| Morocco got it right! |
| ZAK ETTAMYMY | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
If you ask any Moroccan in the US or Europe, he/she will tell you that price has gone way too highead of urbanism in Morocco has been a phenomenon, of course not to be compared with Dubai, but it is a revolution in the living standards of the average Moroccan with positive and negative consequences. and only a few can afford to sustain the America /European economic recession and save enough to buy a second home in Morocco. Well, the price rose up by a lot in a few years, the spread of the availability of credit and the reasonable prices of real estate in Morocco “a few years ago” attracted many 1st time buyers and multi units owners alike, because the access to ownership has finally been granted to almost all Moroccans with all kinds of options to choose from :low-income property ownership or assakan al iktissadi, I rate it a genius idea, we ought to give credit to the Moroccan government for such plan, now if we compare the government policy in Morocco toward the unprivileged layers of society, I find it to be much more adequate and fair in comparison, for example, with the American model. In the USA the market sets the price of real estate, the poor is left out in the cold, yes some cities impose 5 % of units to be sold or rented at a fair price, rather than inflated or speculative price, but it never invests in the housing security of its citizens. This topic allows me to elaborate on the financial melt down of the western markets. Consider the fact that everything in the American market was set by the Wall Street bankers and CEOs they had no supervision from the government or rules to follow when they go after profit. This created a greedy and money hungry tycoons and their followers, the problem with this is that the rules and regulations were always dismissed and considered as obstacle to prosperity. It is true that too many laws make a market less attractive to investors but on the other hand when you allow the market to make its own rules, the checks and balances become a hazy zone where everything is left to personal interpretations.The real estate goes hand in hand with the banking system because it is still the largest purchase a person makes in his / her life and the bank is their only source of financing this major purchase but when this lending itself becomes commodity and traded among the banks with huge profits, it makes sense that when the real estate prices go low and the variable rates of the mortgages shoot up, the defaulted customers multiply and the entire, greedy, shady and un-regulated or poorly regulated market collapses on itself like a black hole in the cosmos. Back to the Moroccan success, the banks there did not invest in the American market by more than 4%, this conservative move yet wise in circumstances like this exempted Morocco from this international crisis. With this unfolding mess, the Europeans are looking more and more to Morocco to invest in real estate because it represents a stable, cheap, close and less adventurous investment; this is good news for the local economy but in long run, Moroccans will not be able to afford their own homes, people already started looking at quick profits by selling their properties to Europeans as is the case in Marrakesh and its Riads lost to greed (this is a major topic I hope to address soon) Government intervention is sometimes good, your banker may not agree with me, but your future is more secure with the government than any bank, so I applaud the Moroccan model in creating fair real estate market. $ 20,000 apartments as well as $ 500,000 apartments. We are used to criticize Morocco for many shortcomings but sometimes it is good to praise good work.
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Comments (12)
jazuk
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The real estate boom in Morocco that surprised even shocked many of us “Moroccans living abroad” is seen by many international firms dealing in real estate as a positive sign for a future shopping spree of the Europeans in the Moroccan market, they even compare it to the nineties boom in East Europe.
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Our reality! Lecturer I agree with Hmimarmad, maybe our banks in Morocco are not affected like in US and Europe but our people are very much souffring from the rise of petrol, housing, and mainly food. Morocco is about 50 years behind Europe and may be more in comparison with US and UK. There is clear crisi in Morocco: the robbery crime rates have gone up especially household robberies as more people now fighting to feed themselves and pay household bills. Unemployment has gone up, with huge number of illiterats. The country is beautiful, however the country's resources are not well distributed, they are in the hands of a ver few and Moroccans are however not nice; have you ever heard of rich moroccan given money to charities like they do in US or Europe? have you ever heard or a rich person building a school or orphanage? the filthy rich,corrupt do not worry about the masses neither does the government because if they were, they would be no poverty, corruption, injustice, etc...etc and the irony is we are a Muslim country! |
f Lghzaoui
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Cultural Analyst Subject for all, any feedback will be appreciated: Once RME decide to buy a piece of real estate in his native country, you shop around for the kind of RE you are interested to purchase, but to my surprise, everywhere you go, the seller will disclose to you the part of the money you need to pay illegally (deposit under the table)for someone who lives abroad, this is unheard of before...Why? what the Moroccan GVT is doing about it? because I am almost sure, the gvt knows about this process, even Mr.hjira mentioned it once in the air..Thank you |
Zak Ettamymy
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for Mokhtar Mokhtar, Sorry for not getting back sooner, I did not read your question until much later. The reasons why Morocco will not feel the pain of this financial melt down is simple, Morocco and the Moroccan banks have invested only 2 % national input in the US markets, this is about $ 1 billion which is very minimum if compared to almost a trillion for China a few hundred billion for Gulf countries and a couple of trillions from Europe including Russia and Japan. Their money is evaporating by the day as per Morocco it is far from it but not by much, Morocco is effected by it through France and Spain Good luck |
you lack freedom to get my nam
