Gulf Construction Online - Cityscape Global nets $61bn realty deals

Event

The floorspace at Cityscape Global grew 61 per cent year-on-year.

Cityscape Global nets $61bn realty deals

01 December 2024

Cityscape Global confirmed its position as the largest real estate exhibition in the world, bringing down the curtain on its second edition at the Riyadh Exhibition and Convention Center last month by revealing a staggering SR230 billion ($61.3 billion) in real estate transactions across the four-day show. This total, organisers say, underlines how “Saudi Arabia is now a global hub for real estate”.

Rachel Sturgess, Senior Vice-President of Tahaluf, organisers of Cityscape Global, said the growth of the 2024 show was clear. As well as the mammoth transaction total being more than double that of last year’s show, the exhibition’s floorspace also grew 61 per cent year-on-year, spanning 121,000 gross sq m. The 426 exhibiting companies signalled a 37 per cent increase on 2023, with international exhibitors also growing by 47 per cent.

Cityscape Global 2024 attracted over 172,000 attendees.

Sturgess commented: “After the inaugural edition of Cityscape Global, we became the number one real estate event in the world. It’s an honour to close this year’s show by saying we are still number one.”

As part of the closing ceremony, Abdullah Alhammad, CEO, Real Estate General Authority, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, spoke about the growth Cityscape Global has witnessed and highlighted the invaluable support given to the event by key foundation partners.

Announcing the SR230 billion ($61 billion) total, Alhammad reiterated the impact of tangible real estate transactions and announcements of sales made on site. The value of major launches on the first day reached more than SR180 billion and the value of strategic agreements during the exhibition exceeding SR30 billion

Developer participation also rose 64 per cent, with local ones up 117 per cent and international developers rising by 28 per cent. To highlight Cityscape Global’s substantial potential for the industry, Sturgess explained how the developer of a 25-building project, sold five of those buildings, in just the first hour of the show. Another developer sold 70 per cent of its off-plan project in the first two days, noted Sturgess, while another sold every unit in its development in three days. Additionally, a 600,000 sq m parcel of land in North Riyadh set a new Guinness World Record for an auction lot. The landmark sale achieved a price of SR3.68 billion.

Looking ahead to next year’s show, Sturgess revealed Cityscape Global 2025 will take place from 10-13 November 2025.