Mortgage activity surges in Saudi Arabia, plus other headlines

For PropertyGuru’s real estate news roundup, mortgage contracts registered in Saudi Arabia rose in the second quarter of 2024. In other news, India’s business parks sector continues to develop by focusing on sustainability and efficient design. Lastly, learn how organisations can optimise networking efficiencies even more through virtualising networking infrastructure.

Saudi Arabia’s residential market sees surge in mortgage activity, fueling housing supply growth

Mortgage contracts registered in Saudi Arabia reached 24,482 in the second quarter of 2024, an annual rise of 12 percent, according to real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle. The total value of these agreements stood at SAR18 billion (USD4.86 billion), marking an 8 percent rise year-on-year.

A report from the company argued that this growth in mortgage activity underscores the ongoing demand for residential properties and reflects the government’s commitment to supporting homeownership among its citizens. As a result of this rising need, the Kingdom’s property market is experiencing a significant expansion, with a notable increase in housing supply in key cities like Riyadh and Jeddah.

According to the report in Arab News, the total residential stock in Riyadh reached 1.46 million units in the first half of the year, while Jeddah’s inventory stood at 891,000. This expansion aligns with the Kingdom’s ongoing efforts to accommodate a growing population and meet the rising demand for independent living arrangements.

India’s business parks evolve to stay on top

India’s business parks sector is focusing on sustainability and efficient design as it continues to develop as the heart of the nation’s commercial real estate sector.

Sited in the biggest and most dynamic cities, India’s business parks are home to a host of blue chip tenants in modern office buildings, developed by domestic and foreign players and often using international architects.

“These are buildings which would be very happily located in Manhattan or Singapore,” says Arvind Nandan, Head of Research & Consulting at Savills India. “They are Grade A properties with the same quality of design and finish, which is why they appeal to global corporations.”

India began creating modern business parks around the turn of the century, mostly on previously unused lands, enabling a new breed of office development, modelled on the campuses popular with US tech firms. The combination of developing market rents and international quality space has proven irresistible to foreign and domestic tenants.

Building a sustainable infrastructure foundation: Virtualise networking infrastructure

Sustainability is becoming a bigger driver of IT buying decisions, thanks to increasing regulation on climate reporting as well as growing consumer and investor demands. Environmental responsibility is imperative for businesses now, and IT operations can be a big contributor to a company’s environmental impact—sometimes the biggest contributor.

According to a report from S&P Global Market Intelligence, the number of organisations that have implemented or are developing formal targets for reducing environmental impact is on the rise. Some already have target dates for reaching net-zero carbon emissions. And half see IT operations as accounting for most or all their environmental impact. Thus, companies of all sizes are exploring how to improve the sustainability and efficiency of their IT infrastructure and building relationships with vendors that have credible sustainability commitments.

DataCenterNews Asia explains how organisations can further optimise networking efficiencies through virtualising networking infrastructure.

The Property Report editors wrote this article. For more information, email: [email protected].