Purchasing Property in Fethiye Turkey

Restrictions: The purchase of Real Estate by foreign nationals is allowed, based on the existence of “mutuality” between the two countries, however there are certain restrictions imposed on locations.

In general they are: Foreign Nationals may not acquire properties within military zones and restrictid areas. However maximum 30 hectare land can be owned by foreigners country wide, and maximum 10% of district surface area. The law states that you may not buy property if it is within a particular distance of military sites, or strategically important areas and protected areas. 
This law covers many sites along the coastline. Consequently it is essential to for checks to be made with the military authorities to ascertain if any particular site is affected.

General: In the first instance one has to apply to the local land registry office and they will carry out all the local searches and checks, after which if satisfactory, they will assign the deeds to the new owner. A Solicitor or ‘Notary’ is not required under Turkish law, however for peace of mind we recommend that you use one, and to this end, we have a list of ‘Bi-Lingual Solicitors’ that we can supply you with.

In registering a property both parties must be present at the signing (it is possible to have granted the power of attorney to a third person). On completion, the land registry office issues a ‘tapu’ (deeds), as proof of ownership.

It is essential when purchasing a property to make sure that the seller is legally entitled to sell the property (e.g. a person who obtains the property by inheritance, execution of debts, or judicial decision actually becomes the legal owner before the ownership title is transferred. Hence the registry may not reflect the actual legal owner.

When you purchase a property, there is a stamp duty to be paid, 2%. This is paid both by the buyer and seller. Very often the seller will insist that the buyer pay the owner’s half as part of the deal. This is of course negotiable prior to the signing.

One must also take into account that there is an annual property tax collected by local government currently levied at 0.3% on private dwellings.

It is important to note that the acquired property may be re-sold or rented and that the proceeds may be transferred abroad. (Different regulations apply when buying property for business purposes)

Residence applications may be denied if you have been convicted of a ‘Serious Offence’.

TLOS Property Real Estate Agency Fethiye Turkey

Why are we here? Property can be bought and sold very quickly here, but regulations and laws might change just as quickly, and it is therefore very important to be aware of the current legal position.

Our staff is bi-lingual, we are aware of the local trends in the housing market, and are familiar with local zoning, and tax laws.

Our aim is to assist in the purchase of properties in Fethiye and to help you avoid the various pit-falls that unfortunately exist when you are unaware of Turkish laws and practices.

What we do :
- We ascertain that there are no existing debts on the property
- We check that the property belongs to the vendor
- Is there an outstanding mortgage or long term contract listed with the local authorities
- Is the property located within the boundaries of a municipality (That is an essential condition for non-nationals wishing to buy.

What does all this mean? At the onset of the purchase you will require a notary, interpreter. This is all to start conveying the deeds into a foreign citizens name. The cost should be approx …………

At the time of the purchase both the vendor and the purchaser pay totaly 4% tax on the official purchase price and as the buyer, you also pay approx. 1.500 TL valuation expences and documentation fees.

When this is completed there is ıt used to be a waiting period of about 3 months during which time there is an enquiry as to whether the property is in a military zone and other checkes but today sale can be completed in one or two days.
When the all documents ready and taxes paid title deed transfering completion can be achieved within one day. For the completion an official interpreter must accompany you.

You must register with the local municipality within 4 weeks of completion where you will have to pay 0.2% of the declared value (the annual taxation).

There is also compulsory eartquake property insurance DASK to obtain, this is about aprox. 200 TL

If this all seems a little complicated well we agree with you, it did to us initially, but we deal with it on a daily basis and know our way around.

Here at TLOS Property Real Estate Agency we look after all the paper work, do all the enquiries, arrange all the relevant meetings and in general look after our customers so that all they have to do is the actual signing of the documents. We have a wealth of experience at our disposal and can advise on most aspects of house purchase.

We can arrange for Bank accounts to be opened in your name/s. Obtain quotes for insurances, which are not compulsory but are recommended for floods, fire, earthquake etc.

All this and a lot more, in fact we say that we look after our customers before, during and after purchase.

We charge 2% +VAT agents fees for finding the right property and transfering prosses the title deed, including property valuation.

You may like to know:

In Turkey according to law you do have to be licensed to sell property in an established office as an agent or construction company. Consequently everyone tries to sell homes to foreigners, you will find friendly bar staff and waiters and shoe-shine boys all inviting you to view their uncle/sisters/brothers/friends house, very cheap, and doing the legal work is not always their priority.