Riyadh’s real estate market entered a new phase Sunday with applications opening for the second round of the Real Estate Balance Program. Overseen by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC), the program aims to provide between 10,000 and 40,000 developed and planned residential plots annually over the next five years, at prices not exceeding SR1,500 per square meter. The Real Estate Balance Platform aims to help balance the real estate market and increase homeownership among eligible beneficiaries in Riyadh. It also seeks to ensure fair distribution and maintain a balance between supply and demand in the city's residential real estate market. The Royal Commission for Riyadh City announced last week that applications for the program’s second year would be accepted from Aug. 16 through Sept. 15 via its online platform. The initiative follows directives from Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman to take measures to restore balance to the capital’s real estate sector. As the program expands, its potential to influence the broader market is growing. Prices set for land offered through the initiative provide a new benchmark for homebuyers and an alternative to conventional market listings, increasing competition and potentially prompting landowners and real estate agencies to reassess asking prices. The program is part of broader government efforts to increase Riyadh’s real estate supply and develop unused land, helping bring supply and demand into better balance as the capital experiences rapid population and economic growth. Real estate specialists say the second round could help narrow the gap between asking prices and what buyers can afford. Its impact could extend beyond direct beneficiaries because increasing the supply of land at predetermined prices puts competitive pressure on other sellers, particularly in areas where comparable alternatives are available. Khalid Al-Jasser, a real estate specialist and chairman of Amaken International Group, previously told Asharq Al-Awsat that the program’s impact extends beyond the land market to financing, construction, building materials and housing-related services. Its strength, he argued, lies not only in offering land at set prices but in addressing the underlying problem by increasing supply. A larger, more orderly supply of residential land gives citizens more choices and reduces the ability of scarcity to drive prices higher. Real estate developer Ahmed Omar Basodan described the program’s continuation for a second year as an important signal that tackling high housing costs requires a sustained approach rather than a temporary measure. As Riyadh grows rapidly, residential supply must continually keep pace with demographic and economic expansion, he noted. The program’s most significant effect could ultimately be a shift in market behavior by reducing expectations that land scarcity will continue indefinitely to support higher prices.
