That was 37 years ago, when the real-estate developer was a young pilot and the country's southernmost city hadn't discovered its true calling as the Red Sea Riviera. Now Eilat has several dozen hotels with 10,000 rooms and a plan to further exploit itself as a resort for the rich with beachfront homes and villas sporting pools, spas, and casinos.
People visit and then they're willing to invest and buy an apartment as a vacation home.
We're the sun spot for Europe. At the time, local apartment prices jumped 30 percent and locals resisted selling, thinking they would easily gain a 100 percent markup for their homes. The zone, however, has yet to be finalized and apartment prices never actually reached that 100 percent markup. Political instability has been one reason for the lag in development. And given the outbreak of the Aksa intifada, brokers are having an even tougher time selling timeshares and vacation homes in Eilat, despite its geographical distance from the action.