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NEWS
Household Spending on Education Highest in Bnei Brak
By N. Katzin
Average household expenses are highest in Rishon Letzion
— NIS 13,076 ($3,190) per household — while Bat
Yam posted the lowest household expenses at NIS 8,251
($2,015). The wealthiest cities are Tel Aviv, with NIS 5,737
($1,400) in per person consumption, followed by Rechovot,
Be'er Sheva and Ramat Gan. In Bnei Brak per person
consumption is lowest at NIS 2,035 ($495) according to a
survey by the Central Bureau for Statistics.
The survey covered the 14 largest cities in Israel, with a
population of at least 100,000. The national average number
of people per household was 3.3. The lowest average is in Tel
Aviv with 2.2, whereas Bnei Brak posted the highest with 4.3.
The highest number of wage-earners was in Rishon Letzion,
with 1.4 per household, compared to Haifa, Bnei Brak and
Be'er Sheva, with an average of 1.0. The five poorest cities
with the lowest per-household expenses were Bat Yam, Bnei
Brak, Ashkelon, Jerusalem and Netanya.
A remarkable but not surprising finding was that Bnei Brak
posted the highest percentage of per-family spending on
education and culture. Of the five cities where household
expenses are the lowest, Bnei Brak led with 13.8 percent of
per person consumption devoted to education. In comparison,
Bat Yam families spend an average of 9.1 percent, 11.8
percent in Ashkelon and 13.7 percent in Jerusalem.
The rate of spending on education in Bnei Brak also stands
out in comparison to wealthy cities: in Rishon Letzion 14.2
percent of household consumption goes toward education and
culture and 12.8 percent in Tel Aviv. (It may be that in
these cities spending on "culture" exceeds spending on
education.)
The section of the survey on food shows spending is highest
in Jerusalem, Bat Yam and Bnei Brak, ranging from 17.5
percent to 18 percent, whereas Tel Avivans spend the least
— 13.8 percent. Netanyans spend the most on healthcare,
6.8 percent, while in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan and Rechovot
healthcare spending accounts for just 4.7 percent of
household expenses, and in Bnei Brak 5.4 percent.
The national average spent on transportation and
communications comes to 20.7 percent. In Holon 23.1 percent
of household expenses were directed toward transportation and
communications, compared to 12.3 percent in Bnei Brak, a
disproportionately low figure considering that the next
lowest spending in this category was in Jerusalem, where 17.6
percent is spent and over 18 percent in all the other cities
surveyed.
The average spending on housing was 21.4 percent. The most is
spent in Tel Aviv, where housing costs an average of NIS
3,337 ($815), followed by Jerusalem with NIS 2,537 ($620),
NIS 1,947 ($475) in Haifa and a mere NIS 1,541 ($375) in
Be'er Sheva. Of all families in Israel 69.5 percent own an
apartment and the average apartment value is NIS 800,000
($195,000). One-fourth of the population rents. In Tel Aviv
45.7 percent rent, compared to 15 percent in Ashkelon. The
highest rent was in Rishon Letzion at NIS 2,502 ($610) per
month and the lowest in Be'er Sheva at NIS 801 ($195).
The survey contains fascinating findings on ownership of
household appliances. Bnei Brak residents led in two
categories: 71.2 percent own a combined oven/range (compared
to a national average around the 50 percent mark) and 39
percent own a freezer, compared to a national average of 18.5
percent. On the other hand Bnei Brak residents are the least
likely to own computer equipment, and communications and
entertainment devices. The cell-phone ownership rate in Bnei
Brak is also the lowest at 70 percent, compared to a national
average of 87 percent and 90.6 percent in Rishon Letzion. In
Jerusalem the rate is 84.6 percent. Over half of all
households surveyed own at least two cell phones, with a
national average of 62 percent and in Jerusalem and Bnei Brak
50 percent. Ninety percent of Bnei Brak homes have a
landline, compared to a national average of 85 percent. Holon
has the most landlines with 93 percent of households.
An average of 60 percent of all households surveyed owned at
least one car. Rishon Letzion residents held the record with
75.4 percent, compared to one-fourth of Bnei Brak residents
and 45.8 percent of Jerusalemites. About of 82 percent of
Israelis own a microwave oven. Clothes dryers are still much
less common, with a national average of 37.4 percent.
Jerusalemites were the most likely to own a dryer at 46.3
percent, whereas in Bat Yam only 23.5 percent of residents
own a dryer.
On the other hand Jerusalemites are the least likely to have
an air conditioner — just 30 percent — compared
to a national average of 68.5 percent, led by Ramat Gan,
where 87 percent of households have an air conditioner. Bnei
Brak is not far behind with 82 percent.
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