Buy with confidence
Buying a property in Turkey can be a simple and reasonably straightforward process which is certainly much faster than in the UK. The majority of property ownership in Turkey is on a freehold basis – the buyer owns the property as well as either all land (private villa) or a percentage of it (apartment/villa within a complex). The information below is a basic guide to the property buying process.
Requirements
In order for any foreigner to buy a property in Turkey, the property itself must:
- Hold a government title deed registered with the Turkish Land Registry. This is known as a TAPU.
- Be located within a town development area
- Not be located close to any Military associations
- Not be on land owned by the Forestry Commission
- Have an independent valuation report of the property to confirm the land registry and council requirements
The Process
Once the decision has been made to purchase, a contract will be drawn up, by the buyer’s law for both the buyer and the seller to sign, and a deposit will be laid down to safeguard the property. At this point the buyer can give power of attorney to either a lawyer or estate agent and from then on in anything needing to be dealt with can be done so without the buyer present. The buyer would also be advised to open a local bank account and register with the local tax office.
In order to complete the purchasing process, both the buyer and seller must be present at the Land Registry office to receive the title deeds. This process is completed in the presence of a solicitor and or agent and an official interpreter. If the buyer has given power of attorney to another person, they are able to complete the process on the buyer’s behalf.
Stamp duty will be paid at 4% (as of 2020) and is usually shared equally between the buyer and seller. Buyers will also pay a 3% commission to the estate agent. All receipts of fees and tax payments will be declared during the final transaction at the Land Registry office. Lastly the buyer and seller will sign the Land Registry book under the invigilation of the accredited interpreter.
On completion, the property must have the mandatory government DASK insurance (insurance against natural disasters). It would also be advisable to take out private insurance on the house and its contents. The property will also require registration with the local authorities for annual property and local environment tax contributions and should the property be put on the rental market, income tax will have to be paid on any profits.
It would also be worthwhile organising a Turkish will. The Law in Turkey is quite different and having one would guarantee you full protection of the property.