening a branch in London to help the record number of British Jews making aliyah.
Montefiore Real Estate Group, based in Tel Aviv, says it won’t be offering properties for sale when it opens its first UK office.
Instead it will be providing free, impartial advice and in-depth guidance to anyone looking to buy – or rent – a home in Israel.
“After seeing aliyah requests from the UK at a 40-year high, and with everything that’s going on, we decided to open a physical presence in the UK to assist UK families,” said Roie Kaner, the company’s founder and CEO.
“There will be no shop on the street with A4 pages stuck to the window. We’re not here to sell properties. We are here to provide advisory services, hoping that these clients, should they get good service, will choose us eventually.”
He’s adamant that there will no charge, no strings attached, no contract and no consultation fee.
“Our hope is that people will come and get great professional advice – that could otherwise cost the thousands of shekels – and that at the end of the day, they will choose to use us as their brokers,” he said.
Most overseas buyers struggle to navigate an unfamiliar market in an unfamiliar language and an unfamiliar culture. Israel’s famously tangled bureaucracy doesn’t make matters any easier.
Kaner says his company aims to offer “a safe haven for foreign buyers and olim hadashim [new immigrants to Israel]” that will make the whole process much smoother.
He founded Montefiore in 2017, specifically for diaspora clients buying high-end properties in Israel. A Tel Aviv penthouse at NIS 85 million (£21million) is currently its top listing.
He says the firm started taking on domestic clients as a result of of Covid and the war, but is back to a point where 60 per cent of buyers now come from abroad.
Aliyah from the UK is at a record high and annual reports of antisemitic incidents are almost as high as 2023, when they peaked following the October 7 attacks.
“More families are now asking practical, long-term questions,” said Kaner.
“Where should we buy in Israel? Should we invest before making aliyah? What city/area would be the right fit? Should we buy or rent first?
“What legal, financial, mortgage, tax, currency and design considerations should we understand before making a decision?”
He says his company’s role is not to sell properties, nor is it to provide general aliyah services, like Nefesh b’Nefesh or the Jewish Agency.
“We’re here to help people in communities who want to learn about Israeli real estate, who are thinking about making the move but they want to know what is the best area for them to be in,” he said.
Other developers and real estate companies hold one-off events to attract buyers, he says.
“They come to London, they make an event, sit with 20, 30, 40 people and try to sell them their development.
“And then they go home, you know, hoping to make a quick buck, maybe sell an apartment or two and boom, they fly home and that’s it. That’s something we don’t want to do. We want to be a part of the community.”
Kaner says they already have their “person on the ground” – Uriya Gordon from Israel, who will work from an office in St John’s Wood and who has already been meeting people ahead of the forthcoming launch.
“Opening in London allows us to give British clients direct access to Israeli market expertise before they even board a plane,” said Kaner.
“Israel is a complex, emotional and highly local market. Our role is to help clients understand not only what they can buy, but what truly fits their life, their family and their future.”
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