While wandering around in your neighborhood or city of choice, you are likely to come across adverts and signs for both houses for rent and sale. Your local “emlakçı” (real estate agent/office) will have a various of ads listed for the property they have available. Make sure to browse around.
If you’d like to begin your search for accommodation before you arrive in the country, the internet will be your best friend.
The most used and trusted websites to find a place to rent in Turkey are sahibinden.com or hurriyetemlak.com. You’ll be able to see ads for rental places and sale from either their owners or via real estate agents.
If you are earning in a foreign currency, and especially in U.S. dollars, British pounds, or Euros, you’ll be thankful for the recent depreciation of the Turkish Lira (TL). And if you are not, whether you consider rents affordable will largely depend on the area and region you live in. For example, eastern Turkey and the midlands will be cheaper than the south or west.
Before you rent, make sure that the apartment/flat/house you are renting has a landline and cellular phone, and internet reception as their absence can mean you will be left months without these services.
You also need to inquire about mold and ask whether there is a water tank or generator for mainline cuts. Although the latter is not crucial, it could be of great importance to you if you are work remotely.
In Turkey, landlords or real estate agencies usually make 1-year contracts with their tenants. After your time is up and if the other party has not communicated any intent otherwise a month prior to the contract ends, contracts are automatically renewed
Every year, expect your rental fee to go up by the average Consumer Price Index for the previous 12 months
Read your contract carefully and make sure everything is laid out on paper. For example, if the house is full of the old tenant’s stuff, which you do not want, or you have noticed that the walls are looking run down and could benefit from paint, negotiate such maintenance and repair issues with the landlord. They could agree to get it sorted for you or get the cost dropped from your rent. No matter the problem is, make sure you communicate with the landlord or real estate agent early on to prevent it from becoming a huge problem later.
It is best to make all payments by electronic transfer to provide legal proof.
If you want to terminate your rental contract early, do so by providing at least two months’ written and notarized notice sent by the PTT postal service. If you fail to do so, the owner may make you pay for the remaining months of the contract.
As a tenant in Turkey, you’ll be expected to give the first month’s rent upfront as well as a deposit of the same amount, which will go towards any damages that might happen during your stay.
The deposit amount and through which payment channel it will be made must be listed in your rental contract.
If you haven’t trashed the place and you made sure to note anything that looked suspicious in your rental contract before signing it, you’re more than likely to get the deposit paid back in full when you move out.
You will also have to pay the real estate agent if you have not directly rented from the owner, which is about 10% of the annual rent, including value-added tax (VAT).
All in all, you’ll need roughly 3-months’ worth of rent if you want to sign a rental contract in Turkey.
Some residences, such as apartment complexes or villas, come with an “aidat,” aka a monthly maintenance fee that goes toward elevator repairs, pool cleaning, gardening fees, etc. Make sure to discuss this prior to signing your contract.
Knowing your rights and responsibilities as a tenant or landlord is crucial to avoid headaches later on.
Current laws and regulations lean more in favor of the tenant which makes it harder for landlords to evict tenants.
Most rental agreements in Turkey are carried out via real estate agents, which means you won’t have to worry about drawing one up. Although the Turkish Law of Obligations doesn’t mandate written contracts, you should refrain from relying on verbal agreements.
Tenancy Agreement (also known as a Rental Contract or Rental Agreement) is an agreement that establishes the terms between the tenant and the landlord.
This contract binds the tenants and property owners mutually and may only be dissolved mutually.
If the parties cannot agree on anything between themselves, they may resort to resolving the dispute in court.
The landlord does not have the right to evict the tenant before the lease expires.
Unless the landlord sends a notice to the tenant one month before the contract expires, that the apartment is required for personal use, the contract is automatically renewed.
Tenant’s rights without a contract are also determined according to the Turkish Code of Obligations, even if no rental agreement has been made in the first place.
It is very important for the tenant to carefully go through the tenancy agreement with the landlord to prevent future disputes.
The landlord cannot evict the tenant without any justification until the agreement expires.
