IS IT POSSIBLE FOR FOREIGNERS TO BUY IN TURKEY?

Yes foreigners may buy property in Turkey. As the seller and the buyer agree, a contract is drawn up and the seller goes with the agent to the Land registry and Title-Deed office with the necessary documents. Once all the documents have been prepared and authorized by the Land Registry, the Title Deed office will send a petition to the Army Headquarters for the clearance to buy and for checking that the property is not in the military area. This may take from 6-12 weeks. Once getting the clearance from the Army the Title-Deed office will issue the new Title Deed in the name of the buyer.

DO I NEED A TURKISH PARTNER?

To follow these procedures and to buy a property you do not need a Turkish partner. As a foreigner you may own property or land and have your name on the Title Deed.

DO I NEED A TRANSLATOR?

If you want to purchase it by yourself you will need a translator for everything but if you have a bi-lingual speaking agent to act on your behalf, you will need only a government translator to translate your passport from English into Turkish and translate the power of attorney to the agent who will be dealing with all your paper work.

DO I NEED AN AGENT TO BUY PROPERTY?

You may purchase property or land by yourself and many people are selling illegally from Hotels, Bars, Restaurants, Travel Agents, Jewellery shops and even the shoeshine boys!! Everybody in Turkey seems to have a “friend” who’s selling a property. We have many “horror” stories we can tell you! It is not recommended. Whom would you see for advice and if anything should go wrong whom do you turn to? They will tell you “no commission” but their commission is always added onto the price unbeknown to the non English-speaking seller. Would you buy a property in your own country without the services of an Estate Agent?

As you will not be familiar with the system and procedure in Turkey, you would be better advised to employ a REGISTERED Estate Agent to do all the paper work for you. Anyone telling you there’s no commission be wary of and ask yourself would they really do all that work for nothing?

PAYMENT

The seller usually likes to take a 10% deposit. This can be paid either in travellers cheques, cash or credit card. If you are going to pay by credit card please advise your bank before leaving your country, that you may be making a large transaction whilst in Turkey. If the bank is not advised they will not authorize the transaction for security reasons. We at EUROPEAN ESTATE take a 3% fee of the asking price. We deal with all the procedures regarding the sale and the completion. We also continue our work with our after sales service. We provide services for registration of electric and water supplies, telephone connections, payment of annual property taxes, refuse taxes, residents visas and property maintenance.

Buying Real Estate and building in Turkey involves many regulations, and legal proceedings, we recommend you to buy through a reputable Real Estate Agency. The property market is not regulated so be wary of ”freelancers” touting for business particularly in big tourist centres.