Rights in land are the legal foundation ordering the relationship between people and property in Israel. Anchored in the Land Law, 1969, they define the scope of control, use and exploitation a person or body holds in a property — from the broadest right, ownership, down to narrower ones like the right of first refusal. They can be transferred, charged or limited per the law's conditions.
The five proprietary rights in land
- Ownership;
- Lease / long-lease (chachira);
- Mortgage;
- Right of first refusal;
- Easement (zikat hana'a).
What is ownership?
Ownership is the broadest, greatest right in land — nearly unlimited. Owning an apartment lets you hold it, use it, do anything in it, and make any transaction — subject to limits under law or agreement.
A little more detail
- Ownership of land extends to the full depth beneath it (subject to the laws on antiquities, water, oil, mines and minerals) and to the airspace above it (though that does not prevent passage through the airspace — an aircraft overhead, for example).
- Ownership covers what is built and planted on the land, and everything permanently attached to it.
- A land transaction applies to the land together with all of the above — a transaction in a defined physical part has no proprietary effect.
What is a land transaction — and why registration matters
A land transaction is the grant of ownership or another right in land by the grantor's will (excluding inheritance by will). It requires — and is completed by — registration: registration perfects the buyer's contractual right into a registered proprietary right; an unregistered deal is treated as an undertaking to transact only. And in settled land, one who acquired a right for value, relying in good faith on the registration, prevails even where the registration was wrong.
The impersonation example
Reuven owns settled land. An impostor posing as Reuven — forged ID, forged power of attorney — registers the land in Shimon's name in a 'sale'. Shimon did not rely on the registry but on the impostor's false front, so his right does not stand. But if Levi (a third party) later buys from Shimon for value, relying in good faith on Shimon's registered title — Levi's right stands even though the registration was wrong, and the original owner's title may even be expropriated in Levi's favor. The registry's power is that strong.
Can you transact in a defined part of land?
No — a land transaction has no proprietary effect unless it covers a whole unit recognized under the parcelation rules. Sarah owns a dunam and wants to sell Rivka 500 sqm marked on a sketch (say, the northern half) — that deal cannot be registered, and a bank's request to register a mortgage over those 500 sqm will be rejected. But selling an UNDEFINED share — a third, a quarter, half of the rights across every point of the land — registers fine. Likewise, spouses own their home in equal undivided shares; you cannot register one as owner of the master bedroom and the other of the kids' room. The root of the rule: the public interest in preventing over-fragmentation of land.
The exceptions we love
- An apartment in a condominium: one land parcel, many owners — parcelation divides it into sub-parcels with attached common property, creating separate whole units. From the condominium order onward, an apartment is a separate object of ownership and transactions.
- Renting a defined part — permitted: a flat-share lease can rent each room separately.
Buying or selling property and want the process handled with real peace of mind? Come get professional, attentive counsel — efficient, safe and pleasant.
The above is initial information only and does not constitute legal advice or a substitute for it. Consult an attorney specializing in the field before taking any action.
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General information — not legal advice.