Yoram Eliyahu: Real Estate Investment Tips

As an extremely successful commercial real estate investor and developer, Yoram Eliyahu is often asked for advice from those looking to replicate his success. Every person’s experience in real estate investing will be different. Furthermore, changes in the industry mean that cookie-cutter formulas will not work. However, there are some basic tips he can share for those looking to get started in the world of real estate investing.

First, you need to understand the difference between speculating and investing. Speculating is often buying a chunk of land or other property in the hopes that it will rise in value and you can sell it at a profit. Some people do very well in this game. Speculating is risky, and requires both patience and a deep understanding of the area you are buying into. Some factors to consider when choosing a speculative property are the value of nearby areas, the current new building rate and the direction of growth. For example, are new homes and businesses being built on the side of town where you want to buy? You also need to consider how long you can afford to have your money tied up in a property waiting for it to grow in value.

Investing involves making a real estate purchase that will allow you to collect income immediately or very soon. For a small-scale investor, this would be something like buying an older home at a deal because it is in need of cosmetic repair, fixing it up, and then renting it at a rate that covers your expenses and provides a profit. Buying land on which you plan to develop and then rent out immediately is also investing. Yoram Eliyahu favors this method because any further appreciation in the value of the property is icing on the cake. You also do not have to wait to sell in order to see a profit.

Do Your Homework

The most important piece of advice Yoram Eliyahu can give to prospective investors is to do your homework. Look into the current rental rates in the area to ensure the price you need to charge can be supported by the local market. If you plan to do improvements yourself, make sure you are aware of local permit laws. Before buying into a development, Yoram suggests you carefully price the cost of labor, materials, and other expenses that can easily balloon out of control and destroy your profits.He makes sure his business practices fall into line with his personal values and he urges investors to keep the good of the community in mind as well. 

Yoram Eliyahu: Good Works Through Real Estate

Yoram Eliyahu enjoys how his work as a real estate developer allows him to be successful in his personal life while benefiting communities. In his personal life, Yoram and his large family engage in work that helps the communities around them.They pack and deliver boxes of food to local residents in need through Chabad houses. However,Yoram does not separate his professional life from his personal life. He seeks to do good works in every aspect of his life.

Well known for his real estate developments, Yoram’s investments include Miami hotels, and apartments that serve as housing for Manhattan and Brooklyn college students. His hope for each investment is that they strengthen the surrounding area. It is not enough to profit forhimself, he wants his properties to enhance their neighborhoods and be an asset to the area. Upholding his personal beliefs in his business practices is a source of great satisfaction for Yoram.He takes joy in knowing his hard work benefits so many people.

His vast experience in real estate development projects that better communities also benefit the Jewish community. He is proud of his Jewish heritage and is active in promoting the preservation of Jewish culture. Through strategic investments in Israel and the United States, he is able to use his business to encourage the values that guide him. YoramEliyahu is passionate about helping others, valuing family, and celebrating the rich Jewish culture. He uses every tool available to him, including business know-how, in order to encourage those values in others.

Inspiring the Next Generation

Family man Yoram Eliyahu knows that the next generation is of utmost importance. Through business endeavors such as building of a state-of-the-art new wing for a local high school, he gives from his heart to benefit young people. He supports causes in Israel and New York, which teach traditional values of service and family to Jewish children. Yoram’s focus is on making sure his business practices match his personal life to serve the people around him.

YoramEliyahu - Feed Local Chabad Work

YoramEliyahu believes that our choices affect people around us,regardless of our intentions. The Torah teaches that one’s income is only partly ours. It is meant to not just meet our own needs, but to serve the needs of others. We have a moral obligation to care for each other. This belief compels Yoram to do good works in his immediate community, nearby communities, and throughout the world. He does so through his business practices, charitable giving, and by getting himself and his family out on the streets helping others.

Yoram has contributedto many causes. He donated funds to help rebuild the synagogue in his Israeli hometown when it was destroyed by missile fire. Additionally, in order to encourage the people and meet their spiritual needs, he commissioned aSefer Torah and ensured its safe delivery to the town. Closer to his current home in New York, Yoramgave generously to the building of a state-of-the-art new wing to the North Shore Hebrew Academy’s high school. He also commissioned a Sefer Torah for their facility. Yoram does these things because he feels blessed by the success he had had as a commercial real estate developer. He wants to share that blessing with others while encouraging the teaching of values that instruct others to do the same.

