Buying a home can take years of saving before buyers can even apply for a mortgage. CIH Bank is offering customers in Morocco a way to search for a home and apply for a housing loan through its mobile app, with an option that requires no initial down payment.
The bank says customers can complete the mortgage application process online through its CIH Mobile app, available on iOS and Android.
“With CIH Bank, bring your real estate project to life with total ease! Find your future home and apply for your mortgage directly from the CIH Mobile application. Enjoy a 100% online mortgage, with zero down payment!” the bank said in its promotional campaign.
The offer could help young professionals and first-time buyers who find it difficult to save the money usually needed to buy a home. However, CIH Bank has not specified the eligibility criteria, interest rates, maximum loan amounts or repayment terms for the zero-down-payment option in the material provided.
CIH Bank, formally known as Crédit Immobilier et Hôtelier, is a major commercial bank that began by focusing on property and hotel financing. It is now also active in retail and digital banking and is a subsidiary of Caisse de Dépôt et de Gestion (CDG), a state-owned financial institution.
The bank has targeted younger customers with digital services and products, including Code30, an account offering designed around low-fee banking. Its mobile platform has also introduced features such as credit application tracking, notifications and digital document uploads.
The initiative comes as banks compete to make borrowing easier through digital services. Attijariwafa Bank and Banque Populaire are among the other major banking groups offering online credit application services.
It also comes as the government seeks to help more people buy their first home through its Aide Directe au Logement programme, which provides direct financial support to eligible buyers purchasing a primary residence.
What does a zero down payment mean?
Homebuyers are often expected to pay part of a property’s price themselves before a bank lends them the rest. In Morocco, a typical down payment can be around 10% to 20% of the purchase price, although requirements vary.
For a property costing 1 million dirhams, that would mean saving between 100,000 and 200,000 dirhams before taking out a mortgage. A zero-down-payment loan could remove that initial cost if the buyer qualifies and the bank agrees to finance the full property price.
The option does not necessarily mean that everyone can borrow the full amount. Banks still need to assess applicants’ income, existing debts and ability to repay the loan.
Bank Al-Maghrib, the country’s central bank, oversees lending standards and monitors risks to the banking system. A borrower’s monthly loan repayments are commonly assessed against their net income, with debt-to-income limits often cited in the range of 40% to 50%, depending on the lending criteria applied.
A mortgage in Morocco typically runs for 15 to 25 years, spreading repayments over a long period. The longer the term, the more time borrowers have to repay, although the total interest paid may also be higher.
CIH Bank has not published enough details in the promotional material to establish the precise conditions of its zero-down-payment offer, including whether additional fees apply or how much customers can borrow. The announcement confirms that the bank is promoting an entirely online application process, but it does not establish that every stage of mortgage approval and property purchase can be completed digitally.
