While real estate-related transitions recorded a modest 4.6% recovery on the previous quarter, the total number of transactions fell by 22.5% year-on-year.
Rabat – With timid year-on-year growth of 0.4% to the end of June 2022, the Moroccan real estate market has yet to recover from more than five years of slow, persistent growth. The sluggish growth of the real estate market is reflected in a significant drop in real estate-related transactions. While property-related transitions recorded a modest 4.6% recovery on the previous quarter, the total number of transactions remains 22.5% lower than last year, according to a report recently published by Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM). In the first six months of 2022, the number of real estate-related transactions fell, bleeding almost 38% of its value year-on-year, BAM data show.
The decline in real estate transactions reflects the slowdown in demand for real estate in the country. The drop in demand can largely be attributed to the economic difficulties facing the country as it attempts to recover in the post-pandemic era. While residential property price growth is stagnating, commercial real estate assets are showing moderate signs of recovery, rising by an average of 7.2% year-on-year. Detailing growth by property type, the BAM report shows that growth in office values is underpinning the recovery in commercial real estate. Office values rose by an annual average of just over 12% at the end of June.
Looking at real estate market growth in Morocco’s major cities, BAM data shows that it is below 1% for all cities, including the capital Rabat, Tangier and Casablanca. Growth rates are even trending slightly downwards in cities such as Marrakech and Agadir.
