This includes 6.2 million square meters of land in Riyadh and 13.32 million square meters of land in 18 cities and townships in the province, an official statement said.
The directives follow the issuance of a decree by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah in March urging authorities to construct 500,000 low-cost houses in different parts of the Kingdom to solve the country’s housing problem.
King Abdullah has allocated SR250 billion to implement the massive project.
He also approved the designs of new housing units presented by Housing Minister Shuwaish Al-Duwaihi.
The General Housing Authority has started implementing 35 projects comprising 15,000 housing units in various parts of the Kingdom.
The ministry will hand over the first units of this housing project very soon, Al-Duwaihi said, adding that the projects would be carried out quickly while maintaining high quality.
Saudi Arabia needs two million homes by 2014 to keep up with the demands of a population that quadrupled over 40 years.
The Shoura Council has approved the long-awaited mortgage law aimed at bringing private lenders into the market.
The Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs has allocated plots in 130 sites in different parts of the country to construct low-cost housing units.
King Abdullah recently took a number of decisions to improving the housing situation in the country.
In February, he allocated SR40 billion to increase the capital of the Real Estate Development Fund and raised the amount of loans to be provided by the fund from SR300,000 to SR500,000 to an applicant.
The fund has approved 10,227 new loans worth SR5 billion.
In accordance with the Riyadh mayor’s instructions, land allocations for housing projects have been made in Diriya, Al-Kharj, Dawadmi, Majmaa, Hareek, Dharma, Saleel, Aflaj, Wadi Al-Dawasser, Huraimala, Thadik, Shaqra, Muzahamiya, Afeef, Zulfi, Alghat and Houtat Bani Tameem, the statement said.
Prince Abdul Aziz said: “The mayoralty is keen to provide suitable land in Riyadh and other cities and townships in the province and extent all-out support to the project in order for the poor and needy get decent homes as quickly as possible.”
Prince Abdul Aziz commended the Saudi leadership for its support to the housing sector and stressed the need to unify endeavors and set out necessary mechanisms to strengthen this vital sector.
He said the new housing projects announced by the government would boost the housing and real estate sector in the Kingdom, creating a balance between demand and supply and encouraging more investments.
