Abdullah Saad Al-Ahmari, chairman of the real estate evaluation committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), hinted on Wednesday that the land in north Obhur would be divided and sold to the highest bidder. “This is the nature of the auctions,” he told Arab News.

The land, which has remained vacant for about 28 years since Al-Ajhouri was jailed, contains 308 plots ranging from 479 to 808 square meters.

Some of these plots face main roads while others open toward three major streets.

“The location is an old plot which was developed and ready for construction,” Al-Ahmari said.

He added the committee has supplied the panel appointed by the court to liquidate Al-Ajhouri’s properties with data about the land and prices.

“The site is very appropriate, but because of its small size and the limited number of plots, it will not have a great impact on prices in north Ohbur or Salman Fiord in the long run,” Al-Ahmari said.

He added that the plot represents a good opportunity for buyers and will help relieve pressure in the area, where prices have soared.

Ali Saeed Muhammad Al-Ghamdi, a member of the JCCI’s real estate committee, expected a large number of realtors to attend the auction. He said the current market price in the area is about SR1,800 per square meter.

“Jeddah is expanding northward, so land prices in the northern areas of the city are usually on the rise,” he said.

Al-Ajhouri had swindled about SR1 billion out of more than 8,000 investors from 37 countries in fake real estate investments. He has spent more than half his life in prisons in Jeddah and Madinah.