The language of buying in Turkey

Ada and parsel are the block and plot identifiers used by the land registry and municipality to locate the legal parcel.

They identify land, not a residence. Matching them across Tapu, zoning and permit records helps confirm that the marketed project is the legal parcel being sold.

Tapu(title deed)İmar Durumu(zoning status)Yapı Ruhsatı(building permit)Protected or Borrowed Sea View: Istanbul due diligence →

A bağımsız bölüm is one legally separate section of a building (an apartment, a shop or an office), registered as its own entry on the title register.

It is the section the law counts, not the one a buyer counts. A project that publishes 5,000 bağımsız bölüm is stating how many separately deeded sections its permit covers, and that figure takes in the shops and the offices alongside the residences.

So the number is accurate and it is not a residence total. Where a developer publishes only this figure, we carry it under its own name rather than presenting it as a count of residences it was never measuring.

Your Tapu is issued against one bağımsız bölüm, identified by its block, floor and number. That is the section that matters at the Land Registry, whatever the brochure calls it.

Tapu(title deed)Kat Mülkiyeti(condominium ownership)Kat İrtifakı(construction servitude)

BREEAM is an independent sustainability certification used to evidence a building's environmental design and performance claims.

For a buyer it turns a green claim into something that can be checked. Confirm the rating, certificate scope and project phase before treating it as a project-wide fact.

GYO(Gayrimenkul Yatırım Ortaklığı · real-estate investment trust)Yapı Ruhsatı(building permit)

Cins tashihi is the registry correction that updates the recorded property type after construction or use status changes.

It matters when land, an unfinished structure or another recorded type becomes a completed independent section. Confirm the record before relying on a title description.

Tapu(title deed)Kat Mülkiyeti(condominium ownership)Bağımsız Bölüm(independent section)

DASK is Türkiye's mandatory earthquake insurance, required for every residential property and for utility subscriptions.

The policy is legally required, inexpensive relative to the cover, and must be active to connect or transfer utilities. It covers structural earthquake damage; contents and additional risks need separate private cover.

Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Taxes & Fees When Buying Property in Turkey →Buying Property in Turkey as a Foreigner: 2026 document checklist →

A dönüm is a Turkish land-area measure equal to 1,000 square metres, often used in project land claims.

Ada/Parsel(block and plot)İmar Durumu(zoning status)KAKS(floor-area ratio)

Fore kazık are bored piles drilled into the ground to support foundations where soil or load conditions require deeper support.

Radye Temel(raft foundation)Zemin Etüdü(soil investigation report)TBDY-2018(2018 Turkish earthquake building code)

Freehold means owning the property outright and indefinitely, recorded in your own name at the Land Registry.

Foreign nationals hold Turkish residential property freehold. There is no requirement to form a company, take a local partner, or hold through a nominee, and an adviser who proposes one for an ordinary residential purchase should be asked why.

Tapu(title deed)Kat Mülkiyeti(condominium ownership)The Buying Process in Turkey →

The zoning record held by the municipality, stating what may be built on a plot and to what height.

It is the only reliable answer to the question every sea-view buyer should ask: can the land between this apartment and the water be built on. A salesperson's assurance that nothing can be built there has no legal content. The zoning record does.

Tapu(title deed)TAKBİS(land registry information system)Buying Sea-View Property in Istanbul →

The İskan is the municipal certificate confirming a completed building matches its approved plans and is legally fit to live in.

İskan is the everyday name. The document itself is headed yapı kullanma izin belgesi (the occupancy permit), and a developer, a valuation report or a project page may use either name for the same certificate, sometimes with its own permit number and date.

It gates more than its name suggests. Permanent utility connections in your own name depend on it, so does the conversion of kat irtifakı to full ownership, and a future buyer's lawyer and bank will both ask for it.

Buildings are sometimes occupied for years without one while an administrative issue is resolved. That is not a scandal, but it is a discount you will pay when you sell. For any completed project we confirm the certificate is in place, by date and number, before you commit.

Kat Mülkiyeti(condominium ownership)Kat İrtifakı(construction servitude)Tapu(title deed)Property Delivery: Tapu & İskan →The Buying Process in Turkey →Ready-to-Move Apartments in Istanbul →

KAKS is the floor-area ratio, the zoning coefficient that limits buildable floor area on a plot.

