Monthly Blog- July 2024
Charles Whitmee
Rabat is always a pleasure to visit and this time was no exception. For me, of all the cities in Morocco, Rabat is my favourite. The ancient architecture co-exists effortlessly with the modern and it has the feel of a place with a bright future. Without exception, all the business people I met with were ambitious, worldly and, for the most part, at least tri-lingual. In fact, in the 10 years during which I have been coming to Morocco, I have noticed a dramatic improvement in the level of English, particularly amongst younger people.
I was on an assignment, looking at the residential rental market on behalf of a diplomatic client. Rabat is generally seen as one of the most stable residential markets in Morocco and rents, particularly those at the middle to upper end of the market, have shown remarkable resilience over the past five years. This is opposed to other, more seasonally dependent markets such as Tangier and Marrakech. There are a number of factors driving this stability, namely:
Limited space for development in the most popular areas of Souissi and Hay Riad. This is influenced heavily by town planning regulations which have established green-belt land in these areas. Historically, there were also regulations about buildings not exceeding the height of the royal palace. Whilst these restrictions have been lifted, Rabat is a low-rise city, particularly in the higher income areas.
Due to the city being the administrative capital, there is a steady demand for high-end residential rentals from diplomatic and NGO missions.
As a result of this historic stability, the residential market in Rabat is seen by wealthy Moroccans as a strong long-term investment and so buying-to-let is extremely common. This further compounds demand.
