Saudi real estate deals slump 32% in July to SAR 35.5B

Regional concentration was heavy. Riyadh accounted for 44% of total transaction value, followed by Makkah at 28% and the Eastern Province at 12%. The three regions together made up 84% of the total. Riyadh also led in transaction volume, with 31% of all deals executed across the kingdom.

Rental activity bucked the trend. Rental transaction value rose 25% to SAR 10.6 billion, driven by a 28% increase in residential leases to SAR 5.6 billion. Total rental deals climbed 26% to 417,900. Residential rentals increased 25%, while non-residential rentals rose 29%. The number of rental contracts rose 28% to 356,000, with residential lease contracts up 27% and non-residential up 33%.

Riyadh led in rental value at SAR 4.43 billion, with 136,100 deals, a third of the national total. Makkah followed with SAR 2.96 billion and 112,700 deals. The Eastern Province recorded 65,900 rental transactions, representing 16% of the kingdom's total.

The rental sector's growth offered some offset to the slowdown in purchase transactions. Riyadh alone executed 136,100 rental deals in July, or 33% of the kingdom's total.