Moroccan mortgages

mintmagic

Hey guys

Are there any uk banks offering mortgages for moroccan properties, or does it have to be taken out in morocco? i'm a little apprehensive about obtaining finance in morocco and would be more comfortable with getting finance in the uk.

I'm sure some of you out there must have obtained finance for your properties. Did you all go through moroccan banks?

Thanks in advance.
minty

moroccobound

English banks will not lend on property situated in Morocco. Moroccan banks will lend up to 70% of the value of the property. For foreigners, as long as you put down 30%, you can obtain a credit for the balance. It is fairly easy as long as you have proof of income and open a local bank account. Like in the UK, your income will have to be high enough to justify the amount of credit you are obtaining. If you do not have a regular income, then you must satisfy the bank that you will transfer a certain amount of money into the local bank account on a regular basis.

moroccobound

To open a dirham convertable bank account, all you will need to present is your passport and around 10 pounds to deposit into the account. The whole process should take 10 minutes at most.

Financing in principle does work here, it is a totally foreign concept. Obtaining credit is fairly easy as long as you put down a min 30 to 40% and of course the property is worth the price indicted in the selling agreement. You have to remember that most selling agreements (unless you buy a new build from a developer and even then) do not state the actual price paid, but is understated by up to usually 30% (the amount of which you will pay in cash). The loan will be based on the stated price, not on the actual price. The banking system is very similar to the French banking sector.

The actual time you will need from application to actually getting the money into the notary's account is about 4 to 6 weeks.