Renting an Apartment in Saudi Arabia: The Saudi Arabic You Need With the Agent

If you are moving to Saudi Arabia, renting a flat is usually the first big conversation you will have in Saudi Arabic. The good news: the agent asks the same handful of questions every time, and the answers are short. Here is the full conversation between a customer and a real estate agent, phrase by phrase, so you can walk into the office and understand every line.

Start with the one sentence that opens everything: أبغى شقة للإيجار — abgha shigga lil-eejaar — I am looking for an apartment to rent.

Watch the full conversation

The situation: renting through an agent

In most Saudi cities you will meet a real estate agent (an office or an individual) who shows you units, explains the price and then registers the contract. The conversation below is a typical first meeting. It is relaxed and polite, and the agent leads with questions about size, furnishing and area. You only need short answers.

Two things to know before you start. First, rent is normally quoted per year, not per month. Second, the contract is registered on the official electronic platform called Ejar, which protects both the tenant and the owner. Both points show up in the dialogue.

Stage 1: the greeting and what you are looking for

The agent opens warmly. You answer in kind and say what you need.

• Agent: هلا والله، حيّاك الله — hala wallah, Hayyaak allah — Hello and welcome.
• Agent: تدوّرين شقة؟ — tdawwreen shigga? — Are you looking for an apartment? (to a woman; to a man the agent says تدوّر شقة؟ — tdawwir shigga?)
• Customer: هلا فيك. إي، أبغى شقة للإيجار — hala feek. ee, abgha shigga lil-eejaar — Hello. Yes, I want an apartment to rent.

The word إي — ee — is the everyday Saudi "yes". The word أبغى — abgha — means "I want", and it is the most useful verb you will learn in the dialect.

Stage 2: rooms and furnishing

Next the agent narrows things down. Saudi listings often say "two bedrooms and a living room", and you will hear that exact phrase.

• Agent: كم غرفة تبغين؟ — kam ghurfa tabgheen? — How many rooms do you want?
• Customer: غرفتين وصالة — ghurfateen w Saala — Two bedrooms and a living room.
• Agent: مفروشة ولا مو مفروشة؟ — mafroosha wala moo mafroosha? — Furnished or unfurnished?
• Customer: مفروشة، لو سمحت — mafroosha, law samaHt — Furnished, please.

Notice ولا — wala — which means "or" in a question like this one. The phrase لو سمحت — law samaHt — is your all-purpose "please" (to a woman: لو سمحتي — law samaHti).

Stage 3: the location and the price

Now the agent offers a specific unit in a named district, and you ask about money. Asking about price is the moment where one short question carries the whole conversation.

• Agent: عندي وحدة حلوة بحي النرجس. تبين تشوفينها؟ — 3indi waHda Helwa bi-Hayy an-narjis. tabeen tshoofeenha? — I have a nice unit in Al-Narjis district. Do you want to see it?
• Customer: إي. بكم الإيجار؟ — ee. bikam al-eejaar? — Yes. How much is the rent?
• Agent: بخمسة وأربعين ألف بالسنة — bikhamsa w arba3een alf bis-sana — Forty-five thousand a year.

The word حي — Hayy — means district or neighborhood, and Saudis describe almost everything by district. If you want to practise numbers further, our guide to numbers and bargaining phrases covers them in detail.

Stage 4: bills, parking and payment

This is the part that saves you surprises later. Always ask what the rent includes, and always ask about parking.

• Customer: شامل الكهرباء والموية؟ — shaamil al-kahraba w al-mooya? — Does it include electricity and water?
• Agent: لا، الفواتير عليك، بس الموية مشمولة — laa, al-fawateer 3alaik, bas al-mooya mashmoola — No, the bills are on you, only the water is included.
• Customer: طيب فيه موقف سيارة؟ — Tayyib feeh mawgif sayyaara? — Okay, is there a parking spot?
• Agent: إي، في موقف مغطّى تحت العمارة — ee, feeh mawgif mughaTTa taHt al-3imaara — Yes, there is a covered spot under the building.
• Customer: ممتاز، والدفع كل شهر ولا سنوي؟ — mumtaaz, wad-daf3 kull shahar wala sanawi? — Excellent, and is payment monthly or yearly?
• Agent: نصف سنوي أو سنوي، على دفعتين أو دفعة وحدة — niSf sanawi aw sanawi, 3ala daf3ateen aw daf3a waHda — Semi-annual or annual, in two installments or one payment.

The everyday Saudi word for water is موية — mooya — rather than the textbook word, and you will hear it constantly. If you are about to connect power and the internet, you will need this vocabulary again, so keep it handy.

Stage 5: the deposit and the building

Before you agree, ask about the deposit and the age of the building.

