Saudi real estate transactions fall 15% to SAR 24.4B in August

Riyadh city

The value of real estate transactions in the Saudi market declined 15% in August 2026 to around SAR 24.4 billion, compared with around SAR 28.7 billion in August 2025.

This was driven by an 8% year-on-year (YoY) decline in residential transaction value to SAR 17.9 billion from around SAR 19.6 billion in August 2025, in addition to a 29% drop in non-residential transaction value to SAR 6.5 billion, according to data from the Real Estate General Authority (REGA).

Residential transactions accounted for around 73% of total real estate transaction value in August 2026, while non-residential transactions represented around 27%.

*Data are updated periodically.

The number of real estate transactions executed in August 2026 fell to around 21,800, down 7%, with residential and non-residential transactions declining 7% and 5%, respectively.

Land accounted for the largest share of residential transaction value in August 2026 at SAR 7.8 billion, or around 44% of total residential transaction value, followed by apartments at SAR 3.2 billion and villas at SAR 3 billion.

Residential transaction values varied across all property types during the period compared with the previous year, with other properties recording the largest increase in value at 140%.

Data showed that the number of residential real estate transactions declined YoY across most property types in August 2026, except for villas and floors, which rose 21% YoY and 40% YoY, respectively.

According to the data, real estate liquidity was concentrated in the major regions, with Riyadh accounting for 38% of total transaction value, followed by Makkah at 7.2% and the Eastern Province at 3.7%.

Riyadh led real estate market activity by transaction volume, accounting for 28% of the total number of transactions executed in the Kingdom, followed by Makkah at 23% and the Eastern Province at 15%.

Rental transaction value rises 32% to SAR 10.6 bln, driven by non-residential rentals

Rental transaction value rose 32% YoY to SAR 10.6 billion in August 2026, compared with around SAR 8 billion in the same month a year earlier.

This came as residential rental transaction value increased 28% to around SAR 5.6 billion from SAR 4.4 billion in August 2025, accounting for around 53% of total rental transaction value.

The number of rental transactions also increased to 446,300 in August 2026 from around 325,200 in the same period a year earlier, marking annual growth of 37%.

The increase was distributed between the residential sector, which rose 36%, and the non-residential sector, which grew 42%.

The number of rental contracts in the Kingdom increased 36% YoY in August 2026 to 382,000, supported by growth in both residential and non-residential contracts.

Residential rental contracts rose 35% to around 309,000, while non-residential rental contracts increased 43% to 72,900.

Riyadh ranked first among administrative regions by rental transaction value at SAR 4.5 billion, followed by Makkah at SAR 2.9 billion.

Riyadh also ranked first among administrative regions by number of rental transactions, recording 145,700 transactions, representing 33% of the Kingdom’s total.

Makkah ranked second with 112,600 transactions and a 25% share, followed by the Eastern Province with 69,900 transactions, representing 16%.