How to Read an Apartment Classified Ad

When you start your search you will need to know the lingo that is used in the classifieds. Some of the words used are acronyms so try and figure it out or ask a seasoned apartment hunter.
2 room, 3 room 4 room or 5 – Take away 1 and you will have the amount of bedrooms. So, a 4 room apartment is a 3 bedroom unit.
2.5 – the .5 means half a room. Sometimes it was a mirpeset that was enclosed or a larger room that was divided into two. Or sometimes it is just a smaller room.
Koma Vav – 6th level. Israelis count the levels starting from the 2nd floor. So, koma bet is not the 2nd floor but rather the 2nd floor ABOVE the ground floor.
3 of 9 – 3rd level of a 9 level building.
Beli – “Without” as in the apartment is on the 3rd level of a 4 level building “without” an elevator.
Kneisa – Entrance. Many apartments have 2 or more entrances and are usually named Kneisa Aleph, Bet, Gimel etc.
Mirpeset Shemesh – a balcony that extends from the building as opposed to mirpasot that are often part of the building. If you need a mirpeset for a suka, ask. Many people who can’t build sukot on their balconies will build a suka in the parking lot or the yard. Ask.
Parking on Tabu – Parking can occasionally be an issue in some older buildings and if your unit comes with parking on Tabu it means that you own the right to park your car in a particular spot. It does not allow you to use the parking space to build, only for parking.
Dude Shemesh – Solar powered water heater that usually also contains an electric heater to heat water on days when there is not enough sun to warm your water.
Gamish – Flexible. It might refer to the price (as in, we are asking 1.5 million, but are flexible) or the date that the apartment will be handed over to the buyer. Closings are often 6 months to a year away from a sale so make sure you are looking at a property with a closing that suits your purpose.
Mazgan – Air Conditioner
Mazgan Merkazi – Central air conditioner
Mini Merkazi – Small central air conditioner
Machsan – Storage locker
Soragim – Security bars on the windows

Prices

Because there are no published listings of sold units one can only estimate the going prices. Listed prices in the classified ads can be deceiving because at times there can be a large gap between the asking price and what units actually sell for.