Land and homeowners in unplanned districts across the province of Makkah are seeking a raise on compensation packages which have already paid out SR32 billion for 2,000 properties demolished by the Mayor's Office. “When the house we're living in is destroyed the compensation won't be enough for us to buy land let alone a house,” said one resident, while others are concerned at the lack of available accommodation. “It's become scarce in Makkah,” said Fahd Al-Mulhim. “There are hardly any apartments and prices have risen to over SR30,000. People in these areas have limited incomes, and many are families without providers who've lived here for years and survive on social welfare, and they're going to find it extremely difficult to find some place. The compensation really needs to be higher.” Real estate developer Mansour Abu Rayash said, however, that officials tasked with pricing the land were “impartial” in their estimations which he believed “matched market prices”. “The property owners are trying to compare with prices with compensation for land for the north courtyards of the Holy Mosque which reached SR400,000 per meter,” Abu Rayash said, describing such a comparison as “unreasonable”. “The committee takes into account market variations and the continual rise in prices, and tries to account for all eventualities,” he said. Abu Rayash said that the local real estate could expect to flourish with the removal of property and the recent influx of SR32 billion into the market. “This liquidity is circulating in Makkah's real estate market along with liquidity that was already there, which is leading to a rise in real estate prices,” he said.
