Casting lots for housing project in Istanbul begins

ISTANBUL

Within the scope of the İlk Evim (My First Home) Project, the first drawing of lots for Istanbul’s Tuzla district took place on March 16, with owners of 20,920 new houses determined already.

The draw was held at Tuzla Viaport Marina in the municipality’s event tent at 10 a.m. and was broadcast live online.

“Within the scope of our project with the Housing Development Administration (TOKİ), we are starting to draw lots for 50,000 houses as of March 16. May it be beneficial for all our citizens in Istanbul,” Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum said in a social media post.

Kurum said that as part of the urban transformation to make Istanbul quake-resilient, the existing structures will be retrofitted and all risky buildings will be demolished.

He added that they will increase the number of safe buildings in the metropolis with the help of this low-cost housing project.

In the İlk Evim project, the largest low-cost housing project in the history of Türkiye, the casting of lots will continue until April 19 for 50,000 beneficiaries in Istanbul.

As part of the project, 500,000 low-cost units, 250,000 housing plots and 50,000 workplaces will be built. The construction of 250,000 housing units will be completed within two years.

Applications were accepted in five categories, including families of martyrs, citizens with at least 40 percent disability, pensioners, young adults between the ages of 18 and 30, and other prospective buyers, respectively.

The drawing of lots was completed in many cities.