We have long wanted to buy an apartment in Turkey for recreation and work, but we constantly lacked money. We tried to take out a mortgage and we succeeded. Today we are the owners of a small apartment in sunny Alanya, in the Mahmutlar district. I share my experience.
How did you come to the idea of buying an apartment “on loan”
Thoughts about buying an apartment in Turkey have been haunting me for a long time: I like this country, I’m used to it, probably because we rest here often. My family is also impressed, not only my wife and daughter, but also my parents, mother-in-law and father-in-law.
In addition, I am to some extent a cosmopolitan, I do not believe that a person should be tied to his homeland all his life, I have always wanted to have several houses in different parts of the globe. And although my desires are limited by financial possibilities so far, however, I am still quite young (I am 30 years old) and I hope that everything is ahead of me.
Another point is that my wife is connected with the tourism business and has been living in Turkey for the last 2 years “in season”, in a rented apartment with several other employees, which, firstly, is very inconvenient and, secondly, I had to pay a decent amount for rent. I’m a “freelance artist”, I don’t care, I work with customers remotely, so I’m not tied to the area.
In 2020, my dreams finally began to come true, and I had the opportunity to buy a house in Turkey on loan. To be honest, I did not think that this was possible, as it turned out, in vain — Turkey willingly distributes real estate on credit to foreigners. I’m telling you in more detail.
Turkish program
The desire to buy an apartment intensified in 2020, when I wanted to quarantine not in a cramped apartment, but walking every day on the shore of the warm sea. In addition, the Turkish government promised preferential mortgage rates. But I thought it was for everyone, but I was wrong — all this concerned only Turkish citizens. Other tariffs were in effect for foreigners.
However, the process of making wishes come true had already been launched, in addition, the mortgage was cheaper for Russians here than in their own country. My parents also said that they would participate in the purchase, so we did not stop and started looking for a suitable apartment, while the rest stayed at home and did not even want to think about abroad.
What kind of apartment were you looking for
They were looking for an apartment in Alanya, the most “Russian” region of Turkey, and my wife also works here in the summer. A good option turned up in Mahmutlar. We rested here: the area is cozy, bright, with palm trees and mountains, as from the picture. We did not need mansions, it was enough to have a two-room apartment and to have the sea nearby, but not on the first line (in winter the dampness is great). Well, with the possibility of lending, we were looking for housing.
How to buy
We looked at and chose real estate online, this form became widespread even before the pandemic, and at its height it became even more popular. We cooperated with a Turkish agency that had a representative in Russia: it is not difficult to find such an intermediary today. We issued a power of attorney to a realtor, he selected our housing, made a deal with the seller and was engaged in mortgage registration at the bank. That is, without ever leaving the In Russia, we were able to buy a house in Turkey at the height of the pandemic.
Many people ask the question — couldn’t you wait until the borders were opened? I answer — they could, but then they would have paid more: because of the preferential mortgage program, their prices crept up. I don’t know how things are this year, but real estate prices have grown well in the past, and since we bought an apartment at the beginning of the pandemic, we were able to win.
What kind of apartment is this
We bought an apartment in Mahmutlar in a modern residential complex on the 6th floor. Layout 1+1 (bedroom + kitchen combined with living room), bathroom, large balcony. Fully equipped with furniture and appliances. Everything is in a modern style, including renovation.
The residential complex itself has a developed infrastructure, there is a sauna, gym, swimming pool, tennis table. Security is working around the clock, order and cleanliness are monitored by the caretaker.
The price of the issue
The apartment itself cost € 44,000, plus additional expenses related to taxes, insurance, and mortgage registration. I’ll go into a few more details.
I had to pay a tax on the purchase of real estate in the amount of 1200 €, 300 € was paid for the cadastral fee and the services of a state translator, 130 € for the registration of a notarized power of attorney. They also paid € 30 for earthquake insurance and € 150 for the renewal of utilities.
Since the apartment was bought on credit, the costs of expertise, insurance, and bank commission were additionally added — this is about 800 euros more. The realtor was paid 1300 €. Thus, in the end, the apartment cost us about 48,000 euros.
Mortgage
I will tell you briefly about mortgage conditions. We took out a loan in euros, at 5.8% per annum for 5 years: the initial payment was half of the cost of the apartment, we pay the rest in equal installments, plus interest on the remaining amount. So far, it turns out a little less than 500 € per month, then it will be less.
That is, if in the very first month we paid a percentage of 22 thousand. €, which is about 106 €, then in the second month we already paid interest on the amount of 21633 €, which is 104 € and so on, the percentage will decrease every month. The loan body itself is divided into equal parts for 5 years, which turns out to be 22,000:60 = 367 €.
In total, the total payment with interest for the first month was 473 €, in the second month 471 €, etc. There is a clause in the contract on early repayment of the debt without penalties, this suits us, we hope to pay off earlier.
They took the apartment for two families: their own and my parents’. The mother-in-law and father-in-law have limited funds, so they did not participate in the purchase, but they also come to rest. We allocate time in advance, who arrives and when, so as not to interfere. We all got together once, but the apartment is small, so it was not very comfortable. My wife took time out this year, so she didn’t work.
Well, in general, everything suits us so far, in the future we dream of coming for at least a year and living in Turkey “without leaving.” After all, the climate here is not comparable to ours, Vologda, besides the sea is nearby, the colors are brighter – this is important for us. So it is quite possible to buy an apartment with a mortgage in a foreign country, and often at more favorable rates than in your native country.
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