Owning any property anywhere in the world will mean running costs. Ownership of an apartment in Turkey means you share this cost with the rest of the owners of the complex. This cost covers the maintenance of the common areas of the complex, e.g. facilities, hallways, carparks, security etc. In general, the more facilities in the complex, and the fewer the number of units, the greater the cost. So a small complex with many facilities will cost more to the individual than a large complex with hardly any facilities.

Maintenance fees

The general rule for this is a set amount per square metre. On simple complexes with no facilities this is 2TL (One lira) per square metre. So for a 100 square metre apartment, the maintenance fee will be 200 TL per month. On a complex with many facilities, this can increase to 4TL per square metre per month. On the most luxurious of complexes, expect this to be more like 5-6TL per square metre. This tends to be the very top end of the scale, with the vast majority (the median for mathematicians) is 3TL per square metre. If you intend to lease your property, then maintenance fees are paid for by the tenant, but the tax is the responsibility of the owner at all times.

Annual property tax

Turkey also has an annual property tax, paid to the local municipality. This tax is used to pay for the local amenities. This is a fixed amount, and is currently 0.2% of the declared value of the property, what is known as the “rayaç bedeli”. This value is an estimate by the local authority of the value of your property, and is in general, 60-70% of the actual value. This is paid bi annually, splitting the cost in two, but can be paid in one instalment if desired.

Insurance

It is compulsory to have a minimal insurance on your home in Turkey. This can take up three forms:

• DASK – this is a natural disaster pool, and costs around 300-400 TL per year.
• Buildings insurance – this covers a whole host of unforeseen circumstances and costs from 500TL onwards, depending on the value of the property.
• Contents insurance – you can also insure your contents, and depending on the value of your contents, can vary from 300-400TL.