Hosam Kandil talks to the invitees during the board dinner about the real estate industry. (SG photos by Mohannad Sharawi)MOHANNAD SHARAWI Speaking at a board dinner recently, Hosam Kandil, the managing director of the real estate company, Darati, said there will not be a major fluctuation in prices. “There have been some local studies about the future of the real estate market in the Kingdom carried out by some experienced organizations, including the Banque Saudi Fransi. The studies revealed that real estate activity in Saudi Arabia is brisk and showing continuous growth, especially in the Makkah Region and the west and north-western parts of Jeddah,” Kandil stressed. Kandil said there was sufficient liquidity in the Kingdom. He added that major construction was taking place on mega projects in the Kingdom such as the King Abdullah Industrial City in Rabigh. The studies also showed that Jeddah has the highest property prices, followed by the Eastern Province, and then Riyadh where the prices are about 30 percent less than Jeddah. Kandil said it was unlikely that 500,000 houses to be constructed under the Royal Decree will affect property prices. These housing units would only be mid-sized apartments for Saudis who have lower incomes. He said many Saudi nationals prefer to have large residences like villas or spacious apartments. He explained that there has been a boom in developments in north-western Jeddah after the construction of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) near Thuwal. The average price of land before KAUST was around SR80 per square meter but now the prices are SR1,000 per square meter. Another lively area is Durrat Al-Arous where several coastal projects are under construction. Mubarak Yaslam, a sales executive from Amlak International for real estate development and finance, said many Saudis did not want to invest in east Jeddah because of the recent floods. “Not all parts of the east are located on flood channels. I urge everybody to visit some safe areas of eastern Jeddah where we have erected around 50 villas and have about 56 under construction. We have vigilantly selected the best and safest areas far from the dangers of floods and approved by the required government authorities,” he explained. At the end of the event there was an open discussion on the future of the mortgage industry in the country.
