Morocco vs Spain

SPAIN

Southern Spain is called the Costa del Sol for a reason. With ten months of sun a year, you are almost guaranteed good weather.

There are 20 flights a day into Malaga from a selection of UK airports. You can buy a return ticket for less than £150. The journey lasts less than three hours.

Spain is a modern democracy with a stable economy. The currency is the Euro.

The country is a part of the European Union and its infrastructure is well developed. The network of railways and motorways match northern European standards and the sewage system works.

Tourism is part of life. Although the population is 46 million, the country accommodates between 40 and 55 million visitors a year.

The latest property boom lasted until 2003. Prices have since dropped in some places but are unlikely to collapse.

Holiday homes come in every shape, size and price. For €150,000 (£101,000) you can buy a flat in a high-density block in Torremolinos, while a villa at La Zagaleta costs more than €30 million (www.lazagaleta.com ). A two-bedroom townhouse in Monte Mayor (www.montemayorgolf.com ), another top resort, costs from €500,000.

Property prices are higher on the stretch of coast immediately east and west of Marbella – between Hacienda las Chapas and Estepona. Most of the developments are right on the coast, but if you take a ten-minute drive inland you will find greater value for money.

Buyers are required to pay a 10 per cent deposit to the abogado (solicitor), who will pass the money on to the seller once all the searches are done. The balance is paid six to eight weeks later.

There is a 7 per cent VAT charge on the declared value of the property and a further tax of 0.5 per cent.

Getting a mortgage from familiar banks, such as the Halifax, in Spain is relatively easy.

MOROCCO

Morocco sits on the northwestern tip of Africa. Spain controlled the northern part of Morocco until 1958. France’s protectorate over the southern area ended in 1956.

The official languages are Arabic and Berber, though French is also spoken in the south and Spanish in the north. Many Moroccans also speak English.

Tangiers, Fez, Marrakesh, Essaouira and Casablanca are popular with tourists. Property buyers are streaming into Marrakesh while Essaouira, a pretty port on the Atlantic coast, is becoming more sought-after.

There is property for sale everywhere in Marrakesh. A large six-room riad in the Medina in Marrakesh costs about €108,000 (£73,000) but you can buy a smaller one in tatters for €78,000. Outside the walled city in the Palmeraie, a suburb built by the French, a four-bedroom house costs $210,000. You can get a riad within the medina in Essaouira for between €78,000 and €124,000 (www.spanish-homes.com/morocco ).

Property buyers must open a euro account with a bank in Morocco. Euros or sterling are converted into Moroccan dirham locally. £1 is currently worth 16.5 dirhams.

Few old properties have legal deeds. These need to be created before you can buy. There is a 3 per cent tax on the property’s price and a VAT charge of 2.5 per cent on notary fees.

Weather in the northern coast is generally clement all year round. But further south it can get stiflingly hot during the summer months in the low lands, while the mountains are covered in snow throughout much of the year.

Flights are getting cheaper. You can fly to Marrakesh or Casablanca for between £200 and £300 in about three and a half hours.

Morocco is a kingdom and an Islamic country. King Mohammed VI aims to attract ten million tourists a year by 2010. Five million visited in 2005.

The airport in Marrakesh is being expanded. A new motorway connecting Meknes, Fez, Rabat and Tangiers is being built.