Sales of Turkish property are up 17.8% according to latest statistics – so is the housing market in Turkey still struggling?
The figures released by the Turkish Statistical Institute showed 108,918 property units were sold last month, up 17.8% on the previous year. Out of these over 38% were via mortgages meaning there has been a huge 46.7% rise in homeowners taking out loans over the past twelve months, most probably due to lenders offering favourable interest rates.
House sales to foreigners down by 27.8%
On the flip side, Turkish property sales to foreigners remain slow with just 1,276 units sold. This 27.8% decrease on September 2015 indicates that many foreign investors are still hesitant due to the countries geopolitical and economic struggles. Those that did buy showed a preference towards Antalya with 359 units sold, Istanbul with 323 and Bursa with 82. Iraqi citizens purchased the most Turkish property now owning 230 more homes, Saudis 140, Russians 99 and the Brits 84 property purchases in September.
Selling your Turkish property? Keep the shift in market in mind.
“These figures support our findings here in Fethiye”, says Hulya Akbay of Oceanwide Properties. “It would be unrealistic to think that the countries problems has not had an impact on the property market along the coast.”
“Tourism suffered considerably in 2016 and many foreign investors were, and still are, hesitant to consider a home purchase in Turkey. This does not mean that the housing market isn’t buoyant though – quite the contrary. Oceanwide Properties have had a good year so far largely due to the rise in sales to Turks looking to move into the area, and a growth in sales and interest from Arabs. Fethiye has developed into a very desirable location and is attracting a lot of investment attention. Over the past year almost 70% of our sales has been to Turks, a big change if you consider our main market was British just two years ago. We market our properties heavily abroad and do still receive a steady stream of enquiries from Brits and Europeans, but the numbers are considerably down on previous years. I would urge foreigners looking to sell their Turkish property to keep in mind this market shift. If you are looking to sell in the current climate you need to not only appeal to Brits, but also to the locals. Be sure to be realistic with your valuation and market your property accordingly”.
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