Khaberni - The General Authority for Statistics in Saudi Arabia announced today, Monday, a decrease in the real estate price index by 1.6% during the first quarter of 2026, on an annual basis.
The Authority explained in a statement that this decline is mainly due to a 3.6% decrease in residential property prices, as a result of a 3.9% drop in residential land prices.
Meanwhile, villa prices fell by 6.1% and apartments by 1.1%, while residential floors recorded a slight increase of 0.6%.
On the other hand, the commercial real estate sector grew by 3.4%, supported by a 3.6% increase in commercial land prices, and buildings by 2.6%, despite a 3.5% decline in prices of showrooms and commercial shops.
The agricultural real estate sector also continued to record positive performance, with prices rising by 11.8% on an annual basis, supported by an increase in agricultural land prices.
Geographically, the Riyadh region recorded a 4.4% decrease in real estate prices, followed by Mecca with a 0.7% decrease, while Al Baha topped the list of declines with a 9.2% decrease.
The Eastern Region recorded the highest increase at 6.9%, followed by Najran at 3.5%, and Tabuk at 1.5%.
This decline comes amid a slowdown in housing rents, which recorded the lowest growth rate in more than three years, alongside the continued decrease in residential real estate financing, as part of governmental efforts to balance the real estate market.
Global private investments totaling 6.3 billion dollars target the Saudi real estate market, according to a report by Knight Frank, which confirmed that the fundamentals supporting the market growth remain strong despite regional tensions associated with the war in the area, with ongoing local and international demand.
Riyadh needs more than 305,000 additional housing units by 2034, amid accelerated population growth, according to Knight Frank.