It is a zoning control, not a residence feature. It helps explain density and development rights when the land or future construction risk matters.

İmar Durumu(zoning status)Ada/Parsel(block and plot)Dönüm(1,000 square metres of land)

Kat İrtifakı is a registered title to a residence in a building that is approved but not yet completed, giving legal ownership of a defined share of the land.

It is real title, not a reservation and not a promise, and it is the normal form of ownership during construction. It converts to Kat Mülkiyeti once the building is finished and the İskan is issued.

Three things follow from holding it. Fewer banks will lend against it, some resale buyers hesitate at it, and the conversion depends on the developer obtaining the İskan rather than on you.

Kat Mülkiyeti(condominium ownership)İskan(habitation certificate · yapı kullanma izin belgesi)Topraktan(Off-plan)Property Delivery: Tapu & İskan →The Buying Process in Turkey →Sea-View Apartments in Istanbul →

Kat Mülkiyeti is full, independent ownership of a completed apartment, issued once the building has its habitation certificate.

It is the strongest form of ownership for an apartment and the deed type buyers of completed properties should expect. Lenders and future buyers generally prefer it, so the conversion from Kat İrtifakı matters for resale.

Kat İrtifakı(construction servitude)İskan(habitation certificate · yapı kullanma izin belgesi)Tapu(title deed)The Buying Process in Turkey →Property Delivery in Turkey: Tapu and İskan Explained →Off-Plan Projects in Istanbul →

Kentsel dönüşüm is Türkiye's national urban transformation programme, under which older buildings are replaced with new construction on the same plot.

What the label tells a buyer is that the building is new and the address is not. A kentsel dönüşüm project stands on a plot a demolition released rather than on new land, so it is built to the current construction standards while sitting in a settled neighbourhood with its schools, shops and transport already around it.

It also changes what the purchase costs. Projects registered under the programme attract a reduced rate of VAT and can carry relief from the title deed transfer fee. Both are set by law rather than by the developer, and both change, so the rate applying to one specific apartment is read from its own invoice and settled at the Land Registry on the day of transfer.

Where a developer states one of these benefits in its marketing, it belongs in the sale contract rather than in your memory of the brochure.

KDV(VAT · value added tax)Tapu Harcı(title deed transfer fee)DASK(compulsory earthquake insurance)Müteahhit(developer · contractor)Taxes & Fees When Buying in Turkey →

The Noter is the Turkish notary public who certifies signatures, translations and powers of attorney.

Vekâletname(power of attorney)Yeminli Tercüman(sworn translator)

Pay sahipliği is a model in which the buyer acquires a share in an operating business (typically a hotel) rather than a title deed to a specific apartment.

It is sold beside ordinary apartments and it is not one. What is bought is a stake in the operation: the suite is let and serviced by the operator rather than occupied at will, and whatever return the purchase produces comes out of that business rather than out of a tenancy you control.

Everything a buyer treats as routine for an apartment behaves differently underneath it: how the asset is valued, who the resale market is, how the income is taxed, and what a Turkish lender will accept as security.

It also does not map cleanly onto the citizenship route, which is built around an ordinary purchase registered as a Tapu in the buyer's own name at the Land Registry. Eligibility under a share model needs a legal answer on the instrument actually being sold, not a general assumption. Ask what the deed will say before asking what the return will be.

Tapu(title deed)Tam Mülkiyet(full ownership)Markalı Rezidans(Branded Residence)Yönetimli Kiralama(rental guarantee)Yatırım Yoluyla Vatandaşlık(Citizenship by Investment)Branded Residences in Istanbul →

A radye temel is a raft foundation that spreads building loads over a reinforced concrete slab, used in structural due diligence copy.

Fore Kazık(bored pile)Zemin Etüdü(soil investigation report)TBDY-2018(2018 Turkish earthquake building code)

A tadilat ruhsatı is a renovation or amendment permit that changes an approved construction permit or project specification.

It can explain a changed block, floor count, layout or delivery scope. Read it together with the original building permit before comparing the brochure with the legal project.