One of the projects dearest to his heart is the workChabad houses near him do in his community and in neighboring communities. Not content to just help with the charitable works of his local Chabad, Yoram also assists a nearby Chabad in a less affluent neighborhood. Through the Chabad, he raises funds to assist the needy. However, giving money is not enough. He believes it is essential to do personal work as well. He and his family help with projects such as creating boxes of food to distribute to families in need during the holidays. YoramEliyahu and his children then help deliver these gifts door to door, in person.

Jewish Activism

YoramEliyahu believes that preserving traditional Jewish culture and teaching the ancient ways is very important. This is why he has given to his hometown synagogue, commissioned the creation of two Sefer Torah, and gives to the yeshiva in his community. As a child, Yoramenjoyed growing up in a large, traditional family in Israel. As a young adult, he found comfort and purpose from the holiday ceremonies and fun activities provided by Chabad. When he immigrated to the United States, he again found community in Chabad. Now he wants others to experience those special things.Heconducts his business and personal life in a way that serves others and affirms faith and family.

Yoram Eliyahu: Value of Education

YoramEliyahu considers education one of the most vital tools in life. His commitment to education stems from personal experience in how it benefitted him. His work with Chabad also strengthened his love of education. The word “Chabad” is an acronym of the Hebrew words for wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. These attributes are highly valued in this Jewish tradition, and must be cultivated through a strong education. As such, Yoram supports local schools efforts toward teaching the next generation.

Yoramfinds the North Shore Hebrew Academy in Great Neck, New York particularly important. This school has benefited from much of Yoram’s philanthropic work. It is also the school his children attend. The school is a modern yeshiva thatteachsprechool through high school.  The elementary school was founded in 1954 and has offered an excellent foundational education to several generations.

                                                                                     

In 2001, North Shore Hebrew Academy opened a high school campus. This campus proved to be extremely popular thanks to its award-winning science, engineering, and writing programs.  Students at the school have earned awards in the Long Island Science and Engineering Fair, Advanced Placement awards, and Scholastic Art and Writing awards. They have also been finalists and semifinalists in the Intel Science Talent Search. Additionally, they are highly competitive in areas of Hebrew study such as the regional ChidonTanach Competition, the Yeshiva University Stock Market Competition, and the Holland & Knight National Holocaust Essay Contest.

Within a few years, the high school had grown so much that they needed to build a new wing.  In 2006 they completed construction on a state-of-the-art new wing to continue their tradition of excellence.  In addition to contributing to the building fund, Yoram Eliyahu commissioned the crafting of a Sefer Torah for the school. The Sefer Torah is currently in use in the North Shore Hebrew Academy High School.

Community Service

Another thing Yoram Eliyahu values about education is its ability to broaden horizons. Heis pleased that the North Shore Hebrew Academy offers many travel opportunities to students in the upper grades. Each high school senior is encouraged to take a trip to Israel and Poland through the March of the Living program. This is a special opportunity for the Jewish students to see and experience their history firsthand. Yoram finds it particularly meaningful because Israel is also where he was born and grew up. He is glad to see students discover how culturally rich his home country is.

Yoram Eliyahu: Early Life

Yoram Eliyahu’s early life helpedhim become the man he is today.  He was born in the small town of Kirat-Shmona, in the mountains of northern Israel. Yoram’s father was a construction worker who taught him the value of a strong work ethic. As one of five siblings, Yoram enjoyed childhood in a big family that worked hard and loved each other. Today he is pleased to carry on the meaningful traditions he grew up with.

Growing up in this small town gave him a special sense of community. Not long ago, he learned that Kirat-Shmona’s synagogue had been badly damaged by missile fire during Israel’s 2006 conflict with Lebanon. As a successful real estate investor, Yoram was in a unique position to help. Though he was living in the U.S., he immediately sent funds to his hometown to help rebuild the synagogue. He also commissioned the creation of a new Sefer Torah, a handwritten copy of the sacred scriptures. Once the Sefer Torah was completed, he took greats pains to ensure that it was delivered safely to its new home. The Sefer Torah is a source of pride in the community and is still in use today.

When he was 14, Yoram’s parents sent him to Bezek High School. At this boarding school he had the opportunity to benefit from the curriculum’s focus on electronics and communication. After graduation, he attained a two-year degree in in sub-engineering. Next it was time for him to serve his mandatory three-year term in the Israeli military. It was here that he first encountered Chabad. As a solider far from home during the holidays, his spirits were liftedby the organization, which helps soldiers celebrate traditional Jewish holidays. Meals with the organization’s members were a special time. YoramEliyahu and his fellow soldiers enjoyed the celebrations and rituals the organization hosted.

