Va'ad Bayit
(House Committee)
The Va'ad HaBayit Chairperson, Mrs. Ilana Miron, demonstrates responsibility and resourcefulness, closely supervising the plumber called to fix a leak. Because when it comes to building problems, she makes sure to handle them herself
The Va'ad's members are elected at a "residents' meeting" that usually takes place once a year, or every two years.
Most of its members do the work on a voluntary basis, in their free time. They try to fulfill their duties – sometimes successfully, sometimes not. It depends on their motivation and personal abilities.
In many cases, the "Va'ad" is one person who takes the work extremely seriously and does it alone. The other committee members do not interfere and trust him. From time to time, they meet to fulfill their duty for the protocol, or to make special decisions that relate to particularly complex problems.
A House Committee is a "good will" position.
Its functioning depends on the will of the building's residents to maintain the shared property, and on the good will of the committee members to fulfill their role properly.
Naturally, its activity is felt more in buildings of middle-class people. Among them you can find more people with an awareness of the environment in which they live, and they are willing to bear the regular monthly expense that will allow them a good quality of life.
As the socioeconomic status of the residents in the building is lower, their awareness of their private living environment decreases, and the payments for the monthly "Va'ad dues" are a burden for them. The result is evident - the exterior of the building looks crumbling, the entrance to the building's stairwell is open, there is no light in the stairwells, and the dirt in the yard is noticeable.
In luxury buildings, of residents from the upper class, the residents have no problem paying whatever is necessary, but they expect a suitable return for the payment. For the most part will prefer an external management company that they will rely on. In many cases, they organize a board of directors that meets from time to time to discuss the building's affairs, including the relationship with the management company.
The role of the Va'ad Bayit is regulated by Israeli law, and it has a defined status with clear rules.
Since the establishment of the state, and for about five decades, the Va'ad Bayit was an inseparable part of the lifestyle of most of the country's citizens – the residential buildings were built up to a height of five or six stories high, and the number of residents in each building was only a few dozen, at most. They chose the committee, among themselves, and it worked for them.
In the 21st century, building management has become more complex, especially after the increase in high-rise construction.
Most of the construction in Israel is of buildings with dozens of floors and many dozens of residents, sometimes a hundred or more. There – the good will of residents is no longer enough, the problems are complex, and a professional, external management company that has no connection to the residents of the building is needed.
This is a company that works on a professional basis with an annual contract and a regular payment.
Albert from the Va'ad in a Jerusalem building conducting a residents' meeting.
In recent decades, the status of the Va'ad Bayit has weakened.
This is due to the reduction in low-rise construction, and also, and mainly, because of the metamorphosis of the "Israeli spirit":
There used to be a sense of cooperation and camaraderie based on patriotism and pride in the very establishment of the Jewish state. There was discipline and obedience to laws and to those in designated public roles.
Good neighborliness was an important value for individuals and families, and the residents were willing to bend their desires for the sake of others in order to maintain fair relationships with the other neighbors who lived next to them, above them, and below them.
With the passing of years, a new generation of Israelis has emerged, who do not always connect with social commitment and national brotherhood.
The new generation of Israelis paid a lot of money for their real estate property, and they want to get full value for their personal comfort, even if it contradicts the interest of the other neighbors.
They continue to obey the law but are not willing to be meticulous about every building regulation, and they don't agree with every suggestion of the Va'ad.
The alienation is taking over the relationships between the residents of the shared building, to the extent that "neighbor disputes" are ranked at the top of the list of police complaints. And when this is the case, more and more residents are not willing to be members of the Va'ad Bayit, and social reality is eroding its importance.
And yet, the Va'ad Bayit has not completely disappeared.
It is alive and well in hundreds of thousands of residential buildings, mainly those built in the 20th century, and it functions just like it used to.
And as long as there are Israelis who are equipped with good will and a readiness to maintain neighborly camaraderie, and they care about the shared property in which they live, the Va'ad Bayit will continue to exist in its unique Israeli format.
A growing alienation and changing values:
The veteran Va'ad HaBayit grapples with a new Israeli spirit.
Historical Bits:
The Va'ad Bayit developed in Israel out of circumstance, and became an inseparable part of the daily lives of millions of citizens.
The State of Israel was established as a nation of immigrants – millions of people who came from other countries, all of them enthusiastic Zionist Jews with a motivation to be part of the Jewish state that was established after two thousand years.
Upon their arrival, they did not speak the local language, were not familiar with the laws and customs, and did not know what was permitted and what was forbidden, what their rights and duties were. Before it was important for them to stand up for their rights, they made sure to fulfill their duties, and obeyed them and anyone who held a defined public office. Like the members of the Va'ad Bayit, who were familiar with the Israeli reality, the laws and regulations, and knew how to find the right craftsmen to solve problems in ongoing maintenance.
