The math can genuinely work in your favor: buy below market, renovate to a high standard, and the finished value often exceeds the purchase price plus renovation cost by a healthy margin, particularly in strong neighborhoods where the ceiling on finished value is high.
The upside of a fixer-upper is entirely dependent on controlling renovation costs and timeline — both of which are historically the hardest part for owners to manage from abroad. An already-renovated apartment costs more upfront but removes that variable entirely: what you see is what you get, with no permit risk, no structural surprises, and no months-long project to oversee.
A useful way to frame the decision: a fixer-upper makes sense if you have — or can put in place — real oversight capacity for the renovation itself. Without that, the "discount" on the purchase price can quietly disappear into cost overruns, delays, and rework, and the already-renovated option ends up being the better value despite the higher sticker price.
For an investment property specifically, fixer-uppers in the right neighborhood tend to offer the strongest renovation-driven upside — but that upside is realized through disciplined project management, not just a lower purchase price. The purchase decision and the renovation-management decision aren't really separate — they're the same decision, made at once.
If you're still early in the purchase itself, our guide to buying an apartment in Israel from abroad covers the full process this decision fits into.