G
Grant Rawlings
New Member
Restoration projects in the Medina in Marrakech should ideally be undertaken with a budget and time frame written up in a contractually binding form to avoid an unnecessary dispute over money with your builder, or receipt of any unexpected hidden charges.
But there are several costs and problems that can arise during construction other than those stemming from a roguish builder, and it is worth knowing what they are and how they can be dealt with;
Swimming pools are now illegal in the Medina. There is absolutely no way they can be built on roof terraces, but if they are built in the courtyard, you can get away with having one. This effectively means though paying several hundred dirhams in baksheesh to the local planning official in your area, the macadam, who will visit the building site during construction and between three to five thousand dirhams to technicans from the planning authority, who will inspect the project near to its completion.
Building rooms on the roof terrace, or hammams, or a second terrace above either of these, is also illegal. They won’t be authorized when architectural plans are submitted for a construction permit, but nonetheless can be quietly built during the construction phase with baksheesh. (NB The above figures would probably pay for both a pool and any other construction on the roof).
If you require a pool or a terrace room say, as a spare bedroom, it is advisable to build them during construction to avoid the disruption of bringing builders back in at a later date, but if the work is done afterwards, once you are in occupation and have a permit du habitation, then you won’t receive any interference from the planning authorities.
The only interference you might have is from your neighbour. By right nobody is entitled to build a second storey in the Medina and if you make an upper terrace above an illegal room in order to gain panoramic views, then you should be careful it does not overlook your neighbour. Moroccans take their privacy very seriously and if they feel you can see into their house, they can object to the macadam and this can ultimately result in you having everything illegal removed.
This isn’t the only problem you may experience with your neighbours. During the build, you will cause a major disturbance to them and blanket their house in dust, consequently there may be friction.
Furthermore, they may try it on and claim work has damaged their property. In order to establish if this is true, or simply a ploy for them to have you pay for remedial work, it is sensible your builder visits your neighbours before moving on site to photograph their riad, especially to photo and record the condition of any adjoining wall.
Last but no means least, is the expense of paying for building receipts to avoid capital gains tax liability on the money spent on restoration. It is generally the norm to pay a builder without paying TVA, (i.e. VAT),which is levied at 20%. (This is fine unless you are building a guest house, in which case, it may be advisable to pay the TVA). But when it comes to selling your riad, to avoid paying CGT on the build cost, it is necessary to produce receipts from your builder. If you didn’t pay TVA, he won’t have ever got you any and will need to acquire these on your behalf. The standard fee for this service is between three to five percent of the build cost, but on the flip side of this expense, it is common practice for builders to inflate the total spent and obtain fake receipts to reduce your overall tax liability.
But there are several costs and problems that can arise during construction other than those stemming from a roguish builder, and it is worth knowing what they are and how they can be dealt with;
Swimming pools are now illegal in the Medina. There is absolutely no way they can be built on roof terraces, but if they are built in the courtyard, you can get away with having one. This effectively means though paying several hundred dirhams in baksheesh to the local planning official in your area, the macadam, who will visit the building site during construction and between three to five thousand dirhams to technicans from the planning authority, who will inspect the project near to its completion.
Building rooms on the roof terrace, or hammams, or a second terrace above either of these, is also illegal. They won’t be authorized when architectural plans are submitted for a construction permit, but nonetheless can be quietly built during the construction phase with baksheesh. (NB The above figures would probably pay for both a pool and any other construction on the roof).
If you require a pool or a terrace room say, as a spare bedroom, it is advisable to build them during construction to avoid the disruption of bringing builders back in at a later date, but if the work is done afterwards, once you are in occupation and have a permit du habitation, then you won’t receive any interference from the planning authorities.
The only interference you might have is from your neighbour. By right nobody is entitled to build a second storey in the Medina and if you make an upper terrace above an illegal room in order to gain panoramic views, then you should be careful it does not overlook your neighbour. Moroccans take their privacy very seriously and if they feel you can see into their house, they can object to the macadam and this can ultimately result in you having everything illegal removed.
This isn’t the only problem you may experience with your neighbours. During the build, you will cause a major disturbance to them and blanket their house in dust, consequently there may be friction.
Furthermore, they may try it on and claim work has damaged their property. In order to establish if this is true, or simply a ploy for them to have you pay for remedial work, it is sensible your builder visits your neighbours before moving on site to photograph their riad, especially to photo and record the condition of any adjoining wall.
Last but no means least, is the expense of paying for building receipts to avoid capital gains tax liability on the money spent on restoration. It is generally the norm to pay a builder without paying TVA, (i.e. VAT),which is levied at 20%. (This is fine unless you are building a guest house, in which case, it may be advisable to pay the TVA). But when it comes to selling your riad, to avoid paying CGT on the build cost, it is necessary to produce receipts from your builder. If you didn’t pay TVA, he won’t have ever got you any and will need to acquire these on your behalf. The standard fee for this service is between three to five percent of the build cost, but on the flip side of this expense, it is common practice for builders to inflate the total spent and obtain fake receipts to reduce your overall tax liability.
