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PIF Launches National Real Estate Registration Services Co.

The new Saudi company will create an integrated register of real estate units and link them with geographical information (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The new Saudi company will create an integrated register of real estate units and link them with geographical information (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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PIF Launches National Real Estate Registration Services Co.

The new Saudi company will create an integrated register of real estate units and link them with geographical information (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The new Saudi company will create an integrated register of real estate units and link them with geographical information (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has launched the National Real Estate Registration Services Co. to help regulate and develop the local real estate sector through a comprehensive digital platform.

Real estate experts confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the Kingdom is working to facilitate accurate property documentation procedures.

This will stimulate the private sector and national and foreign capital to invest in and develop the Kingdom’s real estate sector so that it matches Saudi aspirations for the next stage.

Last week, Saudi Arabia issued executive regulations for the real estate registration system, with the aim of building an e-registry of lands and properties.

The Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing Majed Al-Hogail said that the launch of the new company is a qualitative step that will enhance reliability and transparency in real estate ownership.

Al-Hogail also noted that the National Real Estate Registration Services Co. will help in reducing disputes by building a real estate registry.

For his part, Abdullah Al-Hammad, CEO of the General Real Estate Authority, stated that the launch of the company aligns with PIF’s goals for launching and empowering main sectors to play their role in raising the domestic product and increasing non-oil revenues.

Al-Hammad stated that the company aims to develop procedures and mechanisms for real estate registration. This contributes to enabling and raising the efficiency of the real estate sector and enhances reliability and transparency in services and data by creating an integrated registry that includes an advanced digital database.

Additionally, the move is an important stage in increasing the reliability of ownership, enhancing the accuracy of information about the property, and preserving the rights of dealers in the sector.

Muhammad Al-Murshed, member of the Real Estate Committee in the Chamber of Commerce in Riyadh, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the new company will regulate the sector and facilitate the procedures for documenting property ownership.

Moreover, the National Real Estate Registration Services Co. will stimulate local and foreign capital to enter the Saudi market.

Al-Murshed pointed to the importance of complementary work between the new company and competent authorities to achieve Saudi goals for increasing the reliability and transparency of the local market and reducing real estate disputes.

Launching company also reflects positively on the country's future mega projects and the provision of housing units that suit the beneficiaries of the Ministry of Housing.

Menassat Realty Co. CEO Khalid al-Mubayad said that the goal of the new company is to coordinate between the relevant government agencies and the private sector.

Therefore, the company will search for strategic partnerships with some major real estate developers to facilitate the documentation and in-kind registration of housing units.

The new platform will help build a comprehensive digital database of all public, residential, commercial, and agricultural properties across the Kingdom and ensure transparency in the sector.

The company will also improve the quality of services and access for beneficiaries by developing procedures and mechanisms for registration.

“The new company’s use of advanced digital solutions in its operations, enabling it to link its platform to all relevant government entities, will enhance reliability and transparency in real estate services and data in Saudi Arabia,” said Raid Ismail, co-head of MENA Direct Investments at PIF.

He added that the launch of the company will also increase the attractiveness of the investment ecosystem, and boost the value of national real estate assets.

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Expert: Türkiye Anti-inflation Steps Don’t Go Far Enough

People shop at a bazaar in Istanbul. Reuters
People shop at a bazaar in Istanbul. Reuters
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Expert: Türkiye Anti-inflation Steps Don’t Go Far Enough

People shop at a bazaar in Istanbul. Reuters
People shop at a bazaar in Istanbul. Reuters

Although Turkish inflation slowed in September, it is still raging out of control with the government avoiding difficult decisions that could help tackle it, experts told AFP.

Türkiye has experienced spiraling inflation the past two years, peaking at an annual rate of 85.5 percent in October 2022 and 75.45 percent in May.

The government claims it slowed to 49.4 percent in September.

But the figures are disputed by the ENAG group of independent economists who estimate that year-on-year inflation stood at 88.6 percent in September.

Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek has said Ankara was hoping to bring inflation down to 17.6 percent by the end of 2025 and to “single digits” by 2026.

And President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently hailed Türkiye’s success in “starting the process of permanent disinflation.”

“The hard times are behind us,” he said.

But economists interviewed by AFP said the surge in consumer prices in Türkiye had become “chronic” and is being exacerbated by some government policies.

“The current drop is simply due to a base effect. The price rises over the course of a month is still high, at 2.97 percent across Türkiye and 3.9 percent in Istanbul.

“You can’t call this a success story,” said Mehmet Sisman, economics professor at Istanbul’s Marmara University.

Spurning conventional economic practice of raising interest rates to curb inflation, Erdogan has long defended a policy of lowering rates. That has sent the lira sliding, further fueling inflation.

But after his reelection in May 2023, he gave Türkiye’s Central Bank free rein to raise its main interest rate from 8.5 to 50 percent between June 2023 and March 2024.

The central bank’s rate remained unchanged in September for the sixth consecutive month.

“The fight against inflation revolves around the priorities of the financial sector. As a result, it is done indirectly and generates uncertainty,” explained Erinc Yeldan, economics professor at Kadir Has University in Istanbul.

But raising interest rates alone is not enough to steady inflation without addressing massive budget deficits, according to Yakup Kucukkale, an economics professor at Karadeniz Technical University.

He pointed to Türkiye’s record budget deficit of 129.6 billion lira (3.45 billion euros).

“Simsek says this is due to expenditure linked to the reconstruction in regions hit by the February 2023 earthquake,” he said of the disaster that killed more than 53,000 people.

“But the real black hole is due to the costly public-private partnership contracts,” he said, referring to infrastructure contracts which critics say are often awarded to firms close to Erdogan’s government.

Such contracts cover construction and management of everything from motorways and bridges to hospitals and airports, and are often accompanied by generous guarantees such as state compensation in the event they are underused.

“We should question these contracts, which are a burden on the budget because this compensation is indexed to the dollar or the euro,” said Kucukkale.

Anti-inflation measures also tend to impact low-income households at a time when the minimum wage hasn’t been raised since January, he said.

“But these people already have little purchasing power. To lower demand, such measures must target higher-income groups, but there is hardly anything affecting them,” he said.