Real Estate Market Future / Turkey

Reports by PriceWaterhouse Coopers is a strong evidence for global investors who are keen to enter the Turkish market. 

The report envisages that Turkey would become the twelfth-largest economy in the world in 2041, moving from sixteenth, and that PPP-adjusted GDP per capita would be doubled, reaching USD 35,000. 

The report also strongly underlines the demographic strength of Turkey, based on the projection of a population growth of 20%, and population reaching 90 million in 2041, while more than half of the population is envisaged to be aged under 40. 

Particularly important for retail and hotel investment, the report also envisages that Turkey; with its current number of tourists at 27 million, has the potential to surpass the number of visitors to the UK and to approach the level of Italy.

Retail Supply

As of end first half 2012, the organized retail gross leasable area in Turkey reached 8.0 million sq m, compared to 6.96 million sq m in the same period last year and 7.63 million sq m at the end of 2011.

Moody’s upgraded Turkey’s credit rating from Ba2 to Ba1, preserved Turkey’s rating outlook as positive, hinting at a possible upgrade to the ‘investment grade’ within the next 18 months.

On top of this, the Law of Reciprocity, which came into effect on 17 May, lifts the condition of reciprocity for private persons to buy property in Turkey. The new law is expected to particularly affect residential sales by individual investors, from Gulf countries, Europe and Russia. 

Now foreign individuals can easily buy property without establishing a company in Turkey, and can enter commercial real estate market as well. Another legislative change -2B Law - that allows the sale and utilization of the unqualified forestry area as commercial and residential development came into effect

This law will increase the supply of available land in major sub-markets of Istanbul and Turkey is placed at the top of global league table of transparency improvement since 2010.

In recent years Turkey made huge progress in real estate transparency. 

In 2012 Turkey once again tops the global league table of transparency improvement, out of 97 markets. The strongest regional improver country in South East Europe is Turkey. By contrast, those countries at the centre of the Eurozone crisis, such as Greece and Portugal, have struggled to maintain the pace of improvement and, in some transparency components, have moved backwards.

The world’s fastest-growing direct commercial real estate investment markets over the past two years – such as Brazil, Turkey, Indonesia and Vietnam–are all among the world’s top 10 transparency improvers as well. In Turkey due to strong occupier demand, vacancy rates in the office market are decreasing, this will have a positive impact on prime rent level in the coming years.

Turkey shows the world’s greatest improvement

After a strong rise in the rankings in the 2010 Index, Turkey has maintained its progress over the past two years. The increased availability of market data and clarity in transaction processes has seen the country top the global rank of transparency improvers. 

There are now 24 listed real estate companies in Turkey, a significant increase from 2010, as well as active institutional players in the market, which has had a notably positive effect on the office sector.

Turkish Realty Sector

Here you will find hints and useful information on emerging Turkish real estate market and Turkish way of life in general. As of July 2012 some highlights on Turkish property market: 

1. Turkey’s realty sector is unlikely to follow the Spanish path because prices have not reached a point where they are grossly inflated.

In Turkey property prices have been rising by around 10% per year (Source: Hurriyet Daily News July 2012), which means that in five years we could see them rise by as much as 50% because the trend continues.



2. Another reality to remember is that the legal barrier on buying a property in Turkey as a foreign individual on reciprocity grounds has already been lifted a month ago. The law is expected to double the foreign investments in Turkey’s real estate sector. 

It has now lifted all the reciprocity protocols that barred citizens of 89 countries from owning a property in Turkey. (Turkish nationals still are not entitled to enjoy the same right in the prospective buyer’s country of origin.) 

The new law is expected to attract property investors from Russia, Gulf countries and Turkic republics to Turkey’s real estate sector.

3. The third reason Turkey is following a different path to Spain is that local authorities are careful to place strict planning restrictions on new developments. This means there are minimum distances between buildings and there are few high-rise blocks dominating the skylines of coastal resorts.

4. Property development in Turkey has accelerated to meet demand and there is evidence of this in the main Turkish holiday resorts. Unlike Spain however, this is matched by demand on the local market according to real estate sources in Turkey.

5. Healthy rental yields are the most important thing to consider when investing in property and here too there is a big difference. Rental yields in Spain are about 3% in most resorts (Source: Global Property Guide 2012) due to oversupply issues, yet in Turkey yields are 7% or higher, partly due to the relatively low price of property.

6. Finally, unlike Spain, Turkey is predicted to continue being one of the fastest growing economies amongst OECD members until 2017 with anticipated average annual growth of 6.7% while Spain can look forward to 0.3% growth in 2013 in comparison (Source: OECD 2012).