The Saudi Ministry of Municipalities and Housing continues to expand the scope of moving white lands in major cities, after announcing that about 19 million square meters of land in Medina have entered the development or trading stage, extending a wave recently seen in Riyadh, the Eastern Province, and Mecca.

This trend reflects the accelerating pace of increasing real estate supply and stimulating land investment within urban boundaries, supporting the goals of improving land use efficiency and enhancing balance in the real estate market.

The Ministry of Municipalities and Housing revealed on Wednesday that the total area of white lands covered by development and trading in the Medina region has reached about 19 million square meters, an indicator that confirms the growing impact of the white land and vacant property fee system in stimulating urban development and improving land use efficiency within urban boundaries, in line with the urban growth witnessed in the region.

The figures for the Medina region reflect the role of urban development in enhancing optimal land utilization, as the areas covered by development and trading reached 19 million square meters, while 9 residential projects benefited from fee revenues, which improved land use efficiency and supported the growth of real estate supply and quality improvement... pic.twitter.com/QG6uwCcdfn

— White Lands and Vacant Properties (@Lands_sa) July 22, 2026

Increasing Supply

It explained that the recorded areas included 12 million square meters of land that have been fully developed, 2 million square meters of white land that entered into trading, in addition to 5 million square meters still under development, enhancing the utilization of unused land and supporting the increase of urban and residential supply in the Medina region.

Geographical Boundaries

It pointed out that the white land and vacant property fee program continues its role in stimulating development by applying fees on lands located within the legally specified geographical boundaries, in addition to providing legal grace periods for serious taxpayers to develop their lands according to specific technical controls, contributing to accelerating development and transforming white lands into effective urban projects and products that support economic and urban growth.

It added that the Real Estate Developers Services Center (Itmam) continues to provide support to white land owners through an integrated digital system comprising more than 35 services covering various development stages, providing clear and streamlined paths for licenses, approvals, and coordination with relevant authorities, contributing to accelerating project implementation and improving land development efficiency within urban boundaries.

Urban Development

The total in the Eastern Province reached about 146 million square meters, including 49 million square meters developed, 61 million square meters entered into trading, and 36 million square meters under development, with support for 16 development and urban projects.

The total in the Mecca region reached about 28 million square meters, including 13 million square meters developed, 9 million square meters entered into trading, and 5 million square meters under development, in addition to supporting 14 development and residential projects, as part of efforts to improve land use efficiency, stimulate urban development, and increase real estate and residential supply in various regions.

The ministry stated that the integration between fee implementation and enabling owners to benefit from development services contributes to enhancing sustainable urban development, improving land investment efficiency, and achieving the goals of Vision 2030 aimed at building more organized and sustainable cities.