JEDDAH, 19 December 2004 — An expo on real estate, currently a booming sector across Saudi Arabia, opens at Jeddah Hilton today. The exhibition, which will also feature a conference from tomorrow, is being held with the support of Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed. The formal opening is set at 9 p.m. and will continue untill Thursday.
The event is being organized by the Jeddah-based Trade Exhibitions & Conferences Ltd. (Trade-X Arabia) with the cooperation of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce & Industry and the Saudi Real Estate Committee of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The event coincides with dramatic growth that is being witnessed in real estate all over the Kingdom. “The unusual growth in this sector is caused by the repatriation of investments from abroad and also higher liquidity caused by the soaring oil prices and the consequent increase in oil revenues,” Trade-X Arabia Chief Executive Officer Adel A. Shakoor told Arab News yesterday.
Real Estate investments in the Kingdom have witnessed a healthy revival since 2003. “The recently introduced regulatory framework covering investment laws for GCC nationals has also made freehold investment in the Kingdom highly attractive,” he said.
Professionals in the local real estate market affirm that the capital invested in this sector exceeds SR900 million and will likely go up in the light of the phenomenal growth and development the sector is now witnessing.
“The reasons behind such optimistic forecasts are varied, but foremost among them is the unprecedented support of the Kingdom for its nationals to build their own houses and apartments,” Shakoor said. Another reason is the high population growth rate which at present stands at 3.5 percent per annum. The Kingdom’s population is expected to reach 80 million by 2020, according to a report of the Ministry of Planning.
Research and field studies estimate that the Kingdom will need four to five million housing units by 2020 to meet the growing demand. And to meet this demand, around SR117 billion is estimated to be the requirement for investment annually.
In order to build these houses and apartments, about110 million sq m of suitable land will be required. The cost of this land alone will be around SR10 billion according to present market prices. “This situation provides a unique opportunity to the local and GCC businessmen to invest in this lucrative market as the investment will yield good returns in the medium and long term,” he added.
In Saudi Arabia, 20 percent of the Commercial Registrations issued are in the names of businesswomen. Similarly private companies, numbering around 1,500, are also owned and managed by women entrepreneurs. Deposits worth SR60 billion in the banks belong to Saudi businesswomen, according to statistics available.
In the past few years, the Real Estate sector witnessed participation of Saudi businesswomen through marketing operations that target the female population due to the high growth of capital owned by Saudi businesswomen. This involvement remains confined to personal initiatives as 60 percent of those women deal exclusively with their own properties, although a number of them have taken up real estate marketing as a business venture to collect commissions despite the risks involved. “Many of such firms are also taking part in this event,” Shakoor said.
Many renowned companies, including London-based UK Property Investment Co., Rikaz Development Company, Al Shobily Group, Coldwell Banker, Ewa’a Derah for Real Estate Development, Bait Al Arab, Saqifat Al Safa are sponsors as well as participants of this exhibition. Other exhibitors include Zaki M.A. Farsi, Subal Co. Saudi Real Estate Co., Abnia Design Consultants and Tulip Business Developers from Dubai are participating.
As part of the event, Trade-X Arabia is organizing a three-day conference in the evening from tomorrow. Jeddah Mayor Abdullah Al-Moallami will officially open the conference tomorrow.