Theconstruction industry of Iran is divided into two main sections. The first is governmentinfrastructure projects, which are central for thecement industry. The second is thehousing industry.[1] In recent years, the construction industry has been thriving due to an increase in national and international investment to the extent that it is now the largest in theMiddle East region. TheCentral Bank of Iran indicate that 70 percent of the Iranians own homes, with huge amounts of idle money entering the housing market.[2][3]Iran has three shopping malls among the largest shopping malls in the world. Iran Mall is the largest shopping mall in the world, located in Tehran.The annualturnover in the construction industry amounts to US$38.4 billion.[4] The real estate sector contributed to 5% of GDP in 2008. Statistics from March 2004 to March 2005 put the number of total Iranian households at 15.1 million and the total number of dwelling units at 13.5 million, signifying a demand for at least 5.1 million dwelling units. Every year there is a need for 750,000 additional units as young couples embark on married life.[5] At present, 2000 units are being built every day although this needs to increase to 2740 units.[6] Iran's construction market will expand to $154.4 billion in 2016 from $88.7 billion in 2013.[7]
For a decade after therevolution, the land question, especially in cities, was among the most contested issues in the Islamic Republic. The collapse of state authority, coupled with the populist convictions of the new regime and spontaneous popular land occupations labeled as "revolutionary housing", led to the dramatic expansion of cities.Tehran doubled in size within two years, andAhvaz tripled in area from 23 to 75 square kilometres (9 to 29 sq mi). But only a small fraction of this geographic expansion wasconfiscated private land. The rest, more than 90 percent of the total distributed, had been public land. From 1979 to 1993 nearly half a million hectares of predominantly public unoccupied land was converted into private and cooperative residential property. New state institutions like theUrban Land Organization and the Housing Foundation played the key role in this massive transfer of property. By the mid-1980s more than 60 percent of all urban residential land transactions were being allocated by the state.[8]
This large-scale transfer of mostly public land, coupled with the absence of enforceable regulation, transformed Iran’s urban geography. Between 1979 and 1982, 75 percent of all new construction in Tehran occurred outside the formal city limits, where satellite villages were transformed into sprawling suburbs. Remarkably, by 1986 urban housing stock had doubled, as Housing Ministry surveys showed that more than half of all urban dwellings in the entire country had been built after the revolution. It was private individuals who built these 2.3 million new units. The state merely transferred the public land into private hands; its share of investment in housing construction (affordable or otherwise) was less than 2 percent of the total after the revolution.[9] Following an extraordinary boom in the Iranian real estate market between 2004 and 2007, activity in this market suddenly slowed down from early 2008. In 2009, construction activity was at its lowest level for the past eight years. Since 2010, this sector has experienced a modest recovery.
In 2024 it was leaked that Chinese companies used Chinese prisoners as contractors for construction in Iran.[10][11]
TheCentral Bank of Iran indicate that 70 percent of the Iranians own homes, with huge amounts of idle money entering the housing market.[2][3] The housing industry is one of the fewsegments of the Iranian economy where state capital shares as little as two per cent of the market, and the remaining 98 per cent isprivate sector investment. There is little red tape or hurdles and, as a result, through launching mass development projects, the use of newtechnologies and fast-pace project execution, a larger portion of the housing market is accessible. This is also true for new constructionmaterials and technological advances.
| Metropolis | Average price for the 2nd half of 2007 | Cyclic growth rate |
|---|---|---|
| Tehran | 1,515 | 24.1 |
| Mashhad | 585 | 23.3 |
| Esfahan | 680 | 22.6 |
| Tabriz | 448 | 21.8 |
| Shiraz | 447 | 21.6 |
| Karaj | 657 | 23.1 |
Around 3 to 6 percent of housing units constructed yearly are solely for renting purposes. Around 20 percent of housing units in urban areas are rented. The average annual increase in house prices has been around 20 percent over the past ten years with a peak reached between 2006 and 2008.[citation needed] The average size of housing units has been around 80 square meters over the past five years.[14] At present, the average price of a housing unit in urban areas is about 10 times the annual income of an urban household. Average construction cost for 1m² of urbanresidential buildings in the first half of 2008 was $350.[13] In January 2014, prices inTehran were $1275 per square meter.[15]
In 2011, Iran implemented a national electronic system for the registration and tracking of real estate transactions in order to bring more transparency to the market (97% of real estate transactions and ownership changes have been recorded in the new system).
