Turkey has opened doors for real estate buyers

Recommendation points

• New changes in Turkish legislation
• 4 stages of buying real estate in Turkey
• Stage 1 – selection of real estate
• Stage 2 – conclusion of a sales and purchase agreement
• Stage 3 – obtaining permission to purchase a property
• Stage 4 – getting TAPU
• Taxes, expenses
• Visa regime for Russians canceled
• Turkey is a land of opportunities!

Turkey is a country with an amazing history and excellent climate, the lands of which at different times served as a haven for pirates, emperors, German textile workers and Russian tourists. Turkey’s richest cultural heritage goes hand in hand with the breathtaking beauty of ancient traditions and magnificent landscapes.

In terms of climate, Turkey is characterized by a very long swimming season, which starts from the first days of May and lasts almost until December. During this period, the average air temperature ranges from 30 to 35 degrees Celsius. However, no less widely such a seemingly purely southern country is also known for its winter holidays – magnificent ski resorts attract millions of tourists to Turkey every year.

In general, this country is amazing in that it combines many, at first glance, incompatible things. Highly developed infrastructure and state-of-the-art technologies go hand in hand with traditional outfits, the measured lifestyle of the Turks and the customs of a thousand years ago.

A man riding a camel and surfing the Internet via Wi-Fi is a Turkish commonplace. This is what Turkey attracts most of the tourists. She is able to please everyone.

It should be noted that the acquisition of real estate in Turkey is not only an excellent opportunity to enjoy the sparkling waves and dazzling sun all year round, but is considered a very promising investment..

Since the beginning of negotiations on Turkey’s accession to the EU, the Turkish real estate market has been experiencing a stable rise in prices, which only intensified after the WTO concluded Turkey was classified as one of the countries with an economy developing at a highly dynamic pace..

Based on this, we can conclude that by buying a land plot, apartment, or “summer house” in Turkey (which can now be found at a relatively low price) in a few years you will recoup all your expenses and get a guaranteed profit!

New changes in Turkish legislation

Registration of Turkish real estate in ownership is a quick and completely effortless procedure. Moreover, quite recently (just two weeks ago, on August 6, 2012), amendments were made to the Turkish legislation, which several times simplified the procedure for registering Turkish real estate for foreigners. Now the purchase of “meters” in Turkey is available to citizens of almost any country!

However, it should be noted here that foreigners can purchase land in Turkey in a very limited amount. To do this, the buyer needs to obtain permission from the Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs. Moreover, from the countries of the former USSR, only citizens of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan can acquire ownership of Turkish land, who received this right after the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Turkey approved new lists of states on July 26, 2012, whose citizens have the right to acquire land. and real estate in Turkey.

Sachenko Elena. Turkey. Finike. 2006

Now, for foreign citizens who are allowed to acquire land in ownership, a limit has been set on the total area of ​​land plots (summed up throughout Turkey) – no more than 2.5 hectares. In addition, after 2 years after the purchase of land, foreign citizens are required to start construction on the acquired land.

It is curious that the Turkish Council of Ministers also introduced a ban on the acquisition of real estate by citizens of Ukraine and Russia on the territory of the Black Sea coast of Turkey, justifying this by the fact that the presence of common borders with these states is a matter of state security of the Republic of Turkey.

According to analysts, due to changes in Turkish legislation, more than $ 300 billion of foreign investment is expected to be attracted to the country’s economy..

4 stages of buying real estate in Turkey

Stage 1 – selection of real estate

After you have finally decided on the choice of a property, having previously familiarized yourself with its characteristics and photographs, you should contact the seller of this property, through a representative of the real estate agency and agree on the date of your arrival in Turkey.

Important! Before departure, check if you have brought with you:

• A valid international passport valid for at least 3 months by the end of the trip (in most cases it is not checked, but it is better to play it safe).
• Return ticket or voucher.
• Insurance policy.
• Air ticket.
• Confirmation of the availability of the amount of money sufficient for the trip (about 250 euros or 300 US dollars).