Big Move

After his military service, Yoram Eliyahu moved to the United States. He carried with him all the lessons he learned at home. He sought out a local Chabad and continues to enjoy being part of the community he found there. After a few entry-level jobs, Yoram began work with a real estate company. He began with a sales position and then worked his way up to become a successful independent commercial real estate developer. Yoram manages property in Florida, New York, and Israel, striving in all places to enhance communities.

Yoram Eliyahu: Tips for Real Estate Buyers

YoramEliyahu knows that right now is a wonderful time to invest in real estate. As with any investment, the goal is to buy low and sell high, and right now real estate prices are low. The signs of rising prices are all apparent: foreclosure rates are down several months in a row, new construction is up, and home sale prices rose slightly last summer over the summer before. Immediately after the real estate crash which began around 2007 and extended for several years, investors were reluctant to buy distressed properties because it was unclear how much farther prices would plummet. Now prices have evened out for a few years and are starting to increase in several key markets. The signs are clear: recovery is growing and now is the time to start investing if you have not already.

Getting started depends on your goals. Let’s start with rental homes, an area many beginning investors begin with. Now is an optimal time to start investing in rental properties. When investing in rental property, the most common strategy is to buy a home and rent it out at a rate that covers your expenses.Once the home is paid off, the rent becomes profit. The benefit of buying rental property when prices are low is that you do not have to wait until the home is entirely paid off to profit. As the market continues to rebound, rental rates will also rise and you profit from the difference between the increased rental rates and low mortgage. Or, you can sell the house when real estate prices increase and make a profit on the home. 

Another option is joining a real estate investment group. If you do not want to be a landlord who must deal with the needs of tenants, a real estate investment group may be the perfect choice for you. In this scenario, a company buys or builds condos or apartments and allows investors to buy them through the company. Usually individual investors have the option of buying just one unit or multiple units. Instead of having alandlord, the investment group manages all the units as one block. The company charges a small percentage of the monthly rent to pay for this service, but it frees you up to spend your time elsewhere.Many investors likeYoramEliyahu find this valuable.

Choosing Well

Yoram Eliyahu suggests looking into all your options before making your final choice. There are other investments available, such as REITs, which you may find work well for you. Headvises new investors to take careful stock of their finances and begin by investing a comfortable amount. Once you get your feet wet you may findthat diving in feels great!

Yoram Eliyahu: Rebuilding the Hometown Synagogue

Yoram Eliyahu is passionate about doing good works in his chosen home in the United States and his hometown of Kirat-Shmona, Israel. His hometown is a small one near the border of Lebanon. When Hezbollah forces from Lebanon attacked Israel in 2006, the small town suffered damage. When Yoram found out about the destruction and devastation that occurred there, he knew he had to help.

The synagogue in Kirat-Shmona had been badly damaged by missile fire, and the Torah it housed had been destroyed as well. Yoram contributed financially to the rebuilding of the synagogue. He did so because his faith is important to him, and because he knew firsthand how important the synagogue was to the community. He wanted to honor the place of his birth, where he was raised to appreciate traditional values.

But Yoram felt that the damage went beyond just the physical building. What was destroyed could be repaired, but never fully replaced. He wanted to find a way to restore a feeling of hope and pride in his community. When he heard about the destroyed Torah, he knew that replacing it would help boost morale. He did careful research to find a skilled sofer to write the new Torah on the special gevilparchment paper. Yoramthen commissioned the new Torah to be created.

Once the painstaking work was finished, there was the matter of delivering the sacred scroll to Kirat-Shmona. Writing a Sefer Torah takes as long as a year and a half, and includes hand lettering each of the 304,805 Hebrew letters that make up its text. Any error made during the transcription process may render the Sefer Torah invalid. So, the safety of this completed sacred scroll was extremely important. To ensure its safe delivery to Kirat-Shmona despite the unrest in the area, Yoram Eliyahu did everything possible to ensure its safe delivery to the rebuilt synagogue. This special Sefer Torah is still in use today.

Yoram Eliyahu: Community Leader

While some may not understand the significance of this deed, YoramEliyahu knew it was vital to the recovery of his hometown. He believes that faith is a vital force in any community. Time and money spent to honor one’s past and present leaders is time and money well spent. He desires to model what is truly important in life, including meeting the physical and emotional needs one sees in others. Yoram strives to be a community leader who inspires others to help where they are able.