The Russians, who moved to Turkey, “tightened up” Turkish hotels and those had to sound the alarm. According to their statements in the Turkish press, such Russians “teamed up” with the British, competing with hotel accommodation: they invite compatriots to stay in their own or rented accommodation, most often for “gray cash”, thereby taking clients away from the hotels. As a result, everything may end up with a total ban on this type of activity, especially since only at the beginning of this year in Turkey the idea of a ban on foreigners, including Russians, from owning real estate was actively discussed.
According to the Turkish press, Russians who have bought houses – especially in resorts – are actively renting it out when they are not using it. Hakan Saatchioglu, Vice President of the Association of Professional Hotel Managers (POYD), said that the number of tourists coming to Antalya has increased, but this is not reflected in the hotels. According to him, only last year, 22,000 houses were sold to foreigners – among whom Russians are in the first place – in Antalya. “Russians and other foreigners often host their relatives and friends in these houses, including to earn money,” the entrepreneur added.
As a result, he assures, the situation is such that, according to official statistics, the most frequent tourists in Antalya are Russians. But hotels do not see this. “By renting premises, local Russians create an illegal source of income for themselves. At the same time, those who rent out their housing compete with hotels, hostels and other enterprises,” the Turks complained.
As a result, there is a risk that the issue of a ban on the sale of housing to foreigners, especially in resorts, will again appear on the agenda – we recall that it was already actively discussed in January. Then the experts presented the following data – for 2022, the share of home sales to foreigners in Turkey in total home sales is about 5%, but this “average number” is unevenly distributed. In Antalya and parts of Istanbul such as Kadikoy, Besiktas and Esenyurt, sales to foreigners account for 10-15% of total home sales.
At the same time, the construction business opposed the ban. The general manager of Mars Investment, engaged in luxury real estate, Hakan Budjak said the following: “If the Canadian model is implemented in our country, there may be a decrease in sales of branded housing projects. This means the end of the annual inflow of foreign exchange in the amount of 10-15 billion dollars.”
He was opposed by the general manager of Eva Real Estate, Cansel Turgut Yazici, who said that Turkey needs measures to ban sales to foreigners for a certain period of time — Canada introduced this ban for two years, and this, in his opinion, is “an exemplary move.” “We need to take a break, and the closure of megacities and border areas such as Antalya and Istanbul is important. Because and foreigners begin to dominate, which disrupts the demographic structure of the city.” Read more here.
For those who care about a healthy lifestyle, we recommend reading: “Russians were told why it is dangerous to buy watermelons in July.”