Saudi Arabia Real Estate Market: A Million New Homes by 2030

More than 1 million fresh residential units are set to enter the housing market of Saudi Arabia by 2030, Global real estate adviser Knight Frank said in a report released this week. The wide-ranging project is in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, a roadmap for economic and living improvements targeting homeownership.

The report revealed 1,048,000 residential units announced since 2016, of which only around 4% is completed. The increase in new housing is being made as the government seeks to raise homeownership from almost 64%, which stands today, to 70% by 2030.

Head of Research at Knight Frank MENA, said: A significant 58.5% increase in homes announced for construction over the past year has been supported by government efforts to address the housing shortage.

Private and public-sector-linked developers have responded with unprecedented quickness. Riyadh mesmerizes at the epicenter of KSA economic transition, apartment prices gained 58 percent in three years/villa values grew by a more modest 38 per cent over same timeframe”.

The report reveals significant expansions planned in the office and retail sector where Riyadh will see 4.6 million Sq.m of new office and 2.6 million Sq.m of retail by 2030. Similarly, the hospitality sector also sees momentum with over 362,000 new rooms in different phases of development (more than a quarter each at the pre-planning and planning stage), most of it driven by an aim to add around 4-5 star category hotels that align well to its ambitious tourism arrival target.

The report also shows the financial benefits of these plans, predicting that by 2030 up to $7.8 billion of new economic activity could be unlocked in Riyadh through the World Expo manifestation.

Ultimately, Saudi Arabia’s ambitious property sector projects are set to change the face of the landscape of the Kingdom as it looks to create more vertical communities for a rapidly urbanizing population and boost its diversification away from oil.