If there are defects on the property and it is adversely affecting the tenant’s use of the house, he has the right to request the landlord to correct these defects. If the landlord does not comply, then the tenant can request a reduction in the rent.
If the tenant agrees with the landlord in writing, he can move out of the house earlier based on the notice period it was agreed upon between the 2 parties. > : Apart from the rights that the tenant has, there are also some obligations that he has towards the landlord.
If there is any dispute with the landlord, the tenants can open a case in the Magistrates’ Court.
The landlord is responsible for making the necessary renovations to his property and cannot demand payment from the tenant for those renovations.
Expenses related to the property’s insurance and taxes are borne by the landlord himself or herself unless otherwise agreed in the contract.
If the landlord receives the house from the tenant in the same condition as he first gave it to the tenant, he is obliged to return the tenant’s initial deposit.
The maximum rate of increase that the landlord can make to the rent is specified in the Code of Obligations of Turkey.
If the rental price increase is not specifically stated in the contract, the increase amount should not exceed Turkey’s CPI Rate’s (i.e. consumer price index rate’s) 12-month average of the previous year.
Note: This maximum rate is fixed to 25% until July 2023 > : After the completion of 10 years, the tenancy agreement can be terminated by the landlord by giving a warning 3 months before each extension year. In this case, the landlord can evict the tenant unconditionally without giving any reason.
When entering a residential agreement for the first time, parties can agree upon the amount of rent freely.
The rent can be increased when the first rental term is concluded and the agreement is renewed for another term (which happens automatically) and not sooner.
As per the Article 344 of the Law of Obligations No. 6098 (“Law of Obligation”), the agreement between parties with regard to increase in rent in a renewed rental period is valid so long as the increase does not exceed the previous 12-month average CPI or “TÜFE” in Turkish. Refer: https://www.tuik.gov.tr)
It is illegal for a landlord the increase the rent by anything more.
If the rental price is agreed upon in foreign currency (e.g. USD) in the agreement, it cannot be changed before five years have passed.
If the landlord notifies you that they unilaterally increased the rental price before the renewal period or to an illegal degree, this notification will have no legal effect.
Tenants can still continue to pay their rent as per their agreement, or if the agreement is renewed, the increased legal amount as per CPI (or 25% for the capped amount until July 2023).
It might be useful to know (in case the landlord threatens with eviction) that the landlord cannot evict the tenant because the tenant refuses to pay an illegal rent increase, even if the term of the rental agreement is concluded.
As per the Article 345 of the Law of Obligations, a lawsuit to determine rental price can be commenced at any time but the lawsuit will only affect current rental period if the lawsuit is filed before (at least) 30 days of the renewal date or if the landlord notifies the tenant in writing that the rent will be increased within that period.
The judge may determine the rental price by taking into consideration the state of the rented property, in compliance with equity and fairness provided that this increase does not exceed the CPI, if the rental period has not exceeded five years.
While the 25% limit legislation is in effect, the judge cannot decide on an increase above 25%.
Agency fee: If you are renting via a real estate agency, they will ask for 12% of the annual rent cost as a service fee.
Deposit: As a tenant, you will be asked to pay a month or maximum of 3 months’ worth of rent upfront to cover damage to the property or unpaid utility bills and rent. You will be reimbursed the full amount or with deductions depending on the state of the property.
Notary fees: Although you aren’t required to have your rental contract notarized by law, some people decide to seek official registration as a legal means of protection. As long as both parties and two witnesses sign the contract and the date is present, you’ll be bound by the term stated in the agreement.
Stamp tax: If you get your contract notarized, you will also have to pay 0.189% of the annual rental cost as stamp tax.
Visit the offices of each utility company
And you’ll need to take:
Landlords are required to obtain permits from the authorities for rentals shorter than 100 days.
The owners are required to get the consent of all building residents, pay a fee and display a government-issued notice on their doors before they can rent their flats on platforms like Airbnb, according to the new regulation
Refer:
Official Gazette: Thursday 2 November 2023
https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2023/11/20231102-16.htm
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