Saudi Arabia to strictly regulate real estate ads

Abu Dhabi: A decision by Saudi Arabia’s General Real Estate Authority to regulate real estate advertisements will be enforced in early September, local media reported.

Under the new regulation, only citizens will be allowed to advertise real estate in Saudi Arabia.

The new advertising controls are aimed at reducing fake real estate advertisements and boosting reliability and credibility.

The regulation also requires the registry of the advertisers’ name on the National Single Sign-On platform (NAFAZ), provided that the advertiser is the owner of the property or a legal agent or a real estate broker under a written authorisation or a court order.

The Real Estate General Authority also issued the licensing and classification requirements for electronic real estate platforms to enhance their reliability.

The authority warned offenders will face legal action.

It obligates the platform to remove the advertisement and notify the advertiser, or to stop the advertiser from publishing on the platform for no more than a year.

Saudi Arabia’s shura council has pressed for allowing foreigners to own property in accordance with specific regulations.

The council called on the real estate general authority, in coordination with the relevant authorities, to set clear regulations to encourage foreign investment in real estate.

The council called on the authority to strengthen the oversight role in all of its work, so that it can follow up on compliance with the rules and standards it has set for the real estate activities.