As the possibility of renewed missile attacks from Iran returns to Israelis’ minds, homeowners and buyers are once again factoring the value of having a private protected room — known in Hebrew as a mamad — into real estate transactions.

Only about 44 percent of apartments in Israel come with private safe rooms, but those that have one can sell for as much as 10-20% more than those without, real estate agents say.

Iran threatened this month to attack Israel if the US took military action against the Islamic Republic in response to its crackdown on widespread protests, bringing back unhappy memories of the June’s deadly barrages.

Trump has since signaled that no such action is imminent, but even before protests broke out, experts and Israeli officials had indicated that Iran’s rapid buildup of its ballistic missile stocks since the June war was making a fresh round of fighting increasingly likely.

Iran launched hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones at Israeli territory over 12 days of war in June, killing 32 people, injuring hundreds, and causing billions of shekels’ worth of damage to buildings.

Air raid sirens sent millions of Israelis to shelters repeatedly during that war, and those with private safe rooms in their homes had an easier time of it than those running to shared safe spaces in apartment building basements or scrambling outdoors for public shelters.

While private safe rooms are standard in newly constructed homes, they remain an unavailable luxury for more than half of all households.

Of an estimated 2.96 million homes across Israel, 1.67 million (56%) did not have a safe room as of the end of 2024, according to data from the Israel Builders Association.

Contractors have only been required by law to provide them in new homes since 1993, after Iraqi president Saddam Hussein bombarded Israel with Scud missiles during........

© The Times of Israel