Market Watch Q1 2024: Discover the Impact of Egypt’s Economy on the Real Estate Market

With ongoing challenges in the Egyptian economy and new government decisions, the real estate market is inevitably affected.

To understand how these changes impact your buying or renting decisions, read our latest article featuring comprehensive insights and trends from the Market Watch report for Q1 2024.

Highlights

• During the previous period, the Egyptian economy faced many challenges, including currency devaluation, which led to soaring inflation rates, heavy reliance on imports, and a decrease in purchase activity. 

In addition to this, the Suez Canal’s revenues were negatively impacted by Yemeni Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

• Despite these challenges, Egypt’s GDP achieved a real growth rate of 3.8% and it’s expected to grow at a rate of 2.6%.
• Q1 2024 witnessed two major agreements in Egypt; firstly, the Emirati investment of $35 billion in Ras Al Hekma.

Secondly, an agreement with the IMF to increase the extended fund facility (EFF) from $3 billion to $8 billion

• Although the decline in real growth rates that the real estate activities and construction sectors experienced, with -3.14% and –4.6%, respectively, they’re expected to experience a rise in the future, projected to grow at 2.58% and 2.43%, respectively, in 2024.

Market Prospects 

In this part, we will delve into the dynamic world of real estate in Egypt, exploring the new projects that are driving real estate growth and offering new opportunities for you, whether you’re a resident or investor.

• The real estate market in Egypt during the first quarter of 2024 had around 600 active projects with a value of $309,629 million in the residential and mixed-use sectors. 

These projects constitute around 51.1% of the total number of projects and 69.8% of the total investments.

• In Q1 2024, the private sector was the dominant market player, with more than 68.9% of all investments in ongoing residential projects valued at $213,240 million, representing 86.5% of all residential projects by the end of Q1 2024.

• The government’s residential development took place across 13 governorates, while the private sector’s initiatives took place across 20 governorates.   
• Cairo and Giza had a share of 62.4% of all private sector projects, while Cairo contributed to about 30% of all government development projects.
• The Suze governorate also witnessed a notable number of governmental residential development initiatives, which accounted for 11.1%  of the total. 

Cairo 

• In Q1 2024, 57.5% of the entire residential real estate investment was concentrated in Cairo. This translates into 252 projects across 21 different regions and localities.
  
• The New Administrative Capital’s (NAC) share of the total investments in Cairo is 39.2%, followed by New Cairo, with 23.3%, and Capital Gardens, with 18%. 

Giza

It accounted for 16% of the overall real estate investments across 9 areas. Besides, October City and Sheikh Zayed City contributed 55.9% and 22.8% of the entire investment, respectively. 

Accordingly, Greater Cairo’s share of the entire amount invested in residential real estate was 73.5%.

Moreover, this data suggests that the future of Egypt’s real estate market seems promising based on the number of ongoing projects in the residential and mixed-use sectors. 

Ongoing Projects (Construction Status)

In Q1 2024, there are residential real estate projects across 21 governorates in Egypt that are near completion.

• 58% of these initiatives have progressed beyond the halfway point
• Approximately 10.7% with a completion rate over 90% 
• 19.5% of the projects are complete, with a percentage from 75% to 90%.

In addition, Cairo witnessed a huge advancement in construction projects as follows:

• 65.1% of the projects are beyond the halfway point 
• 11.9% are nearing completion
• 21% of the projects are complete, with a percentage from 75% to 90%.
• 32.1% of the projects are between 50% and 75% complete.

Launched Projects 

In Q1 2024, the number of newly launched projects in Egypt increased by 50% compared to Q1 2023. This can be attributed to the stability of the overall economy after the central bank’s decision to fully float the currency.

Accordingly, this eliminated the presence of the currency Black Market and boosted the trust in the country’s economy. 

• The development of 12 new projects across 5 cities started in Q1 2024, with a total cost of $1.59 billion, while in Q1 2023, the number of new projects was 8, with a total cost of $1.123 billion.
• In Q1 2024, 12 new real estate projects were started by 12 different developers.

Cairo

The capital’s share was 19.5% of the total investment in new projects. 

Giza

Giza accounted for 39.3% of all residential investments in Egypt, with a value of $625 million across 5 projects.

Delivered Projects 

• During the first quarter of 2024, 8 projects with a value of $319 million were completed successfully in Egypt, representing a notable 50% and 75% decrease in project volume and value, respectively, when compared to Q1 2023. 

Find below where these projects took place and their cost value 

• Cairo was home to 2 projects with a total cost of $160 million, representing 50.2% of the total investment for Q1 2024.
• One project,  “Mountain View— Ras El Hekma —Paros Phase,” was completed in Matruh and is valued at $100 million.

• The 8 projects are divided between the private and governmental sectors as follows.
  • Private sector: 6 projects with a value of  $240 million 
  • Governmental sector: 2 projects with a value of $79 million 

New Administrative City (NAC)

• In Q1 2024, the NAC had 106 ongoing projects valued at $69,832 million, representing 22.6% of all investments in Egypt during this period.
• The NAC is home to 16 governmental projects which constitute 72.1% of the entire investment in the city.
• The Private sector is working on 90 projects in the NAC, which represents 84.9% of the projects with a value of $19,494 million.

• The ongoing real estate developments in the New Administrative Capital (NAC) are at an advanced stage of progress.
  • 72.6% of these projects have completed more than half of their work.
  • 8 projects are almost finished, with more than 90% of the building already completed.
  • 23.6% of the projects are complete, with a percentage from 75% to 90%.

• During Q1 2024, the NAC welcomed a new project called “Justice City”, with a total cost of $161 million.
• The NAC witnessed the delivery of 2 projects with a total investment of $160 million. 

The government developed the first one with a value of  $60 million, while the second project was delivered by Talaat Moustafa Group Holding (TMG), accounting for $100 million.

High-in-Demand Areas for Rent and Sale

Property Sale Prices in Egypt

The table below shows the average asking prices for apartments in Egypt in Q1 2024:

The table below shows the average asking prices for villas in Egypt in Q1 2024:

Property Rent Prices in Egypt

The table below shows the average rental prices for apartments in Egypt in Q1 2024:

The table below shows the average rental prices for villas in Egypt in Q1 2024:

For more insights and data, you can check the full Market Watch report for Q1 2024 from here.