Dubai short-stay platform Silkhaus makes entry into Saudi Arabia

Dubai: The Dubai headquartered short-stay rental platform, Silkhaus, has added a second market to its coverage – Saudi Arabia. Bookings are now open on its portal for property lets in the Kingdom, which is on the cusp of emerging as a sizeable short-stay market of its own.

To ease the entry, Silkhaus has netted a ‘seven-figure’ funding that Nuwa Capital and Oraseya Capital led.

There was also participation from Impulse International, Yuj Ventures, Nordstar, and some family offices.

Before this round, Silkhaus had raised over $10 million in equity and debt capital.

Dubai has obviously been a fertile ground for short-stay/holiday home rentals, with each of the last four years delivering some outsized growth. This then led to multiple booking platforms and property management companies specialising in this field.

Since then, other emirates too have allowed short-stay leasing as property ownership and investment became more widespread.

“The short-term rental economy of the GCC is experiencing a significant growth surge, and we are proud to be leading this growth,” said Aahan Bhojani, co-founder and CEO of Silkhaus in a statement.

In Riyadh, neighborhoods such as Al Sahafa, Al Nada, and Qurtuba are showing ‘strong demand, particularly for one-bedroom apartments, which maintain the highest occupancy rates’.

In Riyadh, short-stay rents range between SR500-SR700 a night, with discounts for longer stays. More properties from multiple owners could be entering the marketplace over the course of this year, with Riyadh seeing a major development boom.

On whether Silkhaus plans to add other Saudi cities, Bhojani said: “Right now we are focused on Riyadh – it is the gateway to the Kingdom and we want to set our presence in a strong and sustainable way.”

The company’s Dubai portfolio features units in Dubai Production City, Al Barsha and Dubai Creek Harbor. These have ‘proved themselves amongst the most popular with an average yearly occupancy of over 90%’, said a statement, ‘while Emaar Beachfront continues to attract high-end demand, with average nightly spends up to 50% higher than the city average’.

In Abu Dhabi short-term rental rates are on-par with Dubai, with Yas Island, Al Raha, and Saadiyat Island being the highest yield locations, the company added.

“Their early achievements in the UAE serve as clear validation of the model’s potential and bolster our confidence in scaling it to additional cities across KSA,” said Nitin Reen, Partner at Nuwa Capital, which is one of the investors in Silkhaus.