Urban Renewal

TAMA 38 is a unique Israeli construction program created to strengthen and upgrade older apartment buildings. It serves to protect them from earthquakes and to increase urban housing units in high demand areas. Developers get to add new floors on the top of existing apartment buildings in exchange for improvements. These can include strengthening the existing building, or adding features such as elevators, balconies, safe rooms or parking. The tenants benefit from all of this work for free.

TAMA projects help the State of Israel enormously. They make apartments safer and stronger, create urgently needed new housing, generate jobs, and stimulate economic development and tax revenue. Additionally, investors can earn excellent returns with relatively low risk.

Aryeh Deverett, 21.03.16, www.biznessmagazine.com

National Zoning Plan 38 (TAMA 38) has two types: the first type is called TAMA 38/1, and its purpose is reinforcement and addition to an existing building. The contractor takes it upon himself to renovate a building at his own expense. In exchange for covering renovation costs, building permits and taxes, the contractor builds an additional floor or floors and sells these apartments. In the process the building is reinforced, and usually a security room and a porch are added to each apartment and often an elevator and parking are also added.

The second type is TAMA 38/2. TAMA 38/2 is the construction of a new building after tearing down the old one. Usually in a TAMA 38/2 project many more housing units are built in place of the previous building, as compared to a TAMA 38/1.

There is a lot of confusion between TAMA 38/2 and Clearing and Construction (Pinuy Binuy). While both deal with demolition and rebuilding, Pinuy Binuy is the definition of a regulation that includes tax issues, and evacuation of a bigger area, usually a complex of buildings. In practice the result is that Pinuy Binuy projects take much longer, sometimes up to 20 years before they are implemented, while TAMA 38/2 provides a faster solution; between 5 to 6 years on average.

Yitzhak Steinberg, 14.06.17, www.linkedin.com

Tenant Protection Act is a law that defines the rights and obligations of the landlord and the protection of the tenant.
It is crucial that all involved will reach a fair and balanced solution which won’t remove the economic feasibility of the project and it will void causing serious damage to the other holders of rights in a building or complex and maintain the rights of the protected tenant.
Developers who are promoting urban renewal projects in major cities and outlying towns must provide a response for the tenants in the form of alternative housing and / or financial compensation, while carrying the costs involved.
Section 131 (10) of the Landlord and Tenant Law states that if the owner of the rights was turning the property to demolish it and build in its place a new building, and he informed the tenancy written consent to alternative housing or compensation - then there is cause for eviction law.
A tenant who was evacuated from his home will receive alternative housing solution that meets their needs. Sections 133 (b) and -133 (c) of the Act provide that the nature and essence of an alternative arrangement at the discretion of the court, under the circumstances, and may be devising an apartment or home business alternative, or payment of compensation to which the tenant can obtain alternative arrangement.