When entering the territory of Turkey, as a rule, only the passport is checked, however, in the event of a check, if the other documents listed above are missing, you may be deported from the country.

At the time of direct acquaintance with real estate objects, some agencies provide their clients with free accommodation and meals at the hotel (3-4 stars), airport transfers, ticket booking, as well as escort of a Russian-speaking agency representative at all stages of real estate registration.

Mineke Reinders. Mutluluk Sokag ?. 2008

Of course, you have the right to independently engage in the selection and purchase of real estate: personally contact the seller of the object you are interested in and make an appointment. However, in this case, you run the risk of wasting time, since brochures offered to foreigners contain information about luxury real estate on the seashore with a cost of 25 thousand euros, which attracts a huge number of buyers who, as a result, leave home with nothing..

But having agreed with the seller and being on the spot, you will find out that such real estate is not already available and, accordingly, what they can offer you are more expensive options (5-10 thousand euros more). Having visited several other objects, you will find out that their real price is 50-65 thousand euros. Therefore, do not stare at suspiciously cheap real estate – their value is often not true. The most adequate way out in this case would be to contact a real estate agency.

Stage 2 – conclusion of a sales and purchase agreement

After a preview of the object and familiarization with all the documents, a sales contract is concluded between the seller and the buyer of the property. This agreement implies the prior consent of the parties to transfer the selected property and prevent the possibility of selling this property to another buyer. The terms of the agreement must be stated in two languages ​​- Russian and Turkish.

The purchase and sale agreement provides the buyer with the ownership of the selected object, and the seller – the payment of a deposit in the amount of 10-25% of the value of the purchased property. If the selected property is considered a new building, then the deposit amount will be 10% of the property value. The rest of the amount can be paid in installments. When paying by installments, you must specify the relevant information in the purchase and sale agreement.

In addition, the contract must contain information about:

• Parties (buyer, owner or real estate agency).
• Real estate object.
• The amount of the deposit and the schedule of its payments.
• Terms of registration of the transaction and terms of registration of TAPU.
• Other additional conditions.

What is TAPU? TAPU is a certificate of ownership of a property and is the only document confirming ownership of a property in Turkey.

Stage 3 – obtaining permission to purchase a property

The longest stage of Turkish real estate registration. The essence of obtaining permission to purchase real estate:

• Obtaining permission from the General Cadastral Department (Ankara).
• Obtaining permission from the Military Department (Izmir) or the so-called confirmation that this object is not under military or state protection and does not have the status of strategically important.

As a rule, this procedure takes about three months from the date of sending the documents. In most cases, the buyer returns to the country of residence during this time.

It should be noted that in a year the procedure for the acquisition of real estate by foreign citizens in Turkey is planned to be reduced due to the abolition of the need to apply to the Military Department – it will become even easier to buy!

Nazmi Ziya Guran. Old Goksu and Anadolu Hisar ?. 1909

Stage 4 – getting TAPU

After receiving permission to purchase real estate, the buyer must once again come to Turkey and, with all the necessary documents, personally visit the Cadastral Department in order to issue a TAPU.

To issue a TAPU, you need to open a TIN in Turkey (contact the Tax Office). The procedure for obtaining a TIN is required for registering a property and opening a bank account.

To obtain a quick and high-quality result, as a rule, a real estate agency deals with such issues, however, it all depends on you – you can issue a TAPU yourself.

Further, both parties (buyer and seller) sign an act on the absence of mutual claims. Then the new owner of the real estate enters into the cadastral book, and gets his hands on the TAPU. The presence of a cadastral sheet indicates that its owner is the full owner of the property in Turkey.

Taxes, expenses

Taxation in Turkey does not divide people into “friends” and “aliens”, that is, the amount of tax fees will be equal for all property owners in the country.

