The Marker, Gili Melnitsky, 08.09.2020

The state is promoting an initiative that will replace the work of appraisers with a computerized system. This will determine the value of the land marketed by the Israel Land Authority (RMI). The decision proposal of the Israel Land Council will be up for discussion and voting today (Tuesday).

The explanatory memorandum reads: "Individual and general assessments, which are determined exclusively by appraisers, cause delays in the process of conducting the transaction and as a result in the entire economic activity."

In order to shorten the times and prevent delays, especially in areas near conflict lines in the periphery, where there is an exemption from charging the value of the land according to orderly mechanisms, Rami proposes to promote a computerized mechanism that will shorten the transaction process. Automatic allocations in places where the land is known to be allocated without charge, so that no waiting for an individual assessment will be required. In the future, Rami proposes to promote an option that will expand the mechanism and address the needs of additional threats that will facilitate transactions.

Haim Mesilati Photo: Ofer Vaknin

"This proposal is in line with the Authority's actions to streamline work processes and improve service to the citizen," the statement said. On the other hand, Haim Mesilati, chairman of the Bureau of Real Estate Appraisers, believes that the decision to work not on the basis of individual assessments, which currently only covers places where the land is allocated zero, may make sense in the immediate term of cost savings, but can not replace the individual assessment.

A letter sent to Litzman this morning on behalf of the Office of Real Estate Appraisers reads: For accuracy and presentation of true land values, even in places where the land is marketed at zero amount. "

According to Mesilati, "In point cases where the land is allocated a zero amount and the state has no income, but has costs for professionals, what is more, the assessment process takes time, the assessment is made and used only for the purpose of registering the value of the property in the books. "At the moment, it is not visible on the surface."

Ohad Danos  Photo: Dudu Bachar

The solution for Mesilati is to "increase the number of private appraisers in the government appraisal pool, in a way that will respond quickly and accurately to those in demand. Land on the basis of an algorithm only. "It is impossible to replace the professional work of the appraiser with a computerized system," he says.

Ohad Danos, former president of the Bureau of Real Estate Appraisers, believes that action should be taken to neutralize the initiative at all stages, and sees RMI's conduct as delaying the construction and allotment of land in Israel, and not the work of appraisers. Light a bright burgundy light bulb at the heads of the law enforcement system in Israel. We are at the beginning of a slippery slope that ends with the handing over of state lands to associates at exorbitant discounts and while robbing the public coffers. Currently, the tables are applied only to transactions in which there is no 'charge' (land allocation in the periphery, for example). However, it is clear that all this sophisticated move was made so that associates could be 'pampered' later on. The law stipulates that only the government appraiser may conduct valuations of state lands. What is happening here is an attempted robbery under the auspices of the Corona and the chaos it brought with it. "

Real Estate Appraiser Shmulik Cohen of SK Real Estate Appraisal believes that "this is populism. The initiative is on the verge of a sad joke and stems from a minimal lack of understanding of the appraiser's work. Real estate appraiser perfects infinite quantitative parameters, Planning, environmental, licensing, etc. For the sake of illustration, sometimes in two adjacent adjacent plots in the valuation can even reach tens of percent due to landscape, air directions, infrastructure passing through the plot (high voltage line, water pipe), accessibility to the project, etc. The move will not only not speed up the marketing of land, but may lead to damage to the viability of project construction, profitability and even to the collapse of projects due to incorrect computing / automatic pricing. "