International Real Estate Listings

Istanbul is a famous metropolis situated in the center of the ancient world amongst historical ruins and amazing natural scenery. It’s th e only city in the world that is established on both the continents of Asia and Europe, and divided by the narrow sea passage of the magnificent Bosporus.

With more than 2,500 years of history, and the creation of strategic embrace of sea and land, it has become a major center for trade.

Istanbul is situated on a peninsula, bordering its 3 sides is the Marmara Sea, Bosphorus and the Golden Horn. It has been a capital of three Empires, namely the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Turks, over a span of 1600 years, whilst changing hands of over 120 Sultans and Emperors.

Historical Istanbul is the only city in the world that is unique to these characteristics.

It’s a place where the center of Turkey’s import and export, entertainment, culture, education, shopping, tourism and arts activities reside. Istanbul is becoming more and more colorful in its rich social, cultural and trade activities.

It is also, by far the most liveliest region in the real estate sector.

If the real estate market has slown down in parallel with both the Turkish and Global markets, there is certainly no drop in prices in the most expensive districts of Istanbul. New residential projects are surfacing in the districts that have carried their expensive, high-end position and appearance for many years, tieing in new residential developments.

Many of these added neighborhoods are mainly on the Asian side of Istanbul.

The neighborhoods of Acarlar and Cavusbasi in the district of Beykoz are attracting attention with rental rates of 4,000 YTL (aprx. 2,100) per month.

According to research, 11 of the 20 additional neighborhoods are within the district of Besiktas.

It has been established that the average monthly rental rates in Besiktas are 2,161 YTL (aprx. 1,150).

The land prices continue to rise in Istanbul and its surrounding regions; the economic heart of Turkey.

The market is drawing attention as the land prices in USD, have increased 10 fold within the last 3 years. Land in the regions offering the least rewards are even doubling.

The return on land is therefore much higher than the dollar, gold and stock exchange.

One of the reasons for the price increases is due to the upcoming planning permissions that will be applied within many new areas of Istanbul. The investors are in search for land for the purpose of constructing residential developments and shopping centres, but as land is somewhat scarce, there is not a lot of production gonig on, and the existing regions are making the premiums.

The most valuable route from the prospective of land, is the Levent-Maslak line.

Generally the best premiums for land in Turkey is in this region. The district of Riva is ahead again as the shinning star in the last period.

Real estate experts state that this will be one of the regions as the center of attention in the coming years.

It is already begun attracting foreign investors. Nowadays, residential developments, apart hotels and luxury homes are what’s in style.

The preferred locations are in the city centres.

The attraction of city centres is due to its higher level of prestige, very good sales potential and profit margins. The districts offering the highest returns in the Asian side of Istanbul are: Cekmekoy, Alemdag, Sarigazi, Omerli, Maltepe, Kartal, Pendik, Kurtkoy, and Gebze.

On the European side of Istanbul are the districts of Sariyer, Zekeriyakoy, Catalca, Silivri, Beylikduzu, Beyoglu, Kagithane, Gaziosmanpasa, and Dolapdere.

An example of a new district on the rise, located on the Asian side of Istanbul, presenting a contemporary city planning, is Kurtkoy. With its infrastructure in place; from the prespective of its stable ground, Kurtkoy is considered one of the most secure places against earthquakes.

In a very short period of time, Kurtkoy will become one of the newer districts of attention because of its International airport, marinas, 3rd largest exhibition centre and industrial facilities.

Kurtkoy reached its fame, as the region that holds the distance between laps at the Formula 1 Istanbul Park racetrack. Protecting Istanbul’s metropolitan build and natural beauty, situated along the coast, Tuzla is another district grabbing the attention of investors.

Based on rental income, Tuzla is one of two regions that offers capital returns within 13 years and 11 months, according to experts.

In the last little while, the rental housing prices are becoming comparable to other luxury districts. With its modern city structures, Tuzla is also becoming an attraction with investors in the last periods.

Recently another region in Istanbul that has drawn attention in real estate investments, offering very good premiums, is Beylikduzu.

This region has built up an excellent variety of residential projects in the last period. The rapidly increasing shopping centres has made the region centrally appealing.

Atasehir has proven its quality since it won the International award “City within a City” in 1996.

Situated on the Asian side of Istanbul, Atasehir is a modern living centre. It addresses higher income individuals and families with its luxury housing.

Due to its large variety of developments, it’is quite easy to find a property suitable to many different interests.

Lastly, the district of Nisantasi, with its rich history and social mosaic and rich displays, continues to hold its place as being the most prominent district of Istanbul. The most expensive rental rates in Turkey are in this district.

No matter how high the rental rates are in Nisantasi, it carries the feature of being Istanbul’s most prestigious housing areas.

While extensively following the Istanbul real estate market trends, euroMedt has conducted in depth research on these premium making regions. For more information and a list of our private development offers from these areas, please contact us with your inquiries.

general@euromedt-turkey.com Important Site links:

Foreign ownership in Turkey is ruled by the reciprocity principle. Citizens of countries that allow Turkish citizens or legal entities to own property in their country are allowed to acquire property in Turkey.

Citizens of most EU countries (except for Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic and Slovakia), the United States, Canada and other countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa can freely purchase properties in Turkey.

Foreign nationals also face restrictions on acquiring properties within municipal areas with less than 2000 registered inhabitants (article 87 of Village Act). Foreigners are also not allowed to purchase properties in the confines of military zones (Military Prohibited and Security Areas Act).

On 07 January 2006, a new law was enacted which put a limit to the amount of land that a foreigner can purchase.

Foreigners are allowed to acquire a maximum of 30 hectares (74 acres) of real estate. Any piece of land exceeding 30 hectares requires a permit from the Turkish authorities.

A 10 to 25 deposit is needed during the initial stage of property acquisition, i.e., upon signing of the purchase contract.

Permission for sale needs to be acquired by sending the deeds of property and passport translations of the buyer to the local Army Headquarters for approval. The permission for sale usually takes six to eight weeks to secure.

Once the permission of sale is secured, the transfer of title of deed (“TAPU”) is done at the local Land Registry Office.

Having a solicitor to do the conveyancing is not a legal requirement, but it is highly recommended. Notarisation of all property sales to foreign nationals by a government-authorised interpreter is, however, a legal requirement.

Moreover, both contracting parties (seller and buyer) are required to be present at the entry of title.

The whole process of registering property in Turkey takes nine days to finish. The Turkish government, in turn, takes three to nine months to process the application and release the title deeds for transfer.

FOOTNOTES TO TRANSACTION COSTS TABLE The round trip transaction costs include all costs of buying and then re-selling a property – lawyers’ fees, notaries’ fees, registration fees, taxes, agents’ fees, etc.

Registration and notary fee: Registration and notary fees are expected to add around 1 to the roundtrip transaction cost; including registration fees, solicitors fee, government-authorised interpreters fee, notary fees and various permits. Stamp Duty: Stamp duty of 0.75 is charged on the disposal of Turkish real estate provided that a sale and purchase agreement has been executed.

Both parties to a transaction are jointly liable for the relevant stamp duty.

However, in cases where one party is Turkish-resident and the other party is not, the Turkish resident usually declares and pays the stamp duty. Title deed charge: Title deed charge is paid to the Land Registry, 3 of property value, split between buyer and seller.

Agent’s commission: Real estate agent’s commission is typically 6 of purchase price, split between buyer and seller.

Other real estate agencies do not include VAT in their commission. Important Site links: http://www.globalpropertyguide.com