• Customer: فيه تأمين؟ — feeh tameen? — Is there a deposit?
• Agent: إي، شهر مقدّم كتأمين، يرجع لك بالنهاية — ee, shahar mugaddam ka-tameen, yirja3 lak bin-nihaaya — Yes, one month upfront as a deposit, refunded at the end.
• Customer: العمارة جديدة؟ — al-3imaara jadeeda? — Is the building new?
• Agent: إي جديدة، صار لها خمس سنين بس — ee jadeeda, Saar laha khams sineen bas — Yes, it is only five years old.

The little word بس — bas — means "only" or "just", and Saudis use it in nearly every sentence.

Stage 6: moving in and the contract

The last questions are about timing and paperwork.

• Customer: ومتى أقدر أستلم الشقة؟ — w mata agdar astilim ash-shigga? — And when can I move in?
• Agent: جاهزة، تقدرين تدخلين من بكرة — jaahza, tigdareen tidkhileen min bukra — It is ready, you can move in from tomorrow.
• Customer: وكيف نكتب العقد؟ — w keef nikteb al-3agd? — And how do we write the contract?
• Agent: نسجّله في منصة إيجار الإلكترونية، يحفظ حقّك وحقّي — nisajjilah fi manSat eejaar al-iliktroniyya, yiHfaTH Haggek w Haggi — We register it on the electronic Ejar platform, it protects your right and mine.

If you are also sorting out residency paperwork, you will find the same polite, short style in other settings. Our article on getting a SIM card is another step on the same settling-in path.

Stage 7: leaving politely

You do not have to decide on the spot. Saudis expect you to compare options, and there is a polite way to say so.

• Customer: ممتاز. الله يعطيك العافية، بشوف باقي الخيارات وبتواصل معك إن شاء الله — mumtaaz. allah ya3Teek al-3aafya, bshoof baagi al-khiyaaraat w batwaaSal ma3ak in shaa allah — Excellent. Thank you, I will look at the other options and get in touch, God willing.
• Agent: الله يعافيك، ما عندك مشكلة، معك رقم جوالي إذا عندك أي استفسار — allah y3aafeek, maa 3indak mushkila, ma3ak ragm jawwaali idha 3indak ay istifsaar — You are welcome, no problem, you have my mobile number if you have any questions.
• Customer: تسلم — tislam — Thanks, bless you.

The pair الله يعطيك العافية and الله يعافيك is the classic thank-you and reply. Say the first when someone has helped you, and expect the second back.

Quick reference table

Arabic	Transliteration	Meaning
أبغى شقة للإيجار	abgha shigga lil-eejaar	I want an apartment to rent
غرفتين وصالة	ghurfateen w Saala	Two bedrooms and a living room
مفروشة ولا مو مفروشة؟	mafroosha wala moo mafroosha?	Furnished or unfurnished?
بكم الإيجار؟	bikam al-eejaar?	How much is the rent?
شامل الكهرباء والموية؟	shaamil al-kahraba w al-mooya?	Are electricity and water included?
فيه موقف سيارة؟	feeh mawgif sayyaara?	Is there a parking spot?
فيه تأمين؟	feeh tameen?	Is there a deposit?
العمارة جديدة؟	al-3imaara jadeeda?	Is the building new?
متى أقدر أستلم الشقة؟	mata agdar astilim ash-shigga?	When can I move in?
نسجّل العقد في إيجار	nisajjil al-3agd fi eejaar	We register the contract on Ejar
الله يعطيك العافية	allah ya3Teek al-3aafya	Thank you (for your effort)

Common mistakes

Assuming the rent is monthly

Quoted prices are almost always yearly. If you want to hear a monthly figure, ask directly: كم الإيجار بالشهر؟ — kam al-eejaar bish-shahar? — How much is the rent per month?

Forgetting to ask about the bills

Many people hear the price and say yes. Always ask شامل الفواتير؟ — shaamil al-fawateer? — Are the bills included? Here the answer was that only the water was included.

Using the textbook word for water

In the dialect people say mooya, not the formal word you may have studied. Using the everyday word makes the conversation much smoother.

Skipping the contract question

Do not leave without asking how the contract is written. The answer, Ejar, is the official route and the one that protects you.

Quick answers

How do I say I want to rent an apartment in Saudi Arabic?

Say أبغى شقة للإيجار — abgha shigga lil-eejaar. Add لو سمحت — law samaHt — to be polite.

How do I ask about the price?

Ask بكم الإيجار؟ — bikam al-eejaar? — and then follow up with شامل الفواتير؟ — shaamil al-fawateer? — to check what is included.

What is Ejar?

Ejar is the official electronic platform where rental contracts are registered. In the conversation the agent says نسجّله في منصة إيجار — nisajjilah fi manSat eejaar — to explain that the contract is registered there and protects both sides.

Where to go from here

Once you can handle this conversation, the rest of settling in gets easier. Our structured Speak Saudi Arabic A1 course builds these everyday dialogues step by step, and the SaudiLingo books give you the phrases in print with the same transliteration system used here. You can also download the free guide to start practising today.