efforts to innovate in design/aesthetics, more cost efficient construction methods etc.,” Tash added. As a result, these low quality units end up being sold to investors who lease them to end users who in turn are not encouraged to buy because they hope to find something more attractive in time, he concluded. However, in the last few years, several developers have made an effort in
addressing this gap between consumer expectations and market supply. Founded in 2005, Kinan International Real Estate Development “is
currently aimed at developing residential neighbourhoods in terms of innovative designs for housing units and integrated services designed around the average income.” By the end of this year, the company will deliver its first residential development, Masharef. Located in the north of Jeddah, Masharef comprises one million square metres and offers a wide range of villas, apartments and commercial space. Te complex will also include a myriad of amenities including parks, a school, mosque and retail outlets. According to Kinan, the project “provides a new living experience tailored
to suit Jeddah residents while offering an enjoyable lifestyle.” As of today, Masharef has sold out its entire phase 1, comprising of 231 villas while 30
per cent of phase 2 are also already sold. In 2010, Al-Hakmiah Real Estate Development Company has delivered its
SAR 30 million Shaqaty High Rise project in order to address the shortage of residential units in the Kingdom. Located on the Khobar Corniche in the heart of the city, the project consists of an open residential compound with four Andalusian-style high rise buildings. Earlier this year, the company has signed an agreement with financing company Amlak International, to launch the modern residential compound Al Derwaza in Al Khobar. “Te Al Derwaza project is an extension of the vision of the company to establish fully integrated compounds that depend on building social relationships between customers and reflect privacy and safety in addition to providing the essential needs,” said Mr. Reden Aldowish, Chairman of Al-Hakmiah. According to Tash, Saudi Arabia is definitely capable of delivering
successful residential developments if the responsible parties put more effort into understanding the market. “Te ‘science’ as well as ‘art’ of marketing and market research in Saudi need to be developed more. Tere is a huge potential for replication of regional or even globally successful residential community developments, if we have the ability to figure out what tweaks to do to make it more ‘Saudi’ relevant,” he said l
JUNE 2012 I CITYSCAPE I 27
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