Housing Program

The Housing Program is one of the programs to achieve Saudi Vision 2030. It was launched in 2018, aiming to provide housing solutions that enable Saudi families to own suitable homes, either by ownership or usufruct, according to their needs and financial abilities. This is alongside increasing the housing options that are implemented at affordable prices, in less time, and of high quality, in partnership with the private sector.

The Housing Program strives to provide specialized housing programs for the neediest segments of society and develop the legislative and regulatory environment for the housing sector to increase its economic impact. It also aims to enhance its appeal to the private sector and develop local content.

As part of the supply policy support axis in the Housing Program, the program is working on 119 projects under construction, providing more than 155,000 units in modern models of high quality. These range from apartments to villas and townhouses, with average prices reaching SAR750,000. They are distributed across various cities and governorates in active partnership with over seventy real estate developers, offering a residential environment with integrated amenities, not just housing units. The program also aims to develop more than 180,000 residential plots within 218 residential plans.

The Housing Program achieved tangible successes during the previous phase. The most notable were: the increase in citizens' housing ownership over four years from 47 percent in 2016 to 60 percent in 2020, and the elimination of the waiting concept for housing support from fifteen years to immediate eligibility through the Sakani Platform, which served 1.4 million visitors who benefited from housing services and options through it. Also, 620,000 families inhabited their homes. Suitable housing was also provided for the neediest families under Entifa system, offering more than 46,000 housing units across the Kingdom's regions in partnership with the non-profit sector. Over 350 housing associations were qualified, and the activation of partnerships with the private sector led to the development of more than 141,000 housing units. This comes in addition to strengthening the partnership with all banks and financial institutions by providing 424,000 subsidized real estate loans. As of the end of the first half of June 2023, the number of documented lease contracts reached about 6.5 million.

The Housing Program worked on developing and improving regulatory and legislative regulations and activities. This was achieved by establishing the Real Estate General Authority (REGA) to be the central regulatory entity for the real estate sector. Additionally, Ejar Platform, the contract documentation service, was launched to regulate the real estate rental sector in the Kingdom due to its importance in preserving the rights of the contractors.

The program also contributed through electronic platforms supporting the housing sector, such as the Sakani Application, to enable Saudi families to obtain subsidized real estate financing in partnership with the private sector, represented by banks and financing companies. It also succeeded in stimulating supply through partnerships with the private sector of real estate developers, the establishment of the National Housing Company, the Etmam Developer Services Center, and the developmental housing program to cover demand from the neediest families in partnership with the non-profit sector to establish and qualify more than 350 civil societies.

- Providing suitable housing products at affordable prices to increase housing supply through housing product contracts, with the number of contracts reaching 295,000 contracts.

- Issuing more than 183,000 VAT-bearing certificates.

- Increasing the housing supply by developing 17,300 plots of land with a total area of over 17 million m².

- Providing 8,400 housing units for the neediest families.

- The value of in-kind and cash contributions reached SAR259.9 million.

- Reducing the interest margin for real estate loans by more than 18 percent in 2021 compared to 2018.

Achieving a citizen homeownership rate of 70 percent by the end of 2030.

Providing 95,000 developmental housing units cumulatively for the first and second stages to support the neediest families by the end of 2025.

Raising citizens' satisfaction level with the program's services to 80 percent by the end of 2025.

Signing 355,000 new financing contracts with the goal of continuing to provide subsidized real estate financing contracts by the end of 2025.

Raising the contribution to the GDP to SAR157 billion by the end of 2025.

Providing more than 38,000 direct job opportunities for Saudis by the end of 2025.