Foreigners seek property with Bosphorus views

ANKARA - Anatolia News Agency

GYODER President Işık Gökkaya says that ten thousand properties, half of which are in Istanbul, will be sold to foreigners from the Gulf, Russia and Turkic Republics. Hürriyet photo

Since the government passed a new law making it easier for foreigners to purchase real estate in Turkey, foreign nationals have turned their attention to property in Istanbul with a Bosphorus view, according to the Association of Real Estate Investment Companies (GYODER) President Işık Gökkaya.

According to Gökkaya, people from the Arab Spring countries prefer to invest in Turkey rather than those from the west.

“Turkey is an attractive and safe port with a strong economy. The Istanbul market is witnessing the most activity. Citizens from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and the Arab countries are especially interested in luxury residences in Istanbul with a view of the Bosphorus,” said Gökkaya. Foreigners are also interested in coastal real estate as well as large foreign multinationals, he said.

Real estate sector to boom

Gökkaya told Anatolia news agency that the real estate sector would soon experience a boom due to the new law, which makes it easier for foreigners to purchase real estate in Turkey, and the government’s urban transformation schemes.

He explained that once accompanying efforts to allow foreigners to remain in the country for a longer period of time are complete, the sector would really experience an expansion. The previous law regarding ownership of real estate by foreigners was prohibitive for buyers from the Gulf, Middle East, Russia and the Turkic Republics.

According to Gökkaya, ten thousand properties, half of which are in Istanbul, will be sold to foreigners from the Gulf, Middle East, Russia, Turkic Republics, Iran and Azerbaijan in the short term.
“At first real estate sales to foreigners will be limited. However, firms will focus on marketing to foreigners and each year the sales figure will go up. With increasing demand by foreigners there could be an increase in property prices as well,” said Gökkaya.

Gökkaya believes that with foreign investment, the Turkish real estate sector, which used to bring in $2 billion in revenues per annum in the past, will bring in $5 billion in the medium-term and $10 billion in the long-term.

“When we look at all these factors, the influx of foreign investment into the Turkish real estate sector will have a positive effect on the country’s current account deficit,” he said.

Turkish real estate firms have currently begun to open sales offices in foreign countries hoping to secure $5 billion in revenues with new law on foreign real estate purchases.

“They are focusing on countries which they have never sold to before like Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Iran. Some companies are conducting their sales via agencies in foreign countries.