Last Friday, Satmar community marked the 45th anniversary of the petirah of the Divrei Yoel zt”l. The commemoration, led by the current Satmar Rebbe Rav Aharon Teitelbaum and attended by thousands of Chassidim, included a poignant address on a pressing local issue: the soaring cost of housing, Arutz Sheva reports.
In recent years, the village of Kiryas Yoel, a hub for many Chassidishe families in New York, has witnessed a dramatic surge in real estate prices. Just five years ago, the cost per square meter was $1,800, but it has now skyrocketed to $6,000—representing an increase of roughly 400 percent.
In response to this crisis, the Rebbe established a dedicated committee in cooperation with municipal leaders. Approximately two months ago, new legislation was enacted to cap the prices of new apartments at $3,000 per square meter.
Recognizing that it would take time for the law to take effect, the Rebbe reached out to Akiva Hersh Klein, a Chassidishe entrepreneur currently developing a new neighborhood of about 2,000 apartments. He requested that Klein take immediate action to lower the prices.
In a bold move, the Rebbe announced that Klein had agreed to the request and would offer 1,000 of these new apartments at half the standard market rate. This initiative is expected to result in a substantial financial loss of around $250 million for Klein.
{Matzav.com}