Sandiego Nobcche

Morocco, first discovered by the Arabs in the 7th Century was called “bilad al Maghreb” by them, the “Western Extreme”. A land of horizons, where sea, sand dunes, skies and mountains extend endlessly till where your eyes can follow them. The beautiful atmosphere with the dry winds blowing into your face is one of the most pleasant experiences you can ever have. Morocco is truly the land of contrasts, it has everything: from snow capped mountain peaks to dry hot desserts, fertile valleys and bare rock formations, it has just everything. The diversity in morocco is caused by it’s positioning on the globe: the area where two completely different worlds meet: Africa and Europe, Islam and Christianity, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Morocco is made from the fusion of two completely different words with separate cultures, separate food habits, separate traditions and clothing styles, separate languages and so much so that: separate skin colors. However, just looking at it’s geographical position is not enough to tell everything about Morocco. There is more to it, a lot more. The people form a vital part of the enchantment too. The ancient traditions of a rich culture still thrive in Morocco. This can be indistinctly noted from their food habits and dressing styles, their customs and their festivities and most importantly the way they receive guests. Moroccans are some of the most hospitable people. Famous all over the world for their hospitality and friendly nature, the Moroccans till date welcome strangers in accordance to the age old code of ceremony. A land of god, this place will definitely leave a deep impression on you that will never let you forget the sweet memories.

Morocco is not only good for touring. Investment in real estate in Morocco could prove to be one of the wisest things you’ve ever done. Morocco is a land of possibilities. Investing in real estate in Morocco a few years back would seem to be a joke, it would be dreaming. However, today, standing nearly a decade into the 21^st century, Morocco could be an investor’s paradise. The real estate values are such that even small time investors can afford some property. Morocco has undergone a lot of changes, reforms and transformations over the past few years. A lot has changed in Morocco. It will keep changing the way it is for the coming years too, and hence Morocco is seen as a hot spot attracting investors from all over the world. It is a known fact that very soon property prices in Morocco are going to take a leap. This could be any time soon. Investors will soon be rejoicing looking at the profits made on their investments in Morocco, wouldn’t you want to be a part of the group too? Well, if you do, act now, act fast, because you never know when it’s too late.

The beauty of Les Borjs de la Kasbah is that it is completely unexpected, slap in the middle of one of the busiest and dirtiest bits of Marrakesh. To get to this boutique hotel involves a short drive from the airport, in all likelihood in a taxi with no seatbelts, along roads that bear a closer resemblance to alleyways than thoroughfares, even if they do seem to hold the same amount of traffic as the average high street back home.

Eventually, you pitch up at the door and think ‘This can’t be it’, because it’s far too unprepossessing, looking as if it might be a hostel of some sort, not the environment-friendly spa-hotel you think you’ve booked. However, once you’re inside, Les Borjs is chic and entirely peaceful - you can just about hear the call to prayer, but that’s it.

As my sister, Katy, and I arrived on a Saturday morning after just six hours’ travelling door-to-door, we met Françoise Bruce-Mitford, one of the owners, who designed and built Les Borjs with her British husband to prevent them becoming bored when they retired from running their holiday company, VFB Holidays.

Though based in Wales, she comes over at least once a month for a few days, which in itself goes to show how easy it is to get to Marrakesh for a long weekend, as we were doing. It seemed incredible that we had been in freezing Britain that morning and here we were drinking freshly squeezed fruit juices and peeling off layers in the 24C sunshine.

Les Borjs is now a year old, and when setting it up the Bruce-Mitfords were concerned to use as many environment-friendly, energy-efficient and all-round ethical ploys as they could in both the spa and the main hotel. Much of the electricity comes from solar panels, and rubbish is disposed of in as eco-conscious a manner as possible. Even the lowliest potwasher in the kitchen is paid nearly double the statutory minimum wage, and the couple are involved in several local charities.

Not that the hotel feels uncomfortably worthy in any sense. Although more or less built from scratch on the sites of seven houses the couple bought over a period of years, the new buildings do look quintessentially Moroccan, all twiddly ironwork, latticed windows, polished plasterwork, traditional rugs and painted tiles - they used a local architect and entirely Moroccan crafts team.

The 18 bedrooms are sympathetically finished and normal hotel luxuries aren’t stinted on: you still get a flat-screen telly and a minibar, but little notes gently encourage you not to use too much hot water, and toiletries are in dispensers rather than disposable bottles. Lighting operates by motion sensors, so corridors are lit only when they need to be

The kings of the We Buy Ugly Houses, HomeVestors has released their list of top real estate investing markets for the 1^st quarter of 2008. The company specializes in buying and refurbishing modest homes for the marketplace.

The list is probably one of the weaker ones out there, as they do not tell their methodology, but it is still interesting that the south is dominant even in this niche market.

Top Ten Cities For Real Estate Investing, 1st Quarter 2008

1.  Dallas, Texas 
2. Houston, Texas 
3. Atlanta, Georgia
4. Fort Worth, Texas
5. St. Louis, Missouri
6. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
7. San Fransisco , Texas
8. Denver, Colorado
9. Minneapolis, Minnesota
10. Phoenix, Arizona 

HomeVestors via Press Release