Turkey's seismic activity: don't be afraid to buy a home here

Content:

• What is the overall situation?
• Where are the strongest earthquakes in Turkey?
• How strong are the tremors, and what is the government doing to prevent them?
• We will help you choose housing in Turkey

What is the overall situation?

Real estate in Turkey has many investment advantages. But it's no secret that the country occasionally experiences seismic activity. However, this is not the only country where earthquakes occur frequently. And due to the fact that this phenomenon is regular in the country, building codes are regularly reviewed and tightened, and you have to choose your place of residence very carefully. The recent earthquake once again reminded us of this situation in Izmir in October 2020, when many buildings were destroyed, and the earthquakes in Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Malatya, Gaziantep and Adiyaman on February 6, 2023. However, after these incidents, studies have shown that those houses either were already in a terrible state of disrepair or did not meet the requirements and local building codes. This means that they were built with violations.

This event significantly affected customer preferences. After the earthquake in Izmir, the regional Department of Environment and Urban Planning carried out an extensive work after the earthquake and carefully examined the condition of 215,000 buildings in the city. As a result, the construction of seven dozen new buildings is underway here to replace the destroyed ones. Another 133 affected houses were demolished. The work on strengthening the foundation and improving the surrounding area affected several hundred residential buildings.

During the earthquake of 2023, 118,000 buildings were destroyed, mostly old ones built with violations. After the accident, the requirements for real estate and building codes in Turkey have become much more stringent. The houses of new residential complexes are built to strict standards, so the buildings are earthquake-resistant.

Where are the strongest earthquakes in Turkey?

More vulnerable regions in Turkey are Istanbul and its surroundings, as well as the Aegean coast.

The Mediterranean coast among the resort areas (in particular, Alanya, especially the village of Mahmutlar), part of the Black Sea coast (in the area of Trabzon) and the continental part of the country (Ankara, Sivas, Aksaray, Konya, Eskişehir, etc) are considered medium risk zones.

We recommend requesting a land fault map to get more detailed information about it.

How strong are the tremors, and what is the government doing to prevent them?

Most often, earthquakes are not so strong: often tremors are generally invisible. Sometimes the dishes clink and the chandeliers swing. Some residents describe the earthquakes as a moment of vertigo. But seismic activity in Turkey is monitored around the clock: observation stations are in charge of this natural phenomenon. If potentially dangerous residential buildings are found here, they are either reinforced or resettled.

In general, the requirements for developers have become much more serious. We are talking about the quality of building construction work. For many years, the requirements and anti-seismic construction rules have been relevant in Turkey: buildings must be constructed to withstand quakes of 7.5 points on the Richter scale. When putting the house into operation, all these standards are always checked.

The country's leadership pays great attention to the safety of living in houses in Turkey. After all, the real estate sale in Turkey is one of the most important income items for the Republic. They are especially careful when looking for new and more successful architectural solutions, competent advice, high-quality building materials, technologies (meaning the transition to more earthquake-resistant structures), etc.

Emphasizing the need to create a reliable control mechanism for the construction of earthquake-resistant, safe and high-quality buildings, the Chairman of IMSAD (Türkiye Inşaat Malzemesi Sanayicileri Derneği – Association of Construction Materials Manufacturers of Turkey), Tayfun Küçükoğlu states: ‘We divide buildings into three key categories. And to speed up the seismic transformation of cities, all houses need to be classified and divided into three groups: those that absolutely need to be demolished, those that can be upgraded and, finally, and those buildings without the earthquake risk. In addition to demolition and reconstruction, another solution is possible: modernisation and reconstruction, which is already used in the EU countries, and is quite applicable in Turkey.’

We will help you choose housing in Turkey

You can find a suitable option for an apartment in new buildings in Turkey right now on our website. The best offers from Turkish developers, trusted agencies and private sellers are at your service. Having your own housing will allow you to obtain a residence permit in the country, which gives many advantages. Start your property search in Turkey right away!