Data reveals: Construction defects found in the overwhelming majority of new apartments

Purchasing a new apartment is perceived by many as a transaction that should provide peace of mind, without the need to deal with repairs, wear and tear, or maintenance work. However, new data indicates that quite a few new apartments in Israel come with a "hidden bill" that includes the cost of treating construction defects that remain in the apartment after delivery.

In an analysis conducted by the company Lead Handasa, which specializes in home inspection and engineering supervision services, 2,860 home inspection reports were examined between 2024-2026. It emerges that in 100% of the apartments checked, at least one construction defect was found. The analysis also shows that in 98% of the apartments checked in Israel, plaster and paint defects were found, in 97% flooring defects, in 97% aluminum defects, and in 94% of the apartments plumbing defects.

In the inspection, it was also found that the cost of repairing the defects is on an upward trend. Thus, in 2024, the median repair cost stood at 29,615 shekels, in 2025 it rose to 34,875 shekels, and in 2026 it already reached 41,913 shekels, an increase of more than 40% in just three years.

The scope of defects measured in the sample amounted to about 129 million shekels. Based on the volume of new apartments sold each year in Israel, the company estimates that the cumulative cost of repairing construction defects in new apartments reaches 1.8-2.2 billion shekels per year.

"Today, almost every new apartment in Israel is delivered with defects," says Alex Dana, CEO of Lead Handasa. According to him, the figure that is particularly troubling is that defects worth 4.4 million shekels were repaired only after a re-inspection. "This teaches that often, even after the contractor announces that the work is completed, there is still something to check."

0% defects in electricity

Moisture and sealing defects are considered the most complex and expensive to repair, and they appeared in 77% of the reports checked. In contrast, electrical defects were documented in 0% of the reports, and safety and gas defects appeared in only 3%.

According to Dana, while some of the construction defects that were common in the past are disappearing, others continue to appear with high frequency. "If in the past we encountered basic mistakes again and again, such as connecting the bathtub to the jacuzzi plumbing, today it is a phenomenon that has become much rarer. Two or three years ago, this was a malfunction we saw often, but in recent years there has been a significant improvement."

On the other hand, according to him, in the field of flooring, almost no progress has been recorded. "On average, we still find at least ten damaged tiles in every apartment. Sometimes it is a small break in the corner of the tile, but there are also cases where we locate 50-60 damaged tiles in one apartment."

Costs are skyrocketing

• 29,615 shekels - cost of repairing defects in 2024

• 34,875 shekels - cost of repairing defects in 2025

• 41,913 shekels - cost of repairing defects in 2026

The median price of repair costs per apartment. Source: Lead Handasa

Regarding the increase in the costs of repairing defects, Dana explains that they were mainly influenced by the rise in the prices of construction inputs and the lack of manpower in recent years. "The most significant price increases occurred between 2020 and 2023, against the backdrop of the coronavirus and the start of the Iron Swords war, which led to an increase in raw material prices and a shortage of workers." He further explains that "we price the defects according to real market prices and construction inputs, which have risen by tens of percent in recent years."

"Manpower has become more expensive"

According to Haim Feiglin, Deputy President of the Israel Builders Association, the findings of the analysis are consistent with the overall price increase in the construction industry in recent years. "Beyond the construction input index, the factor that has become most significantly more expensive is the wages of professionals," he says in a conversation with Globes.

According to him, the increase in costs is particularly prominent in the field of repairing construction defects, where high skill is required. "You cannot send just any worker to repair construction defects. It is work that requires experienced professionals who know how to repair work that has already been done, and therefore the demand for them is high and their prices have risen significantly."

Feiglin adds that "it is difficult to recruit workers. It is physical and complex work, which is sometimes carried out in difficult weather conditions and in a risky work environment. As a result, the cost of employing professionals in Israel has risen by tens of percent."