The New York Times
By Kevin Brass
A SEVEN-BEDROOM VILLA OUTSIDE MARRAKESH
$2.3 MILLION (1,475,000 BRITISH POUNDS)
This seven-bedroom seven-bath villa is in Palmeraie, a wealthy suburb of Marrakesh with deluxe hotels and golf courses. Homes in the area, about a 20-minute drive from the medina, the city’s famed old district, routinely sell for more than a million dollars. “It’s where you will find the big palaces” in Marrakesh, said Alex Peto, a consultant with Aylesford International, the British company that is marketing this property.
The 3.7-acre site is covered in palm trees, a vegetable garden and native landscaping. “The gardens are very special, with wonderful mature trees to sit and eat under, shielded from the sun,” the owner said. The villa consists of two buildings, a main house and a pavilion, each with its own swimming pool. There is also a tennis court.
The home is part of a large walled compound of around 15 acres containing five properties, including a boutique hotel, Jnane Tamsna. The villa was built in 2000, and follows a traditional Moroccan style with rounded arches, large doors and broad terraces. There are walls finished in the traditional tadelakt lime plaster, stone floors and the hand-carved wooden screens known as moucharabieh. The furniture, art and rugs are not included in the asking price but are negotiable, according to the owner. There is also air-conditioning, a necessity in Morocco’s desert climate.
Visitors enter the house through double doors that lead to a large entrance hall with a high vaulted ceiling. The ground floor is organized around a drawing room, dining room, kitchen and an open-air patio. There is also a bedroom suite on the ground floor with a private terrace. Four suites are on the second floor, each with a private balcony. From the second floor, stairs lead to a wide rooftop terrace with views of the Atlas Mountains.
From the main house, a short path through olive trees leads to the second building, which includes two bedroom suites, each with its own sitting room, fireplace and bathroom. The rooms are connected by an open-air living room with a fireplace.
The property is about 30 minutes from Marrakesh’s international airport, which is served by several budget airlines from Europe. The house is frequently offered as a rental, typically priced from 12,000 to 15,000 euros, or about $13,300 to $16,700 a week at an exchange rate of $1.11 to the euro, depending on the season. Rooms in the home have also been rented hotel-style, with prices ranging from 290 euro to 490 euro, or about $320 to $545, per night.
MARKET OVERVIEW
Morocco has remained stable throughout the recent turmoil in North Africa and the Middle East. In 2014, 10.3 million tourists visited the country, up 2 percent from 2013, according to government data.
But the violence and unrest in the region continue to plague the housing market, Mr. Peto said. The recent terrorist attack at a beach resort in Tunisia was the latest example of an unrelated event making people pause before investing in Morocco.
“People get worried and put all of North Africa in the same boat,” Mr. Peto said. “Morocco is safe. The hotels are full.”
Prices have fallen 30 percent to 40 percent from the peak in 2008, agents say. But sales are starting to pick up, with low prices attracting buyers who believe the market has hit bottom, they say.
“The latest trends are very good because the prices are down,” said Séverine de Freycinet, the director of the Marrakesh office of Emile Garcin Real Estate. After posting 10 sales in 2014, her office has made 12 sales so far in 2015, she said.
While some buyers are purchasing as an investment, others are simply looking for a second home, agents say. Much of the foreign interest is focused on riads, traditional-style homes with large courtyards. But there have been several big projects built on the outskirts of the city, designed to compete with sunny resorts in places like Spain and Portugal.
“If it’s the right product, high prices can still be achieved,” Mr. Peto said.
WHO BUYS IN MARRAKESH
For decades, Marrakesh has been a popular destination for European and North American wanderers. Yves St. Laurent, Talitha Getty and their friends famously lounged on the rooftop terraces of the old city in the ’60s, raising the city’s popularity among the bohemian chic.
Today European expatriates are still part of the mix, but Middle Easterners have become more prevalent in the wake of the Arab Spring, Mr. Peto said. Recent buyers have been from Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, agents say. Morocco is seen as a “safe haven,” compared to many other countries in the region.
BUYING BASICS
Morocco generally follows a European system for real estate transactions, and there are few surprises for foreign buyers, agents say. Property is freehold and direct foreign ownership of property is allowed, with few exceptions. International owners in Marrakesh often list properties and close deals in euros; new developments and locally owned property are more likely to be listed in dirhams, the local currency. (Aylesford International is based in Britain, so this house is listed in British pounds on the website.)
Although some buyers hire a lawyer to protect their interests, a notary is the key participant in the sale transaction, shepherding the deal through the system. The notaries register the transaction and operate accounts in the state-controlled bank to receive funds, including a deposit — which might range from 5 percent to 10 percent of the purchase price — and manage the final payment for the property. “You buy, pay the notary and some days later, between five and 15, your name is on the title deed of the property,” said Marc Leon, the managing director of Kensington Morocco, a real estate company. Only then, he said, will the seller get his money.
Deals are straightforward, but buyers need to be careful dealing with any nontitled property or farmland, which is often restricted, agents say.
Mr. Leon advises never giving money to any agent or adviser “with the promise to get a better deal.”
WEBSITES
Morocco tourism: visitmorocco.com
United States Department of State information: travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/country/morocco.html
LANGUAGES AND CURRENCIES
Arabic, Tamazight (a Berber language), with French widely spoken; Moroccan dirham (1 dirham = $0.10)
TAXES AND FEES
Buyers can expect to pay taxes and fees in line with European standards. Agent fees are usually 6 percent of the purchase price, and are usually split by the seller and buyer, Mr. Leon said. The transfer fee is usually 1 to 2 percent. The notary will charge a total of 6 percent of the purchase, which includes the state registration fees.
Property taxes in Morocco are low, generally about $1,000 a year, depending on the property, Mr. Leon said. The capital gains tax on most property sales is 20 percent of the purchase price.
CONTACT
Alex Peto, Aylesford International, (44 20) 7351 2383; aylesford.com
