Ganei Omer retirement village

To all Southern African Olim and potential Olim

When people meet, very often among the first questions asked, are, Where do you live? Why there?

We have decided to write a letter, explaining to elderly South Africans already living in Israel, or who are thinking of settling in Israel, how we came to be living in a Retirement Village called Ganei Omer, located in an upscale village called Omer, some six or seven kilometers east of Be’er Sheva.

May we firstly introduce ourselves, Gordon (81) and Dorothy (76) Mandelzweig, ex Sandringham, Johannssburg, who  came to Israel and settled in Rishon LeZion  17 ½ years ago. We moved to Ganei Omer 3 ½ years ago when Dorothy decided it was time for Gordon to retire.

Why to Ganei Omer?

There are three main reasons.

Price

Location

Facilities.

To go into this in detail.

Price:  3 ½ years ago Ganei Omer was the only place that we could find where we could purchase a home and obtain title deeds. Everywhere else one has to put down a deposit equivalent to the value of the unit. The value of the deposit is then reduced generally by 2 ½% to 3% a year for ten years, and thereafter remains fixed. We decided that we were not prepared to loose that 25% to 30% of our deposit. Over and above that, the purchase price of units in Ganei Omer were considerably less (and still remain so) than the deposits anywhere else. The set-up here is that of a private non-profit company run by a Board of Directors elected by unit owners, and each unit owner is an equal shareholder of the company.

We did have the option to rent, but that is only possible by private arrangement with an owner and is still subject to the village conditions. We did not wish to rent.

Rental prices range from +- $100 per month for a 40 sq. meter 1.5 room house to +- $400 per month for a 75 sq. meter 3 room house.

Purchase prices range from +- $50,000 for a 40 sq. meter 1.5 room house to +- $130,000 for a 75 sq. meter 3 room house

Location:  Our preferences were obviously first and foremost close to members of our family, relatives and friends, (who all live in the centre of the country), but price above ruled otherwise. Also high speed trains and the hopefully soon to be completed Highway 6 to near Beersheva to some extent offsets this disadvantage. There are however other advantages, a drier, less humid climate that suited us better than the climate anywhere else along the coastal plain.

Out of three possible choices, an individual cottage, a semi-detached cottage in rows, or a flat in a multi story building, there is only one type of unit in Ganei Omer,. We are very happy in our three roomed semi-detached little cottage, with a large stoep and tiny garden.

Facilities:  In comparison with other Retirement Homes and Villages, entertainment facilities here are somewhat less than elsewhere, but then our monthly maintenance fees are considerably less that elsewhere, which suits our pockets just fine. We have lectures and entertainment provided, exercise classes suitable for our age, swimming pool and gym facilities, a dining room serving one midday meal per day, with the exception of Shabbat, and a nurse and a doctor on the premises for a number of hours per day. There is a separate Frail Care facility on the site run by a different organization which gives a discount to residents who need frail care accomodation. At the moment we have an English speaking group of some 20 to 25 individuals who organize English speaking events for themselves. The Village Management organizes tours throughout the country at special rates.

For a small additional charge of N.I.S. 120 a month, unit owners or renters can, if they so wish, join a separate organization that is subsidized by the Government and the Omer Town Council, that provide additional very useful facilities. We are members.

There are two hurdles to becoming residents of the Village which have to be mentioned. One is that there is a reception committee of unit owners who interviews and accepts or rejects applicants on the basis of age or other reasons. The age limits are generally between 55 and 79, but there have been exceptions. The second reason is that applicants must be medically approved by the village doctor.

For reasons of resident’s safety no pet dogs are allowed in the village.

In conclusion we are happy to state that right now we are more than satisfied that we made the right decision to make our home here.

Note. The table of costs etc. attached to our letter, was prepared in discussion between Telfed and the Village Manager without any input from ourselves.

We shall be happy to welcome you here and we are available for any queries you may want to make, either by e-mail to dorgon@netvision.net.il stating the “Subject” to be Ganei Omer, by phone to 08 690 9502, or by post to P.O. Box 139 Ganei Omer,  OMER  84965, ISRAEL.

Gordon and Dorothy Mandelzweig.