When buying a property, you will have to pay the following tax payments:

• Annual property tax (payable semi-annually in May and November). In this case, the tax rate is calculated based on the type of real estate and its location. For example, in regional centers the tax is 0.22% of the cadastral value of real estate, and in regional centers and municipalities – 0.11%.
• One-time sales tax (paid by the buyer when buying land or housing, is 3-3.3% of the declared value). In this case, VAT is not charged.
• Property tax – 3% of the registration amount.
• Income tax. Income tax is levied on such real estate transactions as:
  • renting out real estate;
  • resale of real estate within 5 years (tax is imposed on the difference between the sale and purchase price).
• Fees, fees, and translation services – about 500 euros.

The first 4 years the buyer is exempt from paying the annual property tax in Turkey.

The penalty for non-payment of taxes is 1.4% for each month of delay.

Annual home maintenance payments include:

• Payment for maintenance and cleaning of the entrance, stairwells, the territory adjacent to the house – 10-15 euros per month.
• Garbage collection fee from 5 to 35 euros (calculated based on the location and size of the property). This tax is levied once a year..
• Annual tax for the maintenance of the complex – from 200 to 400 euros (the amount of the tax levied depends on the list of services provided: maintenance of the tennis court, fitness center, lawn mowing, pool cleaning, 24-hour security of the complex, gatekeeper).

Visa regime for Russians canceled

Last spring, Russia and Turkey signed an agreement on the mutual abolition of visas. Now, upon arrival in Turkey, a visa stamp is not bought or put. The agreement also provides for a simplified free entry into the country – it is enough to have an official (special) passport and a general civil passport without a visa (previously, $ 20 was charged for visiting Turkey).

Keiko Tanabe. Istanbul, Turkey X

The number of entries to Turkey is not limited, however, the time of a single stay in the country is limited to 30 days, while the total number of days spent in Turkey should not exceed 3 months (90 days) within six months (180 days). The semi-annual countdown starts from the first day of arrival in Turkey.

Earlier, when obtaining property rights, a mandatory procedure was the registration of a residence permit. A residence permit was granted to Russian citizens for 6 months. Upon the expiration of this period, the citizens of the Russian Federation had the right to extend it for a six-month or longer period, in case they had previously received an annual visa at the Turkish Embassy in Russia.

However, in accordance with the latest changes in Turkish legislation, now, to submit documents to the Main Cadastral Department, citizens of the Russian Federation do not need a residence permit – it will be provided to you on the basis of TAPU.

Citizens of the Russian Federation who have a residence permit in Turkey are entitled to:

• Stay in Turkey without a break during the stipulated period of validity of the residence permit.
• After the expiration of the five-year residence permit period, submit the relevant documents for obtaining citizenship, provided that over the 5 years spent in Turkey, in aggregate, you have spent no more than 6 months outside its territory.

A prerequisite for obtaining Turkish citizenship is passing the Turkish language exam.

Turkey is a land of opportunities!

Turkey is a country with the highest level of development of information infrastructure and modern technologies, which is characterized by:

• The ubiquity of mobile communications.
• Connecting to wireless Internet is possible almost anywhere in the country: whether it is a wild beach or a high-mountain village – the Internet speed is at least 2048 Mb / s!

The opportunity to be “in touch” around the clock allows visitors to spend their leisure time (and work) in this southern country as comfortably as possible, while not losing sight of their loved ones, controlling the business, or working as a freelancer on the Internet.

At the same time, you can connect to the wireless Internet through your computer absolutely free of charge, in almost any restaurant, bar, cafe or hotel. Without a computer at hand, visitors can always use the services of numerous Internet cafes located almost everywhere in Turkey. The price for this, by the way, is ridiculous. For an hour of Internet access, you will have to pay about $ 2!

Mineke Reinders. Bogaza kars?

Summing up, we will highlight a number of main advantages of purchasing real estate in Turkey:

• A fairly simple and loyal to foreigners procedure for registering real estate in ownership (which will become even easier in the near future).
• Sufficiently low taxes levied on the purchase and use of real estate, including among other resort countries.
• The excellent climate, developed infrastructure – all this makes Turkey an excellent place not only for doing business, but also for recreation, and perhaps for permanent residence.!