Idle Lands Program live in 15 cities; taxed over 500 mln sqm: Official

The Idle Lands Program is currently operating in 15 cities across the Kingdom, with over 500 million square meters (sqm) of idle lands now taxed, CNBC Arabia reported, citing Abdullah Alhammad, the program’s supervisor.  

Alhammad sees the program delivering positive results over the coming period, adding that it witnesses a qualitative transition as it evaluates the results on an annual basis, and positive results were recorded.  

Idle Lands identified a noticeable increase in Riyadh land prices due to the supply-demand gap versus the turnover in the real estate market.  

Accordingly, the second phase of the program was launched in tandem with the first phase to include raw lands. The first phase is still running its sixth session, while registration for the second phase will close in 80 days, Alhammad added, noting that Idle Lands will later contribute to balancing the land prices.

Another three main cities will be covered in the second phase after Riyadh, he noted, forecasting the program to provide thousands of residential units in Riyadh and other Saudi cities where the idle lands are taxed.