Despite all efforts, the Turkish Government is still unable to curb the rapid price hikes. Habertürk quotes statistical agencies reporting that the “official” annual rent increased by only 20%. However, the actual difference is far greater: listed apartments are now 2.5 – 3 times more expensive than a year ago, and the prices haven’t reached the upper limit yet. According to a report by the Bahcesehir University Center for Economic and Social Research (BETAM) based on prices on Sahibinden (a local web portal for purchase and sale of housing), the average value of a square meter of rental housing in Turkey grew by 182.7% according to data from May 2022 alone.
In Istanbul, rental rates surged by an average of 140% per year; in Ankara, by 133%; in Izmir, by 110%.
The indisputable champion, however, is Antalya, Turkey’s “resort capital”, to which crowds of Ukrainians and Russians flocked. Rental homes here became 329% more expensive at one go. Even though this is obviously the effects of the armed conflict, rental rates in Antalya show no signs of reducing or at least losing growth momentum.
The authorities, though, keep trying to contain the growing rental rates by imposing a 25% limit on the annual official price increase upon extending long-term contracts. The government has also doubled down on real estate agents who operate off the books.