Construction costs rise 107 percent

ANKARA

The construction cost index increased by 106.6 percent in April from a year earlier, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) showed.

Construction costs rose by 6.1 percent in April from March.

Material costs were up 7.5 percent month-on-month for an annual increase of 134 percent, while labor costs in the construction industry increased by 1.4 percent monthly and 43.8 percent annually.

TÜİK also reported that the building construction cost index increased by 6.39 percent compared with previous month and went up by 103.5 percent compared with the same month of the previous year.

The cost of materials used in the construction of buildings rose by 7.9 percent in April from March and increased by 130 percent from the same month of 2021.

A recent Central Bank data showed that residential property prices increased 9.3 percent monthly and rose 110 percent annually in March.

In Istanbul, residential property prices climbed 122 percent in the month from a year ago.

In the face of the rising rent prices, especially in large cities, the government recently moved to introduce a cap on rent price hikes.

Parliament on June 8 approved the legislation that limits rent increases to a maximum of 25 percent.

The cap will apply to lease contracts to be signed until July 2023.

The newly introduced cap on hikes in home rents is only a temporary measure and will not be extended, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ said last week.