Real estate transactions plunge sharply in Kuwait

The newspaper obtained a copy of the weekly report from the Real Estate Registration and Documentation Departments at the Ministry of Justice -- covering the period March 1-5, indicating the registration of 66 transactions worth KD35.85 million in residential, investment and warehousing sectors, compared to 96 transactions worth KD61.65 million within the same period last year. Although residential real estate had the largest share of total transactions at 75.75 percent, it witnessed a decline of 7.4 percent in the number of transactions and 9.3 percent in value.

The number of residential transactions reached 50, valued at KD18.11 million, compared to 54 transactions valued at KD19.97 million during the same period last year. The investment real estate sector recorded 14 transactions valued at KD9.74 million, compared to 38 transactions valued at KD12.15 million in the first week of March last year. This is a decline of 63.15 percent in the number of transactions and 24 percent in value. The warehouse sector recorded two transactions valued at KD8 million. Meanwhile, commercial real estate was absent in the first week of March -- the first time in several months that no new transactions were recorded, thereby, reflecting the atmosphere of anticipation and caution in the real estate market, considering the escalating geopolitical tensions in the region.