Morocco’s Unregulated Vacation Rental Market Raises Concerns

The summer holidays are the right time for some young people to earn money. They position themselves as seasonal brokers, guide both vacationers, facilitate their stay while offering them the best rental sites on the market and indicating the places to visit. A job that earns them between 50 and 100 dirhams per client. Sometimes 400 or even 500 dirhams, testifies a broker met by Hespress in Martil, near Tetouan, on the outskirts of the city. Generally, they only offer a simple apartment, often poorly equipped or unsanitary, located particularly in working-class neighborhoods or those near the coast like Ahrik - Catalan or Chbar instead of a vacation home. "It’s our job, we look forward to the summer to rent our apartments. It’s the way we can provide for our needs," acknowledges a broker.

Most vacationers favor the emergence of the activity by avoiding turning to the services of real estate agents and travel agencies, which benefits the seasonal brokers. "We are the big beneficiaries, the tourists contact us for a better service at a reasonable price," admits the same source. According to the director of a travel agency located in Martil, these operations are not in accordance with the law. "Several procedures are violated by these brokers who are only looking for material gain," he added. Same tone with Bouazza Kharati, president of the Moroccan Federation of Consumer Rights (FMDC). "This issue related to brokers refers us to important economic and commercial activities that flourish in the shadows and without any consumption standards," he says, stressing that "the nature of transactions that are not officially authorized negatively affects the consumption of citizens."

Among these seasonal brokers, some do not hesitate to defraud their clients. Complaints have often been recorded. "The brokers in (transactions) benefit financially and obtain significant financial returns, by raising the rental price to imaginary levels," he explains, calling for the regulation of this sector, in order to protect the consumer from any form of exploitation and extortion, which is embodied in the manipulation of the price by intermediaries on the one hand, and to guarantee the rights of the mediator and the stability of his work, on the other.