Buying property in Turkey is a straightforward process and can be illustrated in a few simple steps.
Choosing the property
After hours of searching the internet and after seeing the property during your viewing trip to Turkey you select a property that you want to buy. Sometimes it may be necessary to put down a small deposit (between £1,000 and £3,000) to reserve the property for you while you are organising your viewing trip.
Drawing a sales contract
Usually at the end of your viewing trip during a meeting between the buyer, seller and the lawyer a sales contract is being prepared. The contract will be both in Turkish and English and contain details of the property you are buying, deposit you are paying, payment plan (in case of an off-plan property) and any other relevant issues. You can sign the contract if everything is clear; however, you may take the contract back home with you and have it checked by an independent property lawyer before signing it.
Military clearance
An application together with a copy of your passport and 2 passport sized photographs will then be sent to the Land Registry Office. They will run relevant checks on the property and contact a military office in Izmir to ensure that the property is not in a military zone. This process usually takes 2 – 3 months.
Title Deed exchange
The final step is transfer of the ‘TAPU’ Title Deed into your name. When all relevant checks have been made and the documents are received from the military office there will be a meeting at the Land Registry Office. All parties have to be present: the buyer, seller, estate agent and a certified translator. At this stage any outstanding balance has to be paid together with other fees and taxes.
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