Over 10,000 rent disputes resolved via mediation

ANKARA

More than 10,000 cases regarding the disputes between landlords and tenants over rents have been resolved through mediation, according to Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç.

The mediation arrangement aimed at helping landlords and occupants find a midway solution took effect at the start of September and many people rushed to apply to benefit from it.

Since 2013, mediators have received some 4.5 million cases and 3.1 million of them were resolved in agreement, Tunç said, noting that this means around 70 percent settlement between the disputing parties.

“This rate is 49 percent in the cases where the parties should seek mediation before going to court. Some 3 million cases were settled this way.”

More and more people are resolving the disputes through the mediation scheme, said Umut Metin, a lawyer and mediator.

The latest numbers suggest that within a period of two weeks, more than 3,000 disputes were settled, he added.

Metin noted that before the mediation scheme took effect, some 20,000 cases related to landlord-tenant disputes were filed with court each month. “Now this is around 3,500 cases.”

The mediation scheme contributes to resolving disputes particularly over rents, according to Metin.

Rental prices leaped 136 percent in September from a year ago, according to the numbers from Endeksa, which collects data on the property market.

The average rental price was 125 Turkish Liras ($4.40) /square meter on average in the country, while it was 175 liras in Istanbul.