Morocco Slashes Real Estate Fees by 50% to Boost Housing Market

Since the start of the health crisis, real estate transactions have fallen by 95%, according to L’Économiste. To reverse the trend and arouse the interest of buyers, the draft amending finance law intends to reduce the registration fees for residential real estate whose value does not exceed 1 million DH by 50%.

According to Abdellatif Yagou, president of the National Council of the Order of Notaries of Morocco (CNONM), "this measure will have a direct impact on the recovery and on the crisis... It could be extended depending on the differences in real estate prices in the regions".

Thus, the registration fees set at 4% of the purchase price of a property will be 40,000 DH for a home purchased at 1 million DH, or 20,000 DH with the 50% discount.

As for middle-class housing, they benefit, under certain conditions, from an exemption from registration fees and land registration fees. In terms of conditions, the property must have been acquired from legally recognized developers, its area must be between 80 and 150 m², its selling price must not exceed 6,000 DH excl. tax/m², and the buyer must not earn a monthly salary of more than 20,000 DH net of taxes, and must not be subject to income tax on rental income, housing tax and municipal service tax.

The measure, which is not final, applies to transactions established between the date of publication in the Official Gazette of the Amending Finance Act, and December 31 next. For Abdellatif Yagou, this measure deserves to be continued over time, to allow real estate developers to embark on the construction of new social housing, because he believes, "the demand is strong at this level".