Turkey is not only attracting those looking for a better lifestyle or holiday home: serious property investors have also been making a prominent entry into the Turkish property market. Robert Nixon of Nirvana International says that as Turkey has yet to become an EU member, many investors have seen a "golden opportunity" of buying Turkish property now and "watch as the property boom moves from other popular  European countries". Helpfully, the actual process of buying Turkish property is a lot easier than in many other European countries, says Nixon. "Foreigners can purchase property and land in their own names without any difficulty." There are, however some restrictions on where you can buy, continues Nixon. For instance, you cannot buy Turkish property in areas which are located in the countryside which do not come under the control of a town or borough, known as municipality areas. Military zones are also out of the question.

The Turkish property buying process can be deceptively different from that in the UK, as familiar English words and conepts are used to describe entirely different steps in Turkey. But once you have found your dream Turkish property in an area where you are allowed to buy, the buying process is generally straightforward.

Buying Turkish property
When you have found the Turkish property you want and put in an offer, you sign a reservation contract. This takes the property off the market for a limited period of time, such as 30 days. You will be required to pay a holding deposit. During this time, you decide whether you want to have a survey done on the property.

Your lawyer will also make enquiries about the property, including a title search, which ensures the owner actually owns the Turkish property as, in Turkey, they quite often don't. The lawyer will also do a planning search to ensure it has planning permission. There are other things you must also check, says Nixon: "Is the land/property clear of outstanding debts? Has the building been constructed legally? Is the contract of sale in clear English so I can understand it?"

When your lawyer has finished the checks, you sign a preliminary contract of purchase. You are now committed to buying your Turkish property and are required to pay a deposit. Nirvana International takes a three per cent reservation with a further seven per cent after the contracts are signed making a total of ten per cent. They then only take a further 30 per cent when the construction of the purchaser's dwelling is started. If you are doing building work, then you will make stage payments and receive a habitation certificate when the work is complete to show the property is fit to be lived in and complies with the terms of the building licence.  The last step is to sign a final purchase contract at the land registry office and your title will be registered. This is a simple outline of the buying process, so there are many more things you may need to deal with, depending on the property. For instance, you may need military permission before buying Turkish property, although steps are being taken to have this rule abolished. Also, adds Nixon, you cannot purchase land in excess of 300,000 square metres as a foreigner: you must set up a company.

Costs of buying Turkish property
There are a number of fees and taxes which you should include on top of the purchase price of your Turkish property. Nixon says that a lawyer or solicitor's fee is typically around £750. While it is not compulsory to hire a solicitor, Nixon urges those who are not familiar with the procedure to appoint one.

You can expect the notary fee to cost about 1.3 per cent of the property value. The notary is a public official who officially certifies that the title deeds have been exchanged and understood by the parties concerned, explains Nixon. "After the signing, the notary witnesses the payment, or an acknowledgement that the payment has been made, and this is incorporated in the title deeds of the property."

Stamp duty adds another 0.75 per cent of the property value to the price. Stamp tax is collected by the notary public. As for estate agent fees, in Turkey these are paid by both parties at three per cent each. "These are standard terms offered by all Turkish estate agents", says Nixon.

Ongoing costs include real estate tax, which is calculated on the basis of the declared value of the asset at the current rate of 0.1 per cent for residential property. This tax, which is updated each year taking into account inflation, is collected by the local government. Nixon adds that you will also need to take out compulsory earthquake insurance on your property, on which a national uniform tariff is implemented.

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For further information about Turkish property:
Nirvana International

Article first published in August 2005