How to buy a house in Turkey as a foreigner? – Turkey Today

With its amazing history, culture, nature and climate, Turkey has always been a desirable destination for many expats spending time away from the world. These characteristics of living a healthy, happy life are now more important than ever in this era of mobility in the shadow of the global Corona pandemic.
However, it can be difficult to make a major move to another country, especially if you do not know the language or the place where you will be living. In this article, translated by “Turkey’s Economy and the World”, quoting the “Daily Sabah” newspaper, we offer you some guidelines for starting a new life in Turkey.

How do you find a house?

Certified real estate websites are an excellent resource, not only for finding out what’s available in a particular area, but they can also connect you remotely with real estate agents who specialize in specific areas. You can search for rentals as well as properties for sale by either typing in the county and area you’re looking at, or you can take advantage of the nifty map function where you can zoom in and out to get a helpful overview of availability and prices to help you decide. Take, for example, ahibinden.com, which translates into English as “from the owner”.

While websites report that properties are listed by owners, keep in mind that in many cases real estate agents post, but you can still use that to your advantage. First and foremost, research agents thoroughly to make sure they are reputable and approved as there have been cases of unlicensed agents trying to sell homes to foreigners. Once you can verify their legitimacy and verify the agent with professional evaluation by customers, their website and office address, then call to describe your price and requirements as they may have more listings than they actually post. Keep in mind that the fee paid to a real estate agent in Turkey is 3% of the sale price, which is paid by both parties, i.e. the buyer and the seller.

Houses in Turkey have three requirements: First, there must be a “Tabu” which is a title deed, “Emaar” which is a building permit and “Iskan” which is a housing certificate. You really don’t want to shell out any money if you are unable to verify that the property has all of the above. It is highly recommended that you check with the Land Registry Office, (Tapu Dairesi in Turkish), to ensure that the property you are checking is legal to purchase and that the deed does not have any outstanding penalties or debts attached to it, such as a “mortgage,” which is a lien right on the property for which you will be responsible. If you buy it.
On new builds, make sure you transfer the name of the title to the contractor opposite the landlord if that is the person you are buying from and don’t give up any money and pay for the property in full until after the title is officially issued in your name. There are methods available by banks in Turkey to ensure that funds are secured for both parties during the transaction process.

The presence of “housing,” which is a certificate of habitation, proving that the house is habitable and has been built according to the required standards and earthquake resistance regulations. This will make obtaining loans or creating a mortgage possible and can be deciphered by the deed having a tick in the box for “kat mülkiyeti”, which means ownership of the property as opposed to “kat irtifakı”, which indicates building ownership that is not yet habitable.

Title deeds in Turkey come with either a blue or red border. Those blue borders denote the land, or the land including the detached house, while the bonds with the red borders denote the units in an apartment or apartment complex, the latter being referred to as the site.” An important point to consider when buying red border bond homes is that in most cases, there is a common monthly maintenance fee that must be paid by the homeowners.

What will you need to buy it?

There are a number of requirements for foreigners and otherwise to buy real estate in Turkey. Firstly, starting from this year, it is necessary to obtain an Energy Performance Certificate (in Turkish Enerji Kimlik Belgesi) which ranks the energy efficiency of the said building. This is a new requirement that went into effect at the beginning of the year for the sale and purchase of homes. You will also need to sign up for compulsory earthquake insurance (DASK in Turkish) to receive essentials like electricity and water.

If you plan to sell your property within five years of purchase, keep in mind that you will be subject to paying capital gains tax, which is a low rate calculated on profits incurred. Those who wish to sell their homes will also need to have their property valued by a private company and will be subject to paying 4% of real value taxes, thus putting an end to misrepresentation on the actual price paid for a property to avoid paying exorbitant taxes.

If foreigners are buying the property themselves, they will need a foreign identification number (yabancı kimlik numarası) as well as a translator, and notarized translations of their passports, but it is also possible to give a power of attorney, which may go beyond the first two requirements.
There is also the rare case of obtaining a military clearance that can take up to a month, which may be necessary based on proximity to military bases or strategic locations. Foreigners intending to buy land is also limited to 30 hectares, and remember that there are strict regulations on being able to build on land here in Turkey, and in July this year it became forbidden to build a “hobby house” on agricultural land.
Meanwhile, with the purchase of $250,000 worth of real estate as of September 19, 2018 comes the ability to become a Turkish citizen as long as you don’t sell said property for three years.
Meanwhile, with the purchase of $250,000 worth of real estate as of September 19, 2018 comes the ability to become a Turkish citizen as long as you don’t sell said property for three years.

Last but not least, Your Key Turkey is a great informative website prepared by the Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning for the Land Registry and Cadastre for foreign property buyers. The website is available in six different languages, namely English, German, Arabic, French, Russian and Spanish, and contains all the necessary information and exact details about buying real estate in Turkey by foreigners. Check it out on www.yourkeyturkey.gov.tr.

One last piece of advice about buying a property in Turkey for foreigners

A final advice about buying a property in Turkey for foreigners: do not listen to those who talk about an irreplaceable real estate opportunity and that its owner wants to sell it because of his urgent need for money, and that the value of the apartment is much lower than the market price; Because if such an opportunity exists, the brokerage firms and 90 million Turkish citizens will hear about it before you and they will have completed the purchase process!

Try to acquire real estate at its real market value in areas that have real added value through infrastructure projects, which will give this investment values ​​higher than the general inflation values, taking into account the forces of supply and demand and paying attention to the superstructure represented by the social fabric that the target area enjoys.