Under the recommendations, landlords can instead report tenants to the police, who will kick them out by force, Abdullah Faisal Al-Saqr, a committee member, said on Wednesday.

He was commenting on a police report that said 5,269 tenants, mostly Saudis, refused to pay their rent last year.

“The number of tenants who declined to pay their rent for one reason or another is on the rise. This has prompted landlords to prefer foreigners who they can kick out more easily if they refused to pay rent, either by contacting their sponsors or official departments,” he told Arab News.

Al-Saqr said the committee considered a number of other possible solutions, including the issuance of legislation authorizing the landlord to cut electricity and water from the tenant or deducting from his salary if he is working.

“We should spread awareness among residents who rent out houses at high prices while their incomes are low. A low-income tenant who rents a house at SR30,000 a year will definitely not be able to pay the rent,” he said.

According to Al-Saqr, high house rents in Jeddah are caused by the high prices of land. “There should be a mechanism to ensure that land prices do not go up,” he said, adding that imposing taxes on empty lands will force their owners either to sell or construct on them.

Al-Saqr expected ongoing development projects in east Jeddah to help increase supply, reduce demand and keep prices at reasonable levels. He also said concerned authorities such as social affairs departments and the civil service should assist employees who retire or are let go from their jobs to pay their rent.

Currently, a tenant who fails to pay his rent can be evicted within 21 days. If he refuses to pay up, he can be detained in police custody until he pays.

The police said cases of tenants who refuse to pay should be brought to them, but are taken to the governorates.

Lawyer Abdul Aziz Saleh Nuqali, who is a member of the lawyers’ committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the proposed contract would not solve the problem as the tenant can usually justify his failure to pay for many reasons, including bad service or problems in the home.

“The solution lies in the appointment of special judges in courts whose jobs will be to expedite resolution of such cases,” he said.