“There is nothing that excites me more than making the dream come true for couples who buy apartments from us”

Resume: I joined “Sela Binui” company in 2014 as a salesperson in Nahariya. After that I managed the company’s sales system in the north, and since 2019 I have been serving as the company’s VP of sales.

 

Sheaf Leibovitz

 

How many employees in the company? 200 employees. “Sela Binui” is a group that includes a number of companies: an entrepreneurial company, an executive company and a real estate company, which lead the company’s projects in a wide national distribution of thousands of housing units – from Menhariya and Kariyat, through Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, Jerusalem to Ashdod and more .

 

Can we say that you only concentrate on building apartments? In fact, the residential market is only one part of Sela Binui’s activity. The company owns diverse real estate assets, and just recently inaugurated a spectacular office building in Chek Post. These days, “Sela Binui” is actually establishing a network of open shopping centers across the country. To these will be added mixed-use projects of hotels, offices, commerce and even sheltered housing. Today, Sela Binui deals with every field in the real estate industry.

 

As a Haifai, is there a difference between the real estate in Haifa and the neighboring cities? The main difference is in terms of value in relation to the price. The small number of construction starts in Haifa disproportionately raises the prices in the southern entrances and in the few projects that are still being built on the Carmel. At a price of A four-room apartment in Haifa, it is now possible to buy a five-room apartment in the new neighborhoods of Tirat Carmel and Kiryat Bialik, enjoy new infrastructure, a higher level of services, a young and vibrant community, and along the way earn property taxes at more reasonable prices.

 

To what extent does this really affect the departure of Haifaim to the neighboring cities? Very effective. If in the past Haifa faced the flight of young people to Gush Dan, today it is also in competition for those who choose to stay in its vicinity. Young couples and families can no longer afford to settle on the ridge. In this competition, Haifa loses a lot to the satellite cities that leave it far behind. Among my classmates from City School 1, I am one of the few who still remain loyal to the city and live in Carmel.

 

What project does your company have in the area? Today “Sela Binui” is building about 2000 housing units in Kiryat Bialik, of which 1500 apartments will be built in the Afka neighborhood in a diverse mix of luxury towers, boutique buildings and villas, next to which we are building the new shopping center of the neighborhood, Afka OPEN. Also, we will soon begin the construction of the new Ma’ar (main business center – B.C.) of the Kiryats which will include about seven towers of 30 floors above a commercial facade.

 

What has the corona virus done to you as a construction company? This is divided into two. First, the work at the company’s headquarters has mostly moved to Zoom. As soon as we realized that we were in front of an unfolding event, we made the necessary adjustments to maintain the health of the employees. Second, like the whole economy at the beginning we were in uncertainty. After that, the construction field was excluded as an essential branch and we continued to work as usual, of course subject to all the guidelines. In practice, there has been an increase in demand for large apartments. People were in lockdown and spent a lot of time at home. They were looking for open spaces and spacious kitchens as well as large balconies that became where they spent much of the day.

 

Competitors? Good relations with them, and always like to learn from each other.

 

Friends from the industry? Roy, three years old – in addition to being the owner and CEO of the “Zur Tower” company, which builds thousands of residential units in the northern region, Roy is also my best friend since our joint military service. Roy introduced me to ” Sela Binui” back in the days when it was a company at the beginning of its journey; Shay Abuhchira – CEO of Sela Binui, who has accompanied me like a big brother since the days when we worked together in the student union of the University of Haifa and led a series of struggles and reforms; Itamar Sela – one of the owners of “Sela Binui” company and a role model for me. Thanks to him, I learn new things every day and expand my horizons.

 

Interesting projects you took part in? I had the privilege of being one of the leaders of the “Gan Ha’ir” project in Nahariya, the first urban renewal project done in the periphery and included about 180 units on the ruins of 34 apartments in Matim Lipol housing estates. Haifa longs for such projects which, unfortunately, are hardly seen on the ground anymore.

 

Other interesting projects, in which I am currently involved, are the projects of “Sela Binui” in Jerusalem, in the heart of the prestigious Katmon and Arnona neighborhoods. Jerusalem is one of the most important cities in the world, and it is exciting that “Sela Binui”, which is building about 700 housing units there, has become a major player in the real estate industry in the city.

 

What is your greatest satisfaction at work? To turn a vision into reality from the stage of winning the tender, the architectural design, construction to handing over the keys to the tenants. It is a process that is like giving birth to a baby. It takes a lot of time, involves pain, but in the end it’s one big happiness. In general, there is nothing that excites me more than fulfilling the dream of couples who buy apartments from us. As someone who has experienced the world of real estate from the field, I can say with full confidence that the realization of the apartment dream for thousands of young couples throughout the length and breadth of the State of Israel is Zionism in every way.

 

Do you find some time to rest amidst all this activity? In my little free time, I usually volunteer at the “Ihud Hatzla” organization and assist it in leading national fundraising campaigns, out of great love for the organization and its people who perform sacred work. At the moment I am devoting my all to work and doing. I will have enough time to rest in retirement.