In the first 11-month period of 2019, home sales to foreigners in Turkey reached its highest level to 40,616 with a 32 percent increase, in history. This figure is expected to exceed 45 thousand by the end of the year. Istanbul was the province with the most residential sales to foreigners, followed by Antalya, while buyers from Iraq, Iran and Russia took the top three places.
While the number of residential sales to foreigners in the first 11-month period of previous years was between 10-20 thousand units, this figure went up to 39,663 in 2018. The same figure was recorded as 40,600 and over in first 11 months of 2019 based on figures shared by Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat). The same figure is expected to go up to 45,000 and over by the end of December which would correspond to an increase of 32 percent compared to 2018.
In first 11 months, Istanbul took the first place with 18,207 homes corresponding to an increase of 50 percent compared to previous year, among top cities with most sales to foreigners followed by Antalya with 7,994 units sold. These figures are expected to go up to 20,000 and 9-10,000 respectively by the end of the year. Total sales in both Istanbul and Antalya and Turkey are expected to reach the highest number in history, breaking a record.
Buyers from Iraq took the first place with 6,699 followed by Iranians with 4,660 and Russians with 2,531. It is observed that while the citizens of Middle Eastern countries such as Iraq and Iran prefer Bursa, Yalova, Istanbul and Ankara regions, Russian, German and UK citizens prefer coastal cities such as Antalya and Mugla and alike.
On the other hand a general observation is foreigners prefer cities where transportation is more convenient, where there are more flights and where there is economical commuting. And security sites in such provinces with proximity to the city center and airport seem to be of preference.
