Riyadh real estate market — prices, rental yield and trend

• Gross rental yield: 3.47%
• 12-month price change (USD): 4.2%
• Net rental yield: 3.3%
• Transaction cost: 9%
• Bubble-risk band: high
• Price basis: local-market average

Riyadh is one of the 314 property markets Glopra tracks.

What a buyer pays in Riyadh

Buying costs — transfer tax or stamp duty, notary, registration and agency — come to about 9% of the price here. That is close to the 9.5% median across the set.

What it earns

The typical home here lets for about $669 a month against a purchase price of $231,342, which is 3.5% gross before tax. Neither figure is quoted per square metre in this market, but both come from the same source, so the ratio between them holds. It ranks 270th of 311 markets by gross yield. Rental income is taxed at 5–20% — the rate is not a single number here. That is the difference between 2.8% and 3.3% net on the same property. The 3.3% net figure we publish uses 5%.

How the tax works. 5%: Saudi Arabia has no personal income tax, and for a non-resident without a permanent establishment rent is subject to a 5% withholding on the gross amount (Income Tax Law art. 68(a)(3)) — not the 20% that applies to management fees. The upper end of 20% covers property held through a local company, or an owner that ZATCA treats as having a permanent establishment. Direct foreign ownership has been permitted since 21 January 2026. Confidence is low: the collection mechanism and the permanent-establishment risk are not settled. The 5% real-estate transaction tax is a sales tax and is not included. Source: ClearTax KSA / KPMG.

How stretched the price looks in Riyadh

Glopra’s bubble-risk score for Riyadh is 93 out of 100 — high risk. Only one of the 65 markets we score reads higher. It combines the deviation from trend, price-to-income and the pace of recent growth — a warning light, not a forecast.

Who can buy in Riyadh

Opening from 2026, designated zones only; Mecca and Medina excluded. That is the rule a foreign buyer meets first, not legal advice — check the current position locally before you commit.

How this figure is built

The price figure for Riyadh is built from recorded transaction prices. It was last refreshed on 2026-10-16. We rate our confidence in this market’s data high: the underlying series is official and current. We recompute every market the same way, which is what lets Riyadh be compared with a country average or another city.

Sources: arabnews.com · globalpropertyguide.com · airbtics.com. Snapshot: 2026-10-16.