Turkey which has had quite a stable economy for many years has faced a number of political, economic and financial crises in recent years and is now coping with the decline in the value of Turkish lira, its local currency. Although this most recent crisis in lira has turned out to be a nightmare for the economy and the administration led by President ERDOĞAN consequently, it has also brought along some great opportunities for people who prefer to invest their monies in real estate and especially those who would like to have a house in Turkey.
Talking about those investors who would prefer Turkey as the country they would like to have a house in, one can easily see Arabs from GCC states (Gulf Cooperation Council) are at the top of the list for the simple reason they feel an affinity towards Turkey as a Muslim country offering a cultural environment they would not have problems adapting to.
Indeed, Mr. Tolga ERTUKEL, director of TURKEY HOMES one of the most reputable and fastest growing companies in Turkey’s property sector comments that looking at the figures recorded and shared by Turkey’s official statistics establishments, one can see the substantial increase in demand for Turkish property from Gulf countries, despite the sharp fall in lira. ERTUKEL says it could almost be described as a “buying madness” for the flats in Istanbul, in specific.
When one considers the lira has suffered a devaluation of approximately 40 percent against US dollar since January 2018, it is no surprise that property investors rush to take advantage of the situation in spite of concerns that Turkey’s economy could be more fragile than expected.
Mr. ERTUKEL says “We can observe this situation, judging on our closed deals as well as inquiries and the huge increase in number of visitors to our web page”.
He goes on to say “The interesting point about the demand thus reflected by potential buyers from the Gulf region is that it does not have to do with profits only but an element of emotional attachment is also in question, as referred buyers from the region are well aware they would feel at home in Turkey as a Muslim country with plenty of cultural similarities. And the good news for those who prefer to invest in Turkish properties now is that despite the decline in Turkish lira, properties in the short or medium term will not lose value and on the contrary they would certainly add on their values in terms of TL. Therefore a potential loss in value due to weakening TL would normally not be in question. Therefore I also believe it could be the right time to purchase property in Turkey.”
