Property prices in Saudi Arabia are among the worst performing in the world, according to a new global study.
Knight Frank’s Global House Price Index for the first quarter of 2018 revealed that values in the kingdom were down marginally by 0.2% over the past 12 months, Arabian Business reported.
Saudi Arabia was ranked 51st out of 57 countries covered by the index, with Peru named as the worst performing real estate market with a 4.2% drop.
The rate of price decline in Saudi Arabia quickened over the past three and six months, down by 0.7% and 0.9% respectively, according to Knight Frank. Meanwhile, globally, prices rose by 4.8% on average in the year to the end of March, it added.
Hong Kong led the index for the first time since the second quarter of 2015 with nearly 15% annual growth.
Knight Franks said house prices are rising in 86% of the 57 countries tracked by the index although only 9% of the markets tracked registered price growth above 10%, down from 18% a year ago. North America (6.6%) remained the strongest performing world region.
Kate Everett-Allen, head of international residential research at Knight Frank said: “Europe’s recovery is now well underway, closer analysis confirms 11 of the 15 strongest-performing housing markets globally were in Europe at the end of March.”
In February, JLL, a global real estate investment and advisory firm, said prices in the Saudi capital Riyadh decreased by 4% over the year while rents decreased by 5% annually.
Most investors in Saudi Arabia are committed to real estate as their main investment vehicle, but many are looking outside the kingdom for opportunities in the property market, according to a new survey of investment patterns among residents.
Some 85% of Saudi residents have invested in property at some stage, but over half of respondents are considering putting their cash into international real estate, the survey, by market research firm YouGov on behalf of British property developer Select Group, reveals.
“Investor confidence is only further evidenced by the frequency in which investments are being made. The results found that almost a quarter (23%) of investors based in Saudi Arabia look to make a new investment at least every three months.