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Sale Goat the crisis will hit everybody include Morocco. but the reality, it will not hit Morocco as hard it will hit France or Spain. well! some may say because Morocco is small country but also Morocco is not open as most of you think. I don't see this, will hurt anybody in Morocco. you are living in crisis your whole lives, what's the difference? maybe the king will have to not turn the light in his birthday or whatever! but I don't think this crisis can hurt somebody already hurt. what about the middle class in Morocco? answer: when you find it, we talk about it. I believe the Moroccans should learn back how to love each one the other and help each one the other. I don't see any solution other than this. decades of secret police who force the society to have no community work will not be bypassed that fast. you should learn to come together, love each one the other and work together for the benefit of all. Allah m'aakom |
Said L
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professor to balance the disscussion a little bit, I will be on Zak Tamymi's side. what you are saying is correct, "noir business" foreign intervention in Morocco, corruption and the high prices of real estate in morocco. I agree with all above but I think that the author is not sayting that it is all good but he is saying that finally the governoment has a good plan for the real estate for morocco "I don't agre with him when he campared it to the US" but anyway, finally the governoment feel the pain "or pretends" to feel the pain of those who lived in KARYAN for 50 years also the prices were cheap a few years ago now you can buy a cando in florida for 100 k but not in Casablanca. I aplaud the author's courage and I thank this forum for a great conversation |
Omarov
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min j3aydan My friend, you need to understand that what goes up comes down. The real estate in Morocco is lagging the western economies by years. So, let us talk again in few years when this fever that’s going on the US hits Morocco. I Doubt it that the Moroccan economy is immune from the turmoil going worldwide. Also, as far as i know, only a handful of people are benefiting from this real estate boom in morocco. The majority of people are suffering because there is a lack of affordable housing. For example, around Rabat and i'm talking about Sale and Temara or even in Rabat itself people can't afford a to buy a two bedroom apartment for a family of 4 or 6 and you telling me that "sakan ikitissadi" is helping with home ownership, you are wrong. Anyway, the great land of morocco is sold to foreign people while the money is stashed in foreign banks outside the country. If the government is generating so much money, why can't they create projects that lead to creating jobs... Oh wait the government is blowing smoke ...... |
mohktar
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... Zak, your article seems to suggest that Morocco will not be hurt by this financial mess, although I also read that you are suggesting that only the real estate market is exempt as you said from this problem, can you send a comment explaining more please thanks |
Jamal
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Project Manager Greetings, I do fully agree with hmimarmad. I was in Morocco this summer and the pollution was HELL ON EARTH. I chose to stay in my home with my family, and I refused to get on the roads. The elite are continuing to fill up their pockets and here we are writing on their corruption without any solution in sight. Are they waiting for the masses to revolt? I hope not. If things are going to stay as they are, many will have no choice but to seek change through fair and foul. Morocco is such a great land, but a minority of its people are killing it with corruption and theft. Many of us believe that the current courts in the country headed by the corrupt judges must be reformed or replaced with some patriotic ones who will guarantee equity for everyone like what we have in the West. I am sick and tired of this eternal status quo which will lead to nowhere but destruction. Morocco remains to be the second most corrupt country in the world after Albania and the second worst place for education after the Palestinian Gaza strip according to a recent 2M panel discussion. Go figure. We will always continue to voice our opinions until the government changes it current course of a bridge to nowhere but hell for most Moroccan citizens. |
Si Driss
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YES BUT I heard that unless the government induce some discipline (fiscal and legal) many agencies (most French) come in & out, make huge profits with little trickling down to the people and economy ... Let alone many transactions "au noir" (under the table) that should put tax money into the Treasury, so we can invest into infrastructure, education and our youth. We all agree and applaud the tremendous progress over the last 10 years or so but there is a lot more to do and quickly. Thanks for the article. DT |
mouhajer
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... What the writer did not mention, is soon Moroccans will need a Shengen visa to access cetain areas in Marrakech. The writer is trying hard to sell a false image about Morocco or at least his showing the shiny face of the coin, however when you flip the same coin, people like me who visited Morocco, found and observed a much different story than the one the writer is trying to sell to us. |
hmimarmad
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... With all due respect, I think that you live in dreamland when you say "I find it to be much more adequate and fair in comparison, for example, with the American model." I would love to see you going to Sbata, darb sultan, jamila 320, karyan carloti, darb lfassa, lisasfa, darb talyan, lbaladiya, lbarnousi and tell them that the real estate here is better managed. As much as we all love our country, very hard for me to praise anything. I spent the entire summer there and it was a living hell starting with the pollution. I do not see why are we still the junk yard of Europe? It is suffocating and no one is doing anything about it. We are in very sad situation: A beautiful country with some very nice people but overall, We are still lagging behind and extremely ill managed. The investments from the UAE, Bahrain, and Qatar are only helping the well to do not the simple guy pushing the cart selling the cactus fruit. Good Day |
Salim
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... I'm glad Morocco may not be as much affected as other countries by the coming economical crisis, probably it's very wise to invest there. |
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