Saudi Arabia’s luxury residential property market is currently valued at roughly 15–16 billion USD and is projected to approach 25–26 billion USD by around 2033, implying annual growth of about 6%. This sits inside a much larger Saudi residential real estate universe that is expected to reach about 1.6 trillion USD by the mid‑2020s, making the Kingdom one of the largest housing markets globally.​

In the first quarter of 2025 alone, total real estate transactions in Saudi Arabia reached approximately 29 billion USD, with premium, higher‑value assets playing an increasingly visible role. Vision 2030 giga‑projects have already driven around 196 billion USD in contract awards in 2025, with over 430 billion USD of announced investment along the western seaboard since 2016, ensuring a sustained pipeline of luxury and upper‑midscale stock.​

Why HNWIs And Family Offices Are Paying Attention

For global HNWIs and family offices, Saudi real estate offers a blend of yield and growth that is hard to find in mature, supply‑constrained prime markets. Reports on the Saudi market highlight residential yields that can run in the mid‑single to high‑single digits—often above those available in core Western European capitals—while benefiting from structural demand growth driven by demographics and urbanisation.​

At the same time, the luxury segment is being reshaped by branded residences, waterfront destinations, and lifestyle‑driven masterplans similar to those seen in the UAE and Mediterranean resorts. The Middle East already accounts for about 12% of global branded residence supply and is projected to see around 120% growth in this segment by 2030, with Saudi taking an increasing share as projects in places like Diriyah, the Red Sea, and NEOM move from concept to delivery.​

Premium Residency: A New Gateway For Global Capital

The Premium Residency program is a major structural reason why global wealth is now looking at Saudi luxury assets more seriously. Under the “Real Estate Owner Residency” track, foreign buyers can obtain long‑term residency by acquiring residential property worth at least about 4 million SAR (roughly 1.05–1.1 million USD), a threshold that effectively channels demand into upper‑tier and luxury stock.​

By early 2025, the program had helped drive real estate transaction volumes to around 29 billion USD in a single quarter, with more than 1,200 international investors reported to have entered through Premium Residency by late 2024. This is beginning to reshape buyer demographics in Riyadh and Jeddah, where developers are actively launching high‑end offerings positioned above the 4 million SAR mark to capture globally mobile, residency‑seeking HNWIs.​

From Opportunistic Bets To Portfolio Strategy

Family office and private wealth reports show that real estate continues to take 20–30% (or more) of overall asset allocation for many large families, with meaningful slices dedicated to direct and club‑style deals in residential and mixed‑use assets. As Saudi moves from “frontier” to “reform story with hard numbers,” it is increasingly being considered as a distinct sleeve within global real estate exposure, much like how some offices carve out specific allocations to the UAE or Singapore.​

A practical example: a family office with a 500 million USD portfolio might allocate 25% (125 million USD) to real estate, of which perhaps 10–15% (12.5–18.75 million USD) could be earmarked for “growth markets.” In that context, taking 5–10 million USD of exposure across a mix of Saudi luxury units, co‑investment vehicles, and development partnerships is no longer outsized; it is a measured bet aligned with macro‑level growth and policy support.​

How Global Wealth Is Entering The Market

Global capital is positioning in Saudi luxury real estate through several channels rather than a single entry point. Typical pathways include:​

• Direct acquisition of premium units or villas in Riyadh and Jeddah above the Premium Residency threshold, often as part of a multi‑unit family portfolio rather than a single holiday home.​

• Participation in development deals tied to giga‑projects—such as hospitality, branded residences, or mixed‑use clusters—structured as club deals or joint ventures with local developers.​

• Exposure via Saudi REITs and private funds, which provide institutional‑style vehicles for those who want diversified income without the complexity of direct ownership.​

With Vision 2030 projects targeting over 380,000 homes, 3 million square metres of offices, 4.3 million square metres of retail, and around 330,000 hotel keys by 2030, the opportunity set is large enough to absorb sustained allocations from global wealth over the 2025–2034 decade. For sophisticated HNWIs and family offices, the question is increasingly not whether Saudi luxury real estate deserves a seat at the table—but how quickly to build exposure, through which structures, and alongside which local partners.​​