The mass influx of new immigrants led to a building boom that lasted for several decades. The residential buildings that were built were three or four stories high, in which a few dozen families, at most, lived.
In the Israeli spirit of those days – good neighborliness was an important value for individuals and families.
Relative brotherhood prevailed among the neighbors in the same building – the neighbors said "hello" when they passed each other in the stairwell. The doors were not locked, balcony touched balcony, a neighbor went into another neighbor's apartment to ask for a spoon of sugar, and between the hours of two and four PM, quiet was maintained for the afternoon rest.
There were also unavoidable problems, such as: laundry that dripped from an upper floor to the floor below, the noise of music emanating from one of the apartments, but somehow in the spirit of those days, it was possible to quickly reach a solution to the problem and involve, if necessary, the Va'ad Bayit.
Since the establishment of the state and for about five decades, the Va'ad Bayit had a clear status.
The Va'ad took care of the orderly collection of the Va'ad dues every month – in those years, before there were standing orders in the bank, no credit charges, and no internet applications, the committee members went from door to door to collect the checks from each resident. Anyone who didn't pay was scolded and felt uncomfortable in front of the committee representative who stood at their doorstep and politely demanded the money owed to the building.
The character of the committee member was immortalized in television series, films, and newspaper articles.
The stereotype of the "Va'ad Bayit" was the neighbor from the third floor, usually a pensioner, who came every few months to collect the dues. He had an organized ledger with a list of the residents, he knew all of them and their problems. He operated the central heating, took care of whitewashing the stairwell, and called a plumber to fix the faucet in the yard.
The Va'ad Bayit was the peak of the career of the committee chairman, who always wanted to be on the class committee and the student council and the workers' committee at the factory – and always failed until he got the chance of his life and took it extremely seriously.
Mr. Kozlovitch, the Va'ad HaBayit chairman from the legendary Israeli TV series 'Karovim Karovim' (Close Relatives) which aired in the 1980s, was the perfect stereotype of the Israeli Va'ad HaBayit figure. Punctual, meticulous, and caring—he faithfully represented the generation where camaraderie and good neighborliness were clear principles in managing the shared building.
The years have passed.
The generation of immigrants is fading away.
A new generation of Israelis has emerged, who were born here, and they do not always connect with the social commitment and the national brotherhood. The alienation between people is growing, and good neighborly relations are no longer an important value for everyone.
"Hello" in the stairwell? You only say it to those you know.
No space for the baby's stroller? You can place it outside the apartment door, and whoever needs to pass, will deal with it.
The Va'ad suggests whitewashing the walls in the stairwell? There are those who don't agree. Whoever wants to can do it with their own private money, not with the money that everyone pays.
There are residents who show their lack of consideration without shame.
They will hold a party with loud music until late at night, or they won't care that their dog barks non-stop and disturbs the neighbors' rest. And if one of them goes down from the apartment with a garbage bag to put in the trash can, and the bag drips and leaves dirt marks on the floor, they won't bother to wipe it. Why should they care? There is someone who cleans the floor in the lobby once a week. That's why they pay Va'ad dues.
The new Israelis, the Sabras, have internalized the concepts of democracy and have learned to know all of its sides – not only what their duty is to do, but also, and especially, what their rights are. They have a real estate property that is worth a lot of money and they want to enjoy it without anyone interfering in their lives.
They are not willing to accept with blind obedience everything that is said to them, especially if it’s the resident from the third floor, who is no more important than they are. They argue, and complain, and turn to court and even dare to refuse to pay the monthly payment, because in their opinion the building is not being managed properly. Good neighborliness is important to them, but so is private comfort. And if there is a clash between them, they will prefer their comfort even at the cost of worsening relations with the neighbors.
In the 21st century, the status of the Va'ad Bayit has weakened.
The motivation of a resident to serve in a voluntary position that might get them into a conflict with other residents is decreasing, and it is difficult to find volunteers who are willing to take on the role, which often turns out to be thankless – a person who joins the Va'ad can find themselves in a stubborn struggle over matters of ego and pampering, of private desires versus the good of the community, until they quit and there is no organized committee, the quality of maintenance decreases, and the building slowly crumbles physically and socially.
Into this void enter the management companies, whose status has already been established in high-rise buildings.
The management companies offer professional services for a more expensive fee, but with a service that saves personal problems between neighbors.
This is part of "The Israeli Story 1948-2025" project.
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