EVA Real Estate Appraisal has analysed the real estate investments made by foreign buyers in Turkey over the last two years, based on the data collected on the top 10 ‘buyer’ countries and the 10 most popular provinces. Estimating the volumes based on all transactions made, the experts found that investments in the first nine months of 2024 decreased compared to the same period of the previous year.
Namely, there was a 65% reduction in the size of properties (the number of square metres acquired by foreigners) and a 37% reduction in the number of transactions per se.
In comparison, the total volume of property acquisitions by foreigners, which totalled 3,513,288 square metres in the first nine months of 2023, was 1,224,656 square metres in the same period of 2024.
According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), 17,090 residences were sold to foreign nationals at the end of the third quarter of 2024. The share of transactions with foreign buyers in the total volume at the end of the first nine months of 2023 was 3.4% in 2024; however, the figure fell to 1.8% later that year.
Content:
- Buying countries
- 2022 comparative overview
- Overall
- 2023 comparative overview
- Overall
- 2024 comparative overview
- Overall
- Total for 3 quarters
- Popular provinces
- Comparative overview: first 9 months of 2022
- Comparative overview: first 9 months of 2023
- Comparative overview: first 9 months of 2024
- Istanbul in figures. Preferred neighbourhoods
Buying countries
Germany ranks first in terms of purchased real estate area, while Iran ranks first in terms of the number of purchased housing units. Moreover, Iran has been leading in this respect for almost two years, every month without exception.
Let's consider all foreign investments in real estate in Turkey by the volume of purchased area at the end of three quarters of 2024. As mentioned, Germany is the ‘gold medallist’ for purchasing, with Saudi Arabia in ‘silver’, and the United States ‘won the bronze'. Iraq, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and China are also in the top 10.
Ukraine, Germany, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia, China, and the USA were the top 10 countries in terms of the number of deals after Iran.
Dynamics for the last three years, in comparison:
2022 comparative overview
| 2022 (January–September), top 10 countries by volume | Area (square metres) | Number of purchased housing units |
|---|---|---|
| Iran | 155,880 | 7,351 |
| Iraq | 322,090 | 5,543 |
| Germany | 218,563 | 2,451 |
| Afghanistan | 232,059 | 2,002 |
| Kazakhstan | 29,141 | 1,984 |
| Ukraine | 16,668 | 1,807 |
| Kuwait | 247,595 | 1,495 |
| USA | 276,673 | 1,261 |
| Yemen | 279,442 | 1,255 |
Overall
| Total | 6,335,192 | 56,610 |
| Gulf countries | 1,518,541 | 16,019 |
| Gulf countries' share of total investment | 24% | 28% |
2023 comparative overview
| 2023 (January–September), top 10 countries by volume | Area (square metres) | Number of housing units purchased |
|---|---|---|
| Iran | 65,599 | 4,128 |
| Iraq | 95,675 | 1,761 |
| Ukraine | 20,408 | 1,428 |
| Germany | 148,784 | 1,370 |
| Kazakhstan | 18,789 | 1,136 |
| Kuwait | 101,260 | 871 |
| Saudi Arabia | 214,905 | 847 |
| Azerbaijan | 34,422 | 763 |
| USA | 63,067 | 655 |
Overall
| Total | 3,513,288 | 32,078 |
| Gulf countries | 873,283 | 8,124 |
| Gulf countries share in total investments | 25% | 25% |
2024 comparative overview
| 2024 (January–September), first 10 countries by volume | Area (square metres) | Number of housing units purchased |
|---|---|---|
| Iran | 16,719 | 1,860 |
| Ukraine | 5,028 | 1,230 |
| Germany | 203,967 | 1,201 |
| Iraq | 33,818 | 1,056 |
| Kazakhstan | 5,181 | 814 |
| Azerbaijan | 17,761 | 771 |
| Saudi Arabia | 101,977 | 571 |
| China | 1,206 | 548 |
| USA | 63,713 | 526 |
Overall
| Total | 1,224,656 | 20,522 |
| Gulf countries | 274,302 | 4,360 |
| Gulf countries share in total investment | 22% | 22% |
Total for 3 quarters
| Period | Area (square metres) | Number of housing units acquired |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 (first 9 months) | 3,513,288 | 32,078 |
| 2024 (first 9 months) | 1,224,656 | 20,522 |
| Dynamics | -65% | -37% |
As can be seen from the tables above, when comparing the first nine months of 2022 and 2023, the foreign transaction volume in Turkey fell by about 42% in terms of number of transactions. Thereafter, by another 37% when comparing the first half of 2023 to 2024. However, let's look at the top 10 countries that favour Turkey. We notice that Iran has reduced its ‘participation’ in property acquisition the most, despite still maintaining its leadership in terms of the number of transactions. The number of sale and purchase agreements concluded with Iranian citizens in 2024 decreased by 60% in three quarters compared to 2023 (same period). This is largely explained by the tightening of obtaining residence permits, both tourist and TAPU permits, and ‘closed’ neighbourhoods. Over the past year, the demand for property abroad by Iranian citizens has decreased by about 25%, not only in Turkey but also in the UAE.
Experts give several explanations. In addition to raising the threshold of the minimum value of residential property for obtaining a residence permit under TAPU to USD 200,000 and ‘closing’ a number of areas preferred by Iranians, the significant factors that affected the volume of purchase transactions were the depreciation of the national currency and difficulties encountered in working with foreign payment systems, including transferring money to Turkey.
Popular provinces
Throughout 2024, Istanbul, Antalya, and Mersin were among the top three provinces in terms of transactions with foreigners, with the only difference being that Antalya and Istanbul took first place in different months. We explained the advantages and disadvantages of all three mentioned areas in the previous article.
In terms of area, Istanbul was the most preferred province for foreigners in the first three quarters of 2024. It is followed by Mersin, Antalya, Bursa, Yalova, Mugla, Kocaeli, Aydın, Ankara and Izmir.
If we look at the maximum of concluded deals, Istanbul also remains the leader. However, the distribution of places in the top 10 is slightly different with Antalya, Mersin, Ankara, Bursa, Yalova, Aydın, Muğla, Kocaeli and Izmir, respectively.
Comparative overview: first 9 months of 2022
| Province | Area (square metres) | Number of housing units purchased |
|---|---|---|
| Istanbul | 685,645 | 23,342 |
| Antalya | 362,828 | 15,026 |
| Mersin | 159,223 | 2,596 |
| Ankara | 126,390 | 2,462 |
| Bursa | 260,841 | 1,796 |
| Yalova | 171,447 | 1,685 |
| Izmir | 63,393 | 1,113 |
| Sakarya | 348,436 | 1,057 |
| Mugla | 162,144 | 950 |
| Kocaeli | 273,577 | 890 |
| Total for the country (including the provinces mentioned above) | 6,335,192 | 56,610 |
Comparative overview: first 9 months of 2023
| Province | Area (square metres) | Number of housing units purchased |
|---|---|---|
| Istanbul | 440,169 | 11,075 |
| Antalya | 168,632 | 10,726 |
| Mersin | 286,676 | 2,284 |
| Yalova | 137,146 | 1,022 |
| Bursa | 104,900 | 958 |
| Ankara | 21,908 | 933 |
| Izmir | 13,464 | 709 |
| Mugla | 59,391 | 633 |
| Trabzon | 41,742 | 548 |
| Kocaeli | 101,449 | 523 |
| Total for the country (including the provinces mentioned above) | 3,513,288 | 32,708 |
Comparative overview: first 9 months of 2024
| Province | Area (square metres) | Number of housing units purchased |
|---|---|---|
| Istanbul | 84,267 | 7,459 |
| Antalya | 63,084 | 6,562 |
| Mersin | 74,171 | 1,673 |
| Ankara | 16,818 | 562 |
| Bursa | 51,890 | 537 |
| Yalova | 50,298 | 492 |
| Aydın | 20,066 | 413 |
| Mugla | 36,223 | 400 |
| Kocaeli | 27,020 | 375 |
| Izmir | 14,455 | 371 |
| Total for the country (including the provinces mentioned above) | 1,224,656 | 20,522 |
Istanbul in figures. Preferred neighbourhoods
According to data from the Foreign Affairs Department of the Turkish Land Registry, in the first nine months of 2024, property sales made to foreigners in Istanbul decreased by 81% in the number of square metres compared to the same period in 2023 (from 440,169 square metres to 84,267 square metres).
The total area purchased also fell almost threefold: from 3,513,288 square metres to 1,224,656 square metres.
As for the preferences of citizens of other states, it became known that Iran has the first place in terms of total investment. It is followed by China, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Egypt, and the United States.
The number of properties sold decreased by 33% (to 7,459 housing units) in the same period in 2023.
The areas for property acquisition in Istanbul that foreigners prefer the most are Esenyurt, Beylikdüzü and Başakşehir. Küçükçekmece, Bağcılar, Büyükçekmece, Avcılar, Kığıthane, Şişli, and Zeytinburnu are also in the top 10 for foreign investors.