Housing assistance: Murabaha purchases also eligible
The modus operandi for public housing assistance was codified by the 2023 Finance Law and Decree no. 2.23.350 (November 15, 2023). Since then, the number of applications has exceeded 36,000, one fifth of which come from the Moroccan diaspora.
The next step was to clarify the rules governing the acquisition of housing via the «Murabaha» contract. This purchasing formula is favored by supporters of participative financing. A memo signed by Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, Minister of Housing, and Fouzi Lekjaâ, Minister Delegate in charge of the Budget, has just clarified the terms and conditions for granting subsidies to people wishing to acquire their main residence through participative financing. According to one financial stakeholder, the draft piece of legislation had gone back and forth between the Government and participatory financing professionals before being stabilized in its final form.
The Government’s clarification was eagerly awaited, as the purchase of real estate through traditional bank financing is completely different from participatory banking. Indeed, one of the key features of the «Murabaha» option is that it involves two distinct stages. The first feature consists for the purchaser in drawing up a unilateral promise to purchase through a notary and submitting it to the participatory bank. The document in question must include the specifics of the residence the purchaser wishes to acquire, the terms and conditions, and the delivery deadline. The second stage of the process involves the conclusion of the final purchase contract for the customer, still in the hands of the notary.
Article 8 of the Finance Law 2022, Article 58 of Act no. 103-13 on the Banking Law, implementing decree no. 2.23.350, and Bank Al-Maghrib circular no. 1/W/2017 on the technical characteristics and methods of presentation to customers of Murabaha, Ijara Moucharaka and other products, require the contract to be drawn up before a notary. The same obligation also applies to purchase contracts and unilateral promises to purchase. All these procedures and formalities must be drawn up and carried out before a notary in accordance with the procedures codified in the interministerial memorandum.
Hassan EL ARIF
