An important warning has been issued to millions of landlords. Recall that in light of the explosive growth of rental rates over the past year or two, the authorities have taken control of the increase in monthly rent. A year ago, the limit of rent increases during the prolongation of annual residential real estate lease agreements was limited to a maximum of 25%. The office rental segment, by the way, was not touched, so there the annual increase grew to 60% and above.
As for housing, when renegotiating the contract for the next year, it is allowed to raise the payment to a maximum of 25%, and this rule is valid until July 1, 2023 (perhaps it will be extended later). So, it is theoretically possible to sharply raise rental rates only if the former tenant moves out - namely, when concluding a contract with a new tenant, when the owner has the right to set any price.
So, the new lease agreements have become a big surprise for many who want to rent a house. The demand for vacant apartments increased even more in the context of the earthquake in the area of Kahramanmarasa, when crowds of migrants from this and neighboring provinces poured into neighboring regions.
So, the "internal migration" intensified sharply; as a result, the Ministry of Commerce decided on a forced measure - not to limit itself to fines to those who, in the opinion of the department, demand an exorbitant monthly payment from tenants: rent increased by 50% or more, somewhere up to 100%. In light of this, the subsidy of 3,000 Turkish lira allocated by the State for the rental of housing to victims is often a purely symbolic amount.
Now homeowners renting it out have been warned that too big appetites in this sense will be prosecuted. The bill is already at the approval stage; it provides for a prison sentence of 2 to 5 years for those who excessively raise the prices of basic necessities - and these are not only products, but also rents - during earthquakes and epidemics. So too "greedy" owners risk being behind bars for years.
Also, tenants were allowed to terminate the lease agreement ahead of schedule without penalties if the building is recognized as an emergency.