Saudi Arabia is booming – and this time it’s not just about the oil

More than 300 flats in a new complex in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, sold in just a month for cash, without the company who owned them even having to advertise.

In the world’s biggest exporter of oil it’s no surprise the property market is red-hot as income from a spike in energy prices flows through the economy.

But Abdulsalam Almajed, chief executive officer of Almajdiah – the firm that built the block of luxury flats – says the scramble for the 1-million-riyal (US$266,400) homes reflects something else, too: the social and economic shift that is reshaping the kingdom, accelerated by the crown prince’s overhaul programme.

“There’s a change in mindset”, said Almajed, who heads the family-owned development business, as some Saudis embrace the more open style of living his firm constructs. “Today there’s beautiful creativity in Saudi designs”.

While de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman has centralised power and increased political repression since being elevated by his father, King Salman, in 2015, he is also ended or relaxed restrictions on entertainment and how men and women can mix, and is trying to curb a reliance on oil.