Saudi Arabia’s Municipal, Rural Affairs & Housing Ministry has started a five-year, SR160bn ($43bn) plan for the construction of housing across the kingdom. The programme, which involves the construction of 240,000 units, is one of the largest of its kind anywhere in the world.

The capital investment programme is being overseen by the ministry’s investment arm, the National Housing Company (NHC). The NHC works with private sector real estate companies on the development of individual projects located across Saudi Arabia.

The largest element of the programme is the construction of 108,000 units in and around Riyadh at a cost of SR72bn for the units’ construction and SR9.7bn for the associated infrastructure.

Central to this is the Al-Fursan development announced earlier in the year. The development covers about 35 square kilometres (sq km) in the northeast of Riyadh and will have an eventual population of 250,000 people living in 50,000 residential units. 

The other significant upcoming housing development in the capital is the second phase of the Khozam suburb, which, when completed in its entirety, will also have 50,000 units spread across 30 sq km.

Planned projects

Other major current and planned projects include a total of 31,500 housing units at the Mayar, Khayala, Al-Sadun and Jawhara developments in Jeddah, which, in addition to another 10,000 units in other, smaller schemes in the city, will involve an estimated investment of SR28bn. Further major projects include the 19,400-unit Al-Wajeha suburb in Dammam, and the 7,000-unit Al-Dar development in Medina.

In addition to the SR160bn investment in housing for the kingdom-wide programme as a whole, the plan calls for SR21.6bn in spending for associated infrastructure and SR1.3bn for parks and tree planting.

The majority of the future projects will be independent villas and townhouses for Saudi nationals, although there will also be some apartment buildings. Generally, the NHC and private real estate developers sell the units off plan during the construction process as a means of funding the projects and securing a return on investment.

MEED's latest special report on Saudi Arabia includes:

> GIGAPROJECTS: Saudi Arabia under project pressure
> ECONOMY: Riyadh steps up the Vision 2030 tempo
> CONSTRUCTION: Saudi construction project ramp-up accelerates
> UPSTREAM: Aramco slated to escalate upstream spending
> DOWNSTREAM: Petchems ambitions define Saudi downstream
> POWER: Saudi Arabia reinvigorates power sector
> WATER: Saudi water begins next growth phase
> BANKING: Saudi banks bid to keep ahead of the pack
> DATABANK: Riyadh holds its buoyant economic heading