Morocco's property market in Q1 2026: sales fall, prices hold

I'll start with what I see every day at the agency: more viewings, more questions and far fewer closed deals. Buyers look, compare, call back two weeks later… and ask for time. Sellers, meanwhile, refuse to drop their price. That tug of war is exactly what the official data now says: sales are falling hard while prices barely move.

The index that rules this market is the IPAI, the real estate asset price index published every quarter by Bank Al-Maghrib and the ANCFCC, the land registry agency. The Q1 2026 note came out on 22 June and left no room for doubt: the market is on hold.

In the first quarter of 2026, real estate asset prices in Morocco fell 0.4% compared with the same quarter of 2025. That looks small, and it is: the striking part is on the transactions side, which contracted 9.3% year on year.

Source: IPAI Q1-2026 note by Bank Al-Maghrib and the ANCFCC, published 22 June 2026.

The quarter-on-quarter comparison is even clearer: between Q4-2025 and Q1-2026 the number of transactions plunged 40.2%. In fifteen years working this market I've seen two or three standstills like this one, and they always arrive with the same recipe: a seller holding their price and a buyer folding their arms.

National averages hide huge differences between cities. These are the official IPAI figures for the four big ones:

Source: IPAI Q1-2026 note by Bank Al-Maghrib and the ANCFCC.

Two readings of that table. First: Rabat corrects prices faster than anyone, down 4.7% in a year. Second: in Marrakech the price barely moves (-1.5%) and yet transactions have been cut in half. When sales fall at that pace and the price holds, it means owners prefer to wait rather than sell cheap. The market goes quiet; it doesn't collapse.

Marrakech is the perfect example of the quarter. The full city breakdown, published by the economic press from the official note, says it all:

Source: IPAI Q1-2026 breakdown published by Maroc Diplomatique on 23 June 2026.

Look at the villas: flat price (+0.1%) and sales cut in half. That's the classic behaviour of the high-end owner: no hurry, price held, waiting. The buyer relying on finance, by contrast, thinks twice before signing.

You might think new builds offset the slowdown in resale. The short answer is no. Médias24's analysis of 5 July 2026 sums it up well: on the resale market, sales fall more than 40% from one quarter to the next and close to 10% over a year, while prices barely give up 0.4%. And in new builds, public housing support programmes hold up demand, but they don't close the gap between asking prices and what families can afford.

Add to that two brakes I know up close: developers' production costs (materials and land) and the shortage of skilled labour on building sites. Until those two problems are solved, new supply will keep coming out at prices not everyone can reach.

A fiscal change this summer is also moving the market. Since 1 July 2026, property sales above 300,000 dirhams paid in cash carry an additional 2% registration duty. The measure aims to push more transactions through the banking circuit and leave a paper trail.

An example quoted in the economic press: an apartment sold for 280,000 dirhams and paid entirely in cash is not subject to that surcharge, because it stays below the 300,000 threshold. A 400,000-dirham apartment paid in cash, by contrast, is. If you plan to pay in cash, add that 2% to your purchase costs budget.

No predictions, no fluff — this is what the numbers say:

1. •There's more room to negotiate than a year ago. With sales falling at double digits, listings take longer to close. That doesn't guarantee discounts, but sellers listen to more offers than in 2024.
2. •Prices reward patience. The correction is gentle (-0.4% nationally): official data show no collapse.
3. •Credit keeps flowing. Outstanding bank credit in Morocco grew 10.9% year on year at the end of June 2026, according to sector data published by the economic press.
4. •Every city is a different market. Negotiating in Rabat (prices heading down) is not the same as in Marrakech (firm prices, few transactions).

If you want to see it with real listings, start with properties in Marrakech or our Marrakech city guide with prices by neighbourhood. And for the rest of the country, the property search holds every listing with photos and up-to-date prices.

Why are sales falling if prices barely drop?

Because buyers and sellers can't agree. The seller has a figure in mind and won't let it go; the buyer sees the slowdown and waits. The result is in the data: transactions down 9.3% year on year while prices give up only 0.4%.

Where have prices fallen the most?

In Rabat (-4.7% year on year), followed by Tangier (-3.9%) and Casablanca (-2.7%). Marrakech barely moves (-1.5%).

Is there more room to negotiate than before?

The data say yes: fewer transactions, longer time on the market and sellers more open to listening. But prices haven't collapsed, so the margin is worked out case by case.

Are new builds more expensive than resale?

Generally, yes. Developers carry high production costs and a labour shortage, and launch prices don't always match purchasing power. Public housing support programmes soften the gap but don't close it.

Does the cash-payment surcharge affect me?

If the transaction exceeds 300,000 dirhams and payment is made in cash, yes: an extra 2% in registration duties since 1 July 2026. Below that threshold it doesn't apply.

When does the Q2 figure come out?

Bank Al-Maghrib and the ANCFCC publish the quarterly note with a few weeks' lag. The Q1 note came out on 22 June 2026; the Q2 one is expected in the coming weeks.

• •IPAI Q1-2026 note by Bank Al-Maghrib and the ANCFCC, published 22 June 2026 (carried by the MAP agency and L'Opinion).
• •Marrakech Q1-2026 breakdown: Maroc Diplomatique, 23 June 2026.
• •New-build and resale markets: Médias24, 5 July 2026.
• •Cash-payment surcharge from 1 July 2026: Médias24, 30 June 2026.
• •Bank credit data: Maroc Diplomatique, August 2026.