Turkey’s housing sales surge 20.6 pct in March as foreigners buy more

The number of housing units sold in Turkey surged 20.6 percent year-on-year in March, thanks to more purchases by foreign buyers, according to official data released on Friday.

A total of 134,170 housing units were sold in March, up from 111,241 in the same month of last year, and by 37.5 percent compared to February, the Turkish Statistical Institute reported.

The number of mortgaged sales increased by 38.8 percent year-on-year to 30,271, accounting for 22.6 percent of all sales in March.

Sales to foreigners rose by 31 percent to 5,567 units in March, with Iranians topping the list with 784 purchases, followed by Iraqis with 741 and Russians with 547.

In March, Istanbul, Turkey’s most populous city, sold the most property units to foreigners, totalling 2,245. The southern province of Antalya and the capital Ankara came next.

The number of housing units sold to foreigners rose by 45.1 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2022.

Since 2017, the Turkish government has allowed foreigners who invest a particular amount of money in Turkey’s real estate sector to obtain Turkish citizenship. The investment threshold has lowered in value from 1 million dollars in 2017 to 250,000 dollars.

Russians and Ukrainians who flee the recent conflict between their countries have boosted housing sales in Turkey, particularly in Antalya Province.

The depreciation in the Turkish currency lira in 2021 has also made Turkey’s real estate markets more attractive for foreign investors.