Morocco’s Real Estate Scams Surge: How Buyers Can Protect Themselves

Real estate developers receive from clients a total or partial payment of the prices of the buildings to be built, after signing an agreement with the latter, in which all the data of the land to accommodate the building (lot, area, etc.) are recorded. This agreement includes a "reservation contract" by which the company undertakes to reserve the property for the client and to transfer it to him after its construction, in exchange for the total or partial payment of its price, indicates Al3omk.

These contracts, governed by the Code of Obligations and Contracts, have become the cause of many disputes between sellers and buyers, the former using fraudulent maneuvers to defraud the latter. But these situations are due to a lack of knowledge of the law, believes Rachid Labkar, professor of public law at the Chouaib Doukkali University of El Jadida, explaining that the client who wants to acquire housing does not often take the trouble to familiarize himself with the content of the reservation contract before signing it.

The Code of Obligations and Contracts guarantees the rights of the seller and the buyer, specifies the expert, recalling that the reservation contract must contain the cadastral plan or the certificate of ownership, as well as all the information relating to the property and the payment method, as well as the number of the building permit, the delivery time, and the terms of refund of the down payments in case of non-execution of the contract by the seller or the guarantee of completion of the work or insurance.

According to the same law, the reservation contract for a property must be an authentic deed drawn up by a notary. "The more the contract is correct, documented and precise, the more it is sure to find a solution quickly and respecting the rights of both parties," detailed Rachid Lebkar, who recommends that buyers insist on the need to include this information in the contract before any conclusion and the payment of any amount, or to seek the services of an expert to familiarize themselves with the content of the contract before committing.