Saudi Arabia's Red Sea islands are undergoing a radical transformation as part of the “Later Island” project, which is being developed by the Public Investment Fund's (PIF) Red Sea International (RSI).
Saudi Red Sea Islands
The project is the company's first integrated residential real estate development and aims to transform the island into a luxury tourism destination that attracts local and international wealthy people, as part of the Kingdom's ambitious plan to boost the tourism sector by 2028.Saudi Red Sea Islands
.Prices of luxury residential units in “Later Island”
The prices of luxury residential units in Later Island range from a few million to 150 million Saudi riyals (about $40 million), making marketing these properties a major challenge, especially given the novelty of the Saudi real estate market and the social restrictions that still exist.
Marketing these properties is a major challenge, especially given the novelty of the Saudi real estate market and the social restrictions that still exist.
Apartment prices in Later Island
Apartments start at SAR 5.5 million, while villas start at SAR 18 million, according to Stephen Cheesbrough, head of development at The Red Sea Project. The project is built on a circular island with an area of about 400 hectares and includes 528 villas distributed on the north and south of the island, along with 221 luxury apartments, a shopping mall and two luxury hotels, with the southern part of the island expected to open in 2028.
Saudi Arabia is betting on the Red Sea Project. Saudi Arabia is betting that these projects will make a qualitative leap in the real estate market and contribute to attracting new foreign investments, especially after allowing foreigners to own real estate inside the Kingdom, and despite the large jumps in real estate prices since 2019, where the prices of apartments increased by 96% and villas by 53%, the pace of transactions slowed down during the last year due to the decline in purchasing power.
Faisal Durrani, head of Middle East research at Knight Frank, notes that the Kingdom's luxury real estate market is still in its early stages and emphasizes that the number of interested buyers is still limited compared to mature markets such as Dubai.
Faisal Durrani, head of Middle East research at Knight Frank, notes that the Kingdom's luxury real estate market is still in its infancy. The Red Sea International confirmed that it has recorded real estate sales worth 1.5 billion riyals so far, mostly in its luxury resorts, and aims to achieve additional sales worth two billion riyals during the current year, the largest part of which is from "Later Island".
The project is attracting interest from international celebrities and investors, including an unnamed English Premier League soccer player.
Cheesebrough stated that the project is attracting interest from international celebrities and investors, including an unnamed English Premier League soccer player. The company continues to expand its tourism portfolio, with five hotels opened so far and 11 new resorts expected to open this year, although the high accommodation prices of up to 7,000 riyals per night put them out of reach of the average visitor.
Cheesebrough said that the project is attracting interest from international celebrities and investors, including an unnamed Premier League footballer.