Yapı Ruhsatı(building permit)Vaziyet Planı(site layout plan)İskan(habitation certificate · yapı kullanma izin belgesi)

A tahsisli alan is an allocated private-use area such as storage, garden or terrace that may differ from deeded ownership.

The right may come from the management plan or project documents rather than the Tapu itself. Check whether the area is owned, allocated, revocable or shared.

Yönetim Planı(building management plan)Bahçe Katı(garden-level apartment)Tapu(title deed)

TAKBİS is the national digital land registry system that holds Türkiye's official ownership and encumbrance records.

Checks against TAKBİS reveal whether a property carries mortgages, court annotations or unpaid debts. This search is a core part of due diligence before purchase.

Tapu(title deed)Tapu Dairesi(Land Registry Office)

The Tapu is Türkiye's official title deed: the government-issued document proving who legally owns a property.

Ownership in Türkiye transfers only when the Tapu is issued in your name at the Land Registry Office, not when a sales contract is signed or payment is made. The deed records the owner, the property's location and share, and any mortgage or restriction registered against it.

Before any transfer we check the register for debts, mortgages or annotations, so nothing unexpected passes to you with the property.

Tapu Dairesi(Land Registry Office)Kat Mülkiyeti(condominium ownership)Kat İrtifakı(construction servitude)TAKBİS(land registry information system)Property Delivery: Tapu & İskan →The Buying Process in Turkey →Sea-View Apartments in Istanbul →

The Tapu Dairesi is the government land registry office where property ownership is officially transferred and recorded.

The transfer appointment takes place here, with both parties (or their appointed representatives) present alongside a sworn translator if the buyer does not speak Turkish.

Tapu(title deed)Yeminli Tercüman(sworn translator)Vekâletname(power of attorney)The Buying Process in Turkey →

TBDY-2018 is Türkiye's 2018 earthquake building code, the standard cited for structural design compliance.

It supports a structural claim only when the project documents cite it for the relevant building. Do not turn a code reference into a promise of safety or value.

Yapı Ruhsatı(building permit)Radye Temel(raft foundation)Zemin Etüdü(soil investigation report)

A şerh is an annotation recorded on a title deed, such as a mortgage, a court order or a citizenship holding commitment.

Restrictions travel with the property, not the seller, which is why the register must be checked before any transfer.

Tapu(title deed)TAKBİS(land registry information system)Elde Tutma Süresi(Holding Period)Citizenship-Eligible Property in Istanbul →

A Vekaletname is a notarised power of attorney that lets a trusted representative complete purchase steps on your behalf.

It is what allows a buyer to complete a purchase without being physically present in Türkiye. A power of attorney can and should be limited in scope and duration to the specific transaction.

Noter(notary public)Tapu Dairesi(Land Registry Office)Buying Turkey Property Remotely by Power of Attorney →The Buying Process in Turkey →

The yapı ruhsatı is the building permit authorising construction under approved plans before completion and İskan.

For off-plan purchases, confirm the permit date, block and scope. A later amendment permit can change what was first approved.

İskan(habitation certificate · yapı kullanma izin belgesi)Tadilat Ruhsatı(amendment permit)Vaziyet Planı(site layout plan)Ada/Parsel(block and plot)Taxes & Fees When Buying Property in Turkey →

A Yeminli Tercüman is a court-registered sworn translator whose presence is required when a non-Turkish speaker signs official property documents.

Noter(notary public)Tapu Dairesi(Land Registry Office)The Buying Process in Turkey →

The management plan is the building's own constitution, registered with the title, setting the rules every owner is bound by.

It governs how the aidat is set, what the shared areas may be used for, and what owners may and may not do inside their own apartments. Many buildings prohibit short-term letting here regardless of national licensing rules.

If your plan for the apartment depends on a permission, read this document before buying rather than after.

Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Site(gated complex)Rezidans(residence)

A zemin etüdü is a soil investigation report used to design foundations and assess ground risk.

It supports foundation and structural decisions, but it is not a marketing proof on its own. Read it with the permit, structural system and applicable code reference.

Radye Temel(raft foundation)Fore Kazık(bored pile)TBDY-2018(2018 Turkish earthquake building code)

Aidat is the monthly service charge paid by owners in a managed complex, covering security, cleaning, landscaping and shared facilities.