Mehr project, designed in 2007, aimed to cover a part of house shortage through building of around 2 million housing units within 5 years.[16] As of January 2011, thebanking sector, particularlyBank Maskan has given loans up to 102 trillion rials ($10.2 billion) to applicants of Mehr housing project.[17][18] Under this scheme real estate developers are offered free lands in return for building cheap residential units for first-time buyers on 99-year lease contracts. Thegovernment then commissionedagent banks to offer loans to the real estate developers to prepare the lands and begin construction projects in an attempt to increase production and create equilibrium in thesupply and demand curve (2008). Close to 400,000 units have been built and permits have been issued for another 12,000.[19] Mehr Housing project is expected to provide 600,000 residential units in its first phase.[20] About 3.7 million people have so far registered for Mehr Housing Plan (2008). About 10 millionrials is to be paid by applicants for preparing the land and another 10 million to be given by the government in the form of banking facilities. Applicants should pay about 20 percent of the construction costs. In addition, about 140 million rials worth of housing loans will be granted to them (10,000 rials=1 USD in 2008).[21] While mostIranians have difficulties obtaining small home loans, 90 persons have managed to secure collective facilities totaling $8 billion from banks.[citation needed] Problems regarding lack of utilities has been reported for the project, including lack of access to water, power, gas, and sewerage lines.[16] Starting in 2014, the Mehr housing scheme will be taken off the balance sheet of theCentral Bank of Iran. The government of PresidentRouhani announced that by 2017 theMehr housing project will be replaced with cheap loans to needy families with the stated objective to build only 150,000 homes on a yearly basis.[22]
Restoration of old buildings is one of the priorities for theGovernment of Iran. Estimates show that about US$143 billion needs to be allocated in the next 10 years for restoration of 14,000 meters of critically decaying buildings.[4] The government will earmark 11.5 percent of the funding while the rest will be supplied by public investment and bank loans (2007). The refurbishment of aged buildings nationwide has increased to $6.3 billion in 2010 from $3.3 billion in 2009.[23] Another avenue for restoration in light of thenew energy subsidy reform is to make housing more energy efficient in terms of heating. In addition, Iran’s geographical position over aseismic belt necessitates the reinforcement andrenovation of housing. This is possible only through a boom in real-estate development andforeign investment. The plan is to provide a number of 1.8 million loans over a period of 6 years (2014–2020) ranging between $7,500 and $18,700 each.[24]
Thehousing sector plays an important role in theeconomy of Iran; it has links with 130 economic sectors, contributes to more than 20 percent of fixedcapital formation each year, constitutes 25 percent of the balance of loans in the banking sector, 33 percent of household expenses are housing expenses, and the housing sector contributes around 12 percent of employment to the economy.[24]
In terms of investment, the domestic rival markets of real estate market are gold,car and theIranian bourse. Construction is one of the most important sectors in Iran accounting for 20–50% of the total private investment. One of the prime investment targets of well off Iranians as tangible. In Iran, only government employees pay their fair share ofincome taxes and no one pays acapital gains tax, which has allowed the rich to "squirrel away" their speculative real estate gains abroad. Prices for imported goods have increased somewhat along with global inflation but prices of non-tradables have increased at a much faster rate (withTehran's real estate prices increasing by about 1,500–2,000% [sic] over the last 10 years), resulting in a highlyovervalued currency and damaging Iran's competitiveness.[25]
As of 2016, mainmortgage lenders in Iran are:[22]
| Source:Ministry of Housing & Urban Development[13] | (2006–2007) |
|---|---|
| No. of Household | 17.5 million |
| Housing stock | 15.97 million units |
| Amount of investment in the housing of the whole country | 21 billion dollars |
| Housing share of total capital formation | 25–35% |
| Housing share of GDP | 5.6% |
| Investment return | 30% |
| Housing share of total employment | 13% |
| Average annual demand for housing for the next 5 years | 1.2 million units |
| Production of housing | 838,000 units |
| Housing production per 1000 person | 1.2 units |
Iranian contractors have been awarded several foreign tender contracts in different fields of construction ofdams, bridges, roads, buildingsrailroads,power generation, andgas, oil andpetrochemical industries. The availability of local raw materials,rich mineral reserves, experienced manpower have all collectively played crucial role in winning the international bids.[28]
Part of the material is supplied by traditional markets such as the Tehran-based grand markets of iron and cement.
Thousands of foreign firms, mainlyChinese orEuropean, have established agents in Iran or partnerships with domestic manufacturers, both investing directly in the housing market and targeting otherPersian Gulf markets.
The Iran construction market is potentially ripe for the import of construction material to accommodate local demands.
According to the statistics presented by theIran Imports Book, which is published by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Office,[40] Iran’s major imported items in 2003 included:[6]
Other imported items are:glass,timberflooring,lighting, paint, electrical andelectronic fittings and accessories,lock, key hardware andaluminum for façade design.
Manufacturers and suppliers are required to haveISO 9000 certification in order to export to Iran. European Union standards (EN, BSI, DIN, ANFOR, UNI, NNI, ON, IBN, IPQ, DS, NSF, SEE, SIS, NSAI, ELOT), North America National standards (ANSI, ASTM, AGI, API), Japan National Standard (JIS) and International Standards (ISO, CODEX, ITU, IEC) are also accepted in order to export to Iran.
Further information is available from theInstitute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran.
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