With a large turnout of businesspeople and experts, the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with the General Authority for Statistics, organized an informational session yesterday, Sunday, on the real estate price index. The session highlighted the real estate price index, and its primary objectives: to develop advanced real estate statistical indicators that measure the performance of the Kingdom’s real estate market and to fill the data gap in the real estate sector.
The Index Fills the Real Estate Data Gap
Speakers provided a comprehensive and accurate explanation of the real estate situation in the Kingdom, noting that the Authority obtains the necessary data from the Ministry of Justice, which serves as the sole official reference and source for real estate sector data in the Kingdom, For his part, Abdullah Al-Batel, Deputy President of the General Authority for Statistics, said that real estate represents an important part of the Kingdom’s sustainable development system, as it is a strategic production factor for all sectors and a gateway to encouraging productive investment that generates income and creates job opportunities, noting that the Authority has been working since 2012 to produce accurate figures on real estate prices.
During the introductory session on the “Real Estate Price Index,” Al-Batel added that the Authority’s work has focused on tracking price movements of the units comprising the real estate sector, which was prepared based on data issued by the Ministry of Justice, noting that the Real Estate Price Index aims to establish advanced real estate statistical indicators that measure the performance of the real estate market and fill gaps in real estate data.
Establishing advanced real estate statistical indicators
For his part, Mohammed bin Saad Al-Ajlan, Vice Chairman of the Real Estate Committee at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce, said that the Real Estate Price Index plays an important role in identifying the extent of changes in real estate prices, and is one of the most important indicators needed by many decision-makers and investors alike. He noted that the business sector must be more aware of the index’s importance, which underscores the need for cooperation between real estate companies and agencies and relevant authorities to ensure the accuracy of the information.
He added during the meeting, which was moderated by Dr. Badr Al-Saidan, a member of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce’s Real Estate Committee, that the Real Estate Price Index aims to meet international, regional, and local requirements by establishing advanced real estate statistical indicators that measure the performance of the Kingdom’s real estate market and bridge the information gap facing the real estate sector, noting that the Chamber’s Real Estate Committee seeks to establish the principle of dialogue and participation between officials and sectors of the economic community and reaffirms the Chamber’s participation in events related to real estate matters.
Monitoring Real Estate Market Trends
Ibrahim Al-Humaizi, Director General of the General Department of Methodologies and Statistical Coordination at the Authority, gave a presentation on the methodology behind the real estate price index, noting that Real Estate Price Index data can be used to monitor real estate market trends, inform certain economic decisions, and measure changes in real estate prices, and explaining that the index is considered a leading economic indicator for forecasting economic growth.
He added that the Real Estate Price Index covers all regions of the Kingdom, and its data is relied upon in economic and statistical analyses of real estate price movements and future forecasts over specific time periods, and that it covers the residential, commercial, and agricultural sectors and is published quarterly.
The interview explained that the data, as received from the Ministry of Justice, is classified into three main sectors: the residential sector, which consists of residential land parcels, residential buildings, villas, apartments, and houses; the commercial sector, which consists of commercial plots of land, commercial buildings, showrooms, stores, and shopping centers; and the agricultural sector, which consists of agricultural land.
