The Saudi Arabian rent freeze might be expanding to other regions
The country will be conducting studies on the matter
Last month, Saudi Arabia announced a major new rule: rents in Riyadh will now be frozen for the next five years. The news made the rounds across socials and made renters (like myself) beyond happy. Now, a Saudi Arabian rent freeze expansion might be happening.
The Saudi Real Estate General Authority recently revealed plans to explore expanding the rent freeze to encompass all regions across the Kingdom for a period of five years, according to a report by Al-Arabiya.net.
Tayseer Al-Mufarrej, spokesman of the authority, said that the authority continues to monitor real estate indicators in the Saudi cities, and the regulations will be implemented in accordance with market standards and the outcome of monitoring of each city.
The total rent value for vacant residential and commercial property leases within the urban area of the remaining cities will be stabilised accordingly. The authority is also studying, based on its real estate monitoring indicators, ways to regulate the relationship between landlords and tenants, per Saudi Gazette.
How it works in Riyadh
Saudi Arabian rent freeze expansion
In a bid to stabilise housing costs and ensure fairness between landlords and tenants, the new rules state that the current rental value of properties, whether in existing or new contracts, cannot be increased for five years within Riyadh’s urban boundary. All rental contracts need to be registered on the Ejar platform, either by landlords or tenants. There’s a 60-day window for objections, and if no objection is raised, the contract data will be deemed valid. Also specified in the rules is that landlords in Riyadh cannot refuse renewals should the tenants wish to extend the contract, violations carry hefty fines, although landlords are allowed to appeal fixed rents for a limited time. Read the full details here.
