This chapter includes the following articles.
Real Estate
A young population and rising disposable incomes signal an optimistic future for the Saudi Arabian real estate sector. With the population growing at a rate of 2.6% per year, the need for housing is expanding rapidly, especially given that 67% of Saudis are under the age of 30. The retail segment also offers significant opportunities for developers, with vacancy rates at shopping centres in the capital standing at 8% in the second quarter of 2015 and rents growing by 7% to $773 per sq metre. The hospitality segment is meanwhile experiencing strong growth in line with the government’s aim to boost tourism. In Makkah, for example, 500 hotels are in the pipeline, adding significant capacity to the city’s current inventory of 125,000 rooms in 650 hotels.