It varies widely with the level of amenity: a compound with pools, gyms and 24-hour security costs considerably more than a simple building. Always factor it into a yield calculation, because it comes out of rent.

Site(gated complex)Kira Getirisi(Rental Yield)Property Delivery in Turkey: Tapu and İskan Explained →Taxes & Fees When Buying Property in Turkey →Branded Residences in Istanbul →

Tax charged on the gain when a property is sold within a defined holding period; beyond that period the gain is exempt.

The gain is measured from your registered acquisition value to your sale value. That makes the figure declared at purchase a decision with a long tail: declare less than you paid to reduce the transfer fee and you will later pay tax on a gain you did not make.

Tapu Harcı(title deed transfer fee)Elde Tutma Süresi(Holding Period)Emlak Vergisi(annual property tax)Taxes & Fees When Buying Property in Turkey →

Closing costs are the one-off fees beyond the purchase price: title deed fee, valuation, notary and translation, and insurance.

Budgeting for these separately avoids surprises, since they are not usually included in a quoted headline price.

Tapu Harcı(title deed transfer fee)SPK Değerlemesi(SPK-licensed appraisal report)DASK(compulsory earthquake insurance)Taxes & Fees When Buying in Turkey →Turkey Property Closing Costs 2026 →

Emlak Vergisi is the annual municipal property tax, calculated on the municipality's own assessed value rather than on the market price.

That assessed figure is the rayiç bedel, and it is set by the municipality, not by your contract, which is why the tax bill rarely bears an obvious relationship to what you paid.

Rates differ by property type and are higher inside a metropolitan municipality, which includes all of Istanbul, than outside one. It is usually payable in two instalments each year.

For most owners it is a modest figure and not the largest recurring cost. The building's aidat usually is.

Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Tapu Harcı(title deed transfer fee)DASK(compulsory earthquake insurance)Değer Artış Kazancı Vergisi(tax on a gain at sale)2026 Property Tax After Law 7566 →

KDV is Turkish value added tax, applied to new property purchases at a rate that depends on the property's size and value band.

Developer prices are often quoted VAT-inclusive, but not always, so it is essential to confirm which. Resale purchases between individuals are generally outside VAT.

KDV İstisnası(VAT Exemption)Tapu Harcı(title deed transfer fee)New Build vs Resale vs Branded Residence →Turkey Property Closing Costs 2026 →

Site yönetimi is the building or complex management body that runs shared services, collects Aidat and enforces site rules.

It affects daily costs and use. Review its budget, rules and management plan before assuming a rental, renovation or amenity use is allowed.

Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Yönetim Planı(building management plan)Site(gated complex)

Tapu Harcı is the government fee charged on transferring a title deed, calculated as a percentage of the declared property value.

It is legally shared between buyer and seller, though in practice the split is negotiated and often paid by the buyer. Some developers absorb it as a sales incentive. The exact rate is confirmed at the time of purchase.

Tapu(title deed)KDV(VAT · value added tax)Taxes & Fees When Buying in Turkey →

Non-resident foreign buyers can be exempt from VAT on a first new-build purchase, provided funds are brought in as foreign currency and the property is held for a minimum period.

The exemption requires the correct paperwork in the correct order, including the currency exchange document, and the property must not be sold before the qualifying period ends or the VAT becomes payable. Eligibility is confirmed case by case.

KDV(VAT · value added tax)DAB(Döviz Alım Belgesi · foreign currency purchase certificate)The Buying Process in Turkey →Property Delivery in Turkey: Tapu and İskan Explained →

Turkish layouts are written as bedrooms + living rooms, so 2+1 means two bedrooms plus one living room.

A 1+1 is a one-bedroom apartment, a 3+1 has three bedrooms and a separate living room. Half numbers such as 5.5+1 indicate an additional smaller room. The notation describes rooms, not total area, which is given separately in square metres.

Net Alan ve Brüt Alan(net alan · brüt alan)Dubleks(dubleks)

Apart otel is a serviced-apartment hotel model, an operating asset that is not always ordinary residential title.

Ask whether you receive an