Nine main reasons why the housing problem has worsened in major Saudi cities, with Jeddah ranking first among Saudi cities in terms of being affected by the housing crisis, which has prevented the vast majority of citizens from owning housing units. Following Jeddah are Mecca, then Riyadh, Al-Khobar, and Dammam.

According to the study, the most significant of these reasons are as follows:

1- Volatility in land prices.

2- High down payment requirements for mortgages, typically 30%..

3- A shortage of housing units and their high prices relative to the income ceiling for low-income citizens.

4- The lack of bank financing programs for developers.

5- Incomplete infrastructure in planned developments.

6- Difficulty in converting agricultural land located within urban areas into residential land.

This is according to a report in the newspaper “Makkah.”

The study highlighted a number of interim solutions to increase the supply of housing units, including:

Implementing the FIDIC contract, enforcing the building code, and offering approved bank financing programs to classified developers through a joint agreement between the Ministry of Housing—represented by the Real Estate Development Fund—and the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority, in addition to expediting and streamlining off-plan sales procedures.