Rents HAVE dropped, but...
After spending the last month house-hunting and looking to reap the benefits of the low rents, I quickly realized --> you get what you pay for.
There are tons of compounds offering large villas for thousands of riyals less than just a year ago, but maybe they are worth less...
Many of these "cheaper" villas are actually in brand new compounds and the finishes are just crap. Literally, look beyond the space and pretty exteriors.
We saw a compound yesterday that wasn't even finished being built, but already the front doors were cracked because they were plastic.
Many of these residences don't even have a backyard, or at least nothing usable.
So, it really depends on what you are looking for, but from what I saw the slightly older villas (4-5yrs old) were better built with lots of outdoor space, i.e.front yard, backyard. They cost a little more, but the design of these compounds and their villas really do improve the quality of life one seeks when moving into a compound.
I am just thinking some of these new ones are going to have lots of problems when occupied, maybe not and I hope not.
Maybe people who have just moved into these new compounds can share their experiences.
