According to a study by Saudi based Jiwar Real Estate Management & Marketing, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will need around 1 million new homes over the next 5 years to keep up with an estimated 3.3% compound annual growth rate in demand. This pace translates to around 5.5 million required units by 2014.
The residential sector has grown substantially to account for 70% of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s real estate market. Housing demand has risen steadily over the recent years due mainly to a young and rapidly growing population constantly seeking affordable homes. The other 30% is distributed among offices, retail outlets & hospitality and industrial sectors.
The study also revealed that the short to medium term domestic residential outlook is very positive as demand is expected to surpass supply by 50,000 units annually over the next 4 to 5 years. The Saudi residential sector, which encompasses villas, apartments, duplexes, traditional houses and residential compounds is geographically divided into 3 main local regions; the Central Region, the Eastern Province and the Western Region.
Dr Saleh Bin Abdullah Al Habib CEO of Jiwar Real Estate Management & Marketing said that “Saudi Arabia continues to be one of the few property markets in the region capable of sustaining growth within the global recession. The residential segment has been the main driver average occupancy within the 6 major city markets is in fact at around 96%. While Jiwar will help sustain the momentum of the residential business by focusing on quality and expedient delivery, we will also push signature developments to emphasize the diversity of available property options in the Kingdom.”