Buying Inherited Property in Morocco: What to Check When Heirs Are Selling

Buying a property from the heirs of a deceased owner is common in Morocco, especially for family houses, riads and land.

It can be done safely, but only when the heirs are properly identified, registered on the land title and all agree to the sale in the correct legal form.

This guide explains the checks that matter on the buyer’s side, from the inheritance deed to the right of other heirs to take your purchase over.

This article is general educational information based on Moroccan legislation and published guidance, not legal advice. Every inheritance file is different, so have your notary confirm the position before you commit.

Can you buy a property from heirs in Morocco?

Yes, and many attractive properties come to the market this way, often because the heirs live in different cities or countries and want to divide the value.

The difficulty is not the sale itself but the paperwork that must exist before it.

When an owner dies, the property passes to several people who usually own it together, in what Moroccan law calls indivision, until they divide it or sell it.

Nobody can be forced to stay in indivision, and any co-owner can ask for a division, through the courts if the others disagree (Code of Real Rights, Law 39-08, articles 26 and 27).

For a buyer, that means a family that does not agree can delay or block a sale for a long time.

Who must sign the sale?

Every registered co-owner whose share is being sold must consent and sign, personally or through a power of attorney in the form accepted in Morocco.

The same logic of registered shares applies when you buy together, as our guide to buying property in Morocco as a couple explains.

One brother, a cousin or the person holding the keys cannot sell the whole property on behalf of the others without proper authority.

Heirs who live abroad can sign through a power of attorney, and our guide to powers of attorney for Moroccan property explains the 2026 rules on their form.

When an heir is a minor

If one heir is a child, the person managing their property may need the judge’s authorisation to sell their share.

Under the Family Code, a guardian appointed by will or by the court needs that authorisation to sell property of the protected person worth more than 10,000 dirhams (Family Code, article 271).

A legal guardian, usually a parent, is only under prior judicial control when the protected person’s assets exceed 200,000 dirhams, a limit the judge can lower (article 240).

Ask the notary early whether any heir is a minor, because obtaining the authorisation adds time.

What documents should exist before you pay?

• Proof of the heirs: for a Muslim deceased, an inheritance deed (acte d’hérédité, or iratha) drawn up by adouls listing every heir and their share.
• Heirs registered on the title: a recent land title certificate showing the heirs as owners, not the deceased.
• Identity of every signatory: ID cards or passports, and any powers of attorney.
• Authorisations: a judge’s authorisation where a minor’s share requires it.
• Clean charges: confirmation that local taxes and syndic charges are paid, and that no mortgage or seizure remains.

Reaconsult, a Moroccan valuation firm, explains that without the inheritance deed the land registry has no basis to register the transfer on death (Reaconsult, registering heirs on a land title, June 2026).

It adds that a sale can only be registered from owners who already appear on the title, so registering the heirs is the essential first step.

If the deceased was a foreigner who was not Muslim, the heirs are normally determined by the law of their nationality and proven by documents from that country; our guide to inheritance law in Morocco for foreign owners explains when each system applies.

To read the ownership section yourself, see our guide to the ANCFCC property certificate.

Why is buying a single heir’s share risky?

Sometimes one heir offers to sell you only their share at a good price.

This is where Moroccan preemption rules, known as chefâa, come in.

When a co-owner sells their share in an undivided property to an outsider, the other co-owners can take the share over by repaying the buyer the price and the contract costs (Law 39-08, articles 292 and 296).

Among heirs, the co-owner of the seller within the same inheritance share has priority, followed by the other heirs, then legatees (article 297).

A buyer can shorten the uncertainty by notifying their contract to each person entitled to preempt, who then has thirty days from personal receipt to act (article 304).

Without that notification, the right can last up to a year after registration of a titled property, and up to four years in some cases.

So you could pay, renovate and still have to hand the share back for the price you paid, with your renovation costs only partly protected (article 308).

For most foreign buyers, the safer approach is to buy the whole property from all the heirs in one deed.

What did my own purchase teach me about family sellers?

On my first successful purchase in Marrakech, the owner lived in America and his brother opened the property for us.

The family was involved, but only the registered owner could sell, and we waited about a month for him to come back and sign at the notary.

That was the simple case: one living owner who agreed to sell.

With inherited property, several people must sign, some may live abroad and some may not agree, which is why the paperwork must be in order before any money moves.

Another lesson: old unpaid taxes tend to surface when a property is sold or when heirs regularise it after a death, so ask the notary to check them before the price is released.

How do heirs’ taxes affect your purchase?

The sellers pay the tax on the sale, but their tax position can affect your timing.

The 2026 tax guide for Moroccans abroad sets the property gains tax at 20%, with a minimum of 3% of the sale price even without a gain (Ministry for Moroccans abroad, 2026 tax guide, pages 20 and 21).

For an inherited property, the starting value is generally the value declared in the inheritance documents, not the price the deceased originally paid (Reaconsult, May 2026).

A low declared value means a higher tax for the heirs, which sometimes leads to pressure to under-declare the price in your deed.

Do not accept that: an under-declared price can create a tax adjustment risk and weakens your own position when you sell later.

Pay the full price through the notary and by traceable means, because a sale above 300,000 dirhams with cash payment can also trigger an extra 2% registration duty on the cash part (same guide, page 7).

What are the warning signs?

If the property has no land title, read our comparison of melkia and titre foncier before you go further.

How should you structure the purchase?

1. Ask for the title number and the inheritance documents before you discuss the price.
2. Have your notary order a fresh certificate and confirm who must sign.
3. Sign a promise of sale only when every heir, or their representative, can sign it too.
4. Pay the deposit and price to the notary, never to one heir.
5. Make completion conditional on registration of the heirs, any judge’s authorisation and the release of any charges.
6. After registration, get a new certificate showing you as sole owner.

Our property due diligence checklist lists the other documents to request at the same time.

Frequently asked questions

Can one heir sell an inherited property in Morocco?

Only their own share, and the other co-owners can then take it over by preemption. To buy the whole property, every co-owner must sign or be validly represented.

What is an acte d’hérédité?

It is the deed that identifies the heirs of a deceased person and their shares. For a Muslim deceased it is drawn up by adouls, and it is needed to register the heirs on the land title.

How long do co-heirs have to use their preemption right?

Thirty days from personally receiving notice of the sale. Without notice, the right can last up to a year after registration of a titled property, and longer in some cases.

Can heirs living abroad sell without travelling?

Yes, through a power of attorney in the form accepted in Morocco, which the notary should check before the deed is signed.

Is a property with a minor heir harder to buy?

Often. The sale of the minor’s share may need a judge’s authorisation, which takes time. Ask the notary at the start.

Should you move forward with an inherited property?

An inherited property can be a good purchase, and families often price it to sell.

Move forward only when the heirs are registered, every signature is secured and your money stays with the notary until the title is in your name.