REDF has SAR 30 bln bad loans on balance sheet

Saudi Real Estate Development Fund (REDF) reported a record SAR 30 billion in non-performing loans by end of 2017, due to "a segment of citizens failing to pay back housing loan installments", housing ministry stated.

The governmental lending institution grants low-interest credit to eligible citizens to own a first home. It disbursed a total of SAR 94 billion to beneficiaries in the decade ending 2016.

"The failure of some beneficiaries to pay back loan installments has adversely impacted on the fund’s financial position," the ministry said.

Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), the Kingdom's central bank, had reported that REDF's housing loans accounted for 37 percent of total credit extended by the government's Specialized Lending Institutions between 2012 and 2016.

In 2015 alone, REDF disbursed a record SAR 27 billion to first-time eligible home buyers.