A sane voice as crazy rent increases cripple tenants Some landlords refuse to put extra burden on people Last updated: Monday, July 22, 2013 1:26 PM Joud Al-Amri Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Rent prices are rising throughout the Kingdom, especially in Jeddah, but surprisingly there are a few landlords who refuse to raise their rents. The rent market in Saudi Arabia is unregulated, unlike the markets of neighboring countries. Any apartment building owner has the choice to increase the rent to any degree, even five-fold. The wave of rent increase has driven many people to live in areas far away from Jeddah due to unaffordable prices within the city. Muhammad Al-Juhani, a retired owner of three apartment buildings in various parts of Jeddah, said he was refusing to increase his rent. “Why would I add extra burden on people? Why would I participate in a campaign to make it difficult for people to live in Jeddah? I have to admit that prices increased to a crazy level that many families cannot afford. The price increase is not justified at all,” he said. Al-Juhani has not increased his rent for the past 10 years, while nearby buildings have been increasing their rent by SR5,000 annually. Saleh Ibrahim, a retired police officer who owns several apartment buildings in Al-Rawdah, Al-Salamah and Al-Bawadi districts of north Jeddah, said, “Tenants have been living in my buildings for the past 20 years and we developed a special relationship. I never increased my rent to more than SR20,000 a year knowing that they can afford this price. “There is this understanding between us that I will never increase my price as long as they take care of maintaining the building. “They appreciate my gesture when people in the same street are evacuating their apartments because of rent increases. “The last thing I want is to add pain and suffering to these people. The money I am getting is blessed money; it is enough for me and my children.” Sixty-year-old Uncle Ali is another landlord who does not want to increase his rent price. He said, “My children are trying to persuade me to increase my rent because it is on the rise everywhere. I told my children that once upon a time I was a tenant and I faced the pain and suffering of rent increase or facing eviction. It was difficult at that time and I promised myself that if I was ever an apartment building owner I will never increase my price to a level that the tenant cannot afford.” Six years ago, Uncle Ali was forced to adjust the cost of his rent after many people advised him that his price was too low, SR15,000 a year. Uncle Ali agreed under one condition: The tenants will agree to a rent increase that they find affordable, otherwise the rent would remain the same. The tenants agreed that they can afford SR19,000 a year without adding much burden on their budget. Only then did Uncle Ali increase his rent. Across Jeddah people have been complaining about rent increases. In Al-Rawdah district, the average rent increased from SR22,000 for a five bedroom apartment to SR40,000. Some residents have been forced to move to areas south or east of Jeddah to escape these high costs. So far there is no sign of any laws being enacted to regulate this market.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 11:38:42 +0000
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