Country Guides Country Guide: Morocco

Date Published:

10/06/2009

What To Buy

Broadly speaking when buying in Morocco you have a choice of buying ‘local’ or European-style property. ‘Local’ is a traditional riad that has either been renovated or is in need of work and is generally found within the old city walls (medina) of the ancient cities.

European-style property in Morocco is usually a variation on French colonial architecture – high ceilings, shuttered windows and landscaped gardens – or a broad international style. The latter tend to be found on the outskirts of the main cities or in specially designated development zones.

The third choice of property – the international style – is a sort of hybrid that you will see in many newly built southern Mediterranean resorts. The look and feel of these resorts is no accident. It is being built by international developers and marketed to Europeans and North Americans, as part of King Mohammed VI’s huge tourist/residential development programme, called Vision 2010. Launched several years ago, with the ambition of bringing in 10 million visitors a year to Morocco by 2010, fully 250,000 hotel beds and tens of thousands of private residences across six planned coastal resorts are being built.

Where To Buy

The six resorts – Mediterrania Saidia, Lixus, Mazagan, Mogador, Taghazout and Place Blanche – offer the latest in planned beachside development. If you’re looking for a hassle-free bolt-hole close to Europeans, you’ll want to buy at one of these. The price of an ‘average’ three-bedroom villa at one of the resorts will cost from around £200,000 upwards, depending on location and specification; a studio can be had from £50,000. Million-pound plus villas can be found too on the new resorts. Footballers Rio Ferdinand, John Terry and Gary Neville own one or more each in an exclusive gated resort at Mediterrania Saidia.

If your taste in architecture and culture is more authentic you should choose any one of the classic cities of Marrakech, Fez, Rabat or Casablanca to buy a riad. If small town living is more you, head for Essouira, on the coast. The beautiful medina town is a warren of streets and riads, set on a promontory that is open to the sea on two sides – a several mile long, wind swept beach is a highlight. Property prices range from approximately £50,000 for a rundown riad, through to several millions for a sumptuous renovated riad in the best quarter of Marrakech, or a modern state of the art villa on an exclusive gated community in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains.