Ministry of Housing aims to raise home ownership by 1% annually

Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing Majid Al-Hogail

Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing Majid Al-Hogail said that the ministry is working to increase the home ownership rate by 1% annually since 2020, by adding more than 100,000 residential units every year.

Speaking during the 2024 Budget Forum, the minister indicated that this is being done while ensuring that the private sector is empowered in development and financing to be partners, as there are several local real estate developers.

He also stated that more than 105,000 housing units will be offered with local developers, especially in areas witnessing high prices, such as Riyadh and Jeddah, through multiple suburbs.

Furthermore, the ministry aims to have developers from outside the Kingdom to diversify and focus on residential suburbs more than housing, said Al-Hogail.

He highlighted that the housing targets, as per Vision 2030, were planned to go through three stages, while ensuring that there is a sustainable program that does not depend solely on government spending.

The ministry focused this year on raising the quality of services in cities.

It also aims to privatize 70% of the municipal sector in coordination with the National Center for Privatization & PPP. The ministry privatized 19% of this sector in 2023 and aims to privatize 30% of services next year.

Al-Hogail added that some services are still difficult to be privatized due to the lack of the appropriate financial model.