A new luxury apartment complex rising in Israel is using Mayor Bloomberg’s name to promote its multimillion-shekel apartments. While Mr. Bloomberg says he has never even stepped foot in the “Jerusalem of Gold” complex on Rabbi Akiva Street in Jerusalem, its Web site links to an article in a local newspaper claiming that the mayor was about to seal the deal on a penthouse apartment.

The front-page article features a photo of the mayor smiling, his arms outstretched and thumbs thrust in the air. It said Mr. Bloomberg was “in negotiations” to buy the apartment and that his representatives had been to Israel to look at the project and scope out the security situation.

“The mayor is not buying a home in Jerusalem” and “is not buying real estate in Israel,” a spokesman for the mayor, Stuart Loeser, said when asked about the article.

When asked how he felt about the Jerusalem of Gold Web site linking to the article, Mr. Loeser joked that Mr. Bloomberg, a billionaire, was thinking about calling the developers and “asking for a cut of the profits.”

“New York is associated with low crime, security, high quality of life, and excellent municipal services. So if you’re trying to sell a product along those lines, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that somebody is appropriating the mayor’s name and image,” Mr. Loeser joked.

NYS