First time buyers in Morocco priced out

Britain is not the only country where first time buyers are being priced out of the market or unable to get finance to get on the first rung of the property market.

The government in Morocco has announced new plans aimed at slowing the huge rise in property prices and make it easier for native Moroccans to buy property.

But industry experts predict it is more of a gesture than anything else and the moves cannot calm down the huge demand from overseas investors.

The 12 measures introduced last month aim to combat housing speculation and slow the rise in price per square metre. Government figures show that between 2003 and 2007, prices per square metre rose by 92% in Marrakesh, 45% in Rabat, 43% in Casablanca and 35% in Tangiers. Prices for plots of land have increased even more, by as much as 358% in Agadir and 234% in Rabat.

The availability of mortgage lending has also soared. It has risen from 35.2 billion dirhams in 2002 to more than 100 billion dirhams in 2007, according to Abderrahmane Chorfi, General Director of Town Planning at the Housing Ministry.

The government measures include a package of tax incentives. One of the tax measures is designed to address the scarcity of building land by taxing vacant plots. Other measures call for the introduction of a tax on the country's estimated 800,000 vacant homes and more public-private partnerships aimed at regulating the market and meeting demand for affordable housing.

There is scepticism that they will have much effect. 'These are goodwill measures,' said Youssef Benmansour, vice-chairman of the National Federation of Property Developers.

'I don't know how the government can stop the rising property prices these days. The huge demand isn't going to stop in the foreseeable future,' said Graham Reid, a consultant based in Rabat.

'It is true that many young couples cannot afford to buy an apartment and for them prices have become too high,' he added. 'It is a bit like the UK, hard to get on the first rung of the ladder.'

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