The middle of each Gregorian month is the official date set by the Ministry of Housing for disbursing housing subsidies to eligible recipients through the “Sakani” portal, Sources revealed that 80% of the 1.1 million citizens eligible for housing support will receive assistance ranging from 50% to 100% through one of the four tracks announced by the ministry: the Soft Financing Track, the Housing Savings Track, the Cooperative Housing Track, and the Affordable Housing Track. Through these homeownership tracks, the Ministry of Housing aims to create a sustainable and productive environment for efficient, high-quality housing and to enable future generations to access suitable housing options.

Development of 75,000 housing units this year

The number of Saudi families with a monthly income of 4,000 riyals is estimated at approximately 400,000, while 180,000 families will be eligible for support from charitable organizations, and statistical analysis of applicant data indicates that 450,000 citizens are eligible to purchase housing units priced between 600,000 and 750,000 riyals.

The Ministry has completed the development of more than 63 million square meters, a portion of which is being offered as part of this year’s 75,000 housing units in the Ministry’s portfolio of developed land.

Reduction of the list of beneficiaries 10%

In addition, the down payment required to obtain a housing loan is expected to be reduced —for the first time—to 10%, a move consistent with the new financing mechanism that relies on financing products offered by financial institutions, rather than the mortgage loans previously provided by the Real Estate Development Fund.

Concessional financing is considered one of the best and fastest paths to homeownership, as applicants can obtain low-cost financing after making the down payment.

This pathway enables applicants to become homeowners by providing affordable financing for direct purchases on the open market, off-plan purchases, or construction costs. Under this program, beneficiaries receive low-cost mortgage financing through commercial banks over a reasonable period of time, with monthly installments not exceeding 30% of the borrower’s income.

The Ministry’s Housing Support Tracks

The Ministry provides housing support to eligible applicants through four different programs, depending on the applicant’s income bracket, as follows:

Concessional mortgages, which involve obtaining a down payment guarantee product combined with loan interest rates competitive with market rates; for some applicants, the Ministry will pay a portion of the loan interest on their behalf, while for others, the Ministry will pay the entire loan interest. In addition, the Ministry intends to introduce mortgage guarantee products to assist certain segments that financial institutions are reluctant to serve—either due to high credit risk or because they work in the private sector. This product will enable these segmentsto access real estate financing supported by the Ministry.

The Savings and Homeownership Program

Even after the announcement of the affordable mortgage product—under which the state guarantees 15% of the property’s value—the Savings Path aims to enable applicants to save for the down payment needed to finance the purchase of a suitable home by offering a number of incentives, It is one of the Housing Savings Fund’s products and is open to all groups and segments of the population. Over a period ranging from three to five years, a monthly amount is deducted from the participant’s income, and in return, the participant receives a share from the fund ranging from 25 to 150% of the total amount saved.

Three Basic Criteria

The participation rate is calculated individually for each participant, based on three basic criteria:

• The first criterion is the household’s monthly income, and the participation rate is inversely proportional to the household’s monthly income.
• The second criterion is the number of family members, and the contribution rate is directly proportional to the number of family members.
• The third criterion is regular participation in the program; this criterion aims to incentivize participants to remain committed and receive a higher contribution rate.

The “Rent Support” Program

If the applicant is from a low-income bracket and is unable to save, the Ministry will provide the “Rent Support” program. The goal of this program is to enable low-income applicants to save a portion of their income, so that the Ministry will pay the portion of the rent that exceeds 25% of their income, provided they enroll in the savings program, which in turn will enable them to save for the down payment required to obtain subsidized mortgage financing and remain in the same residence they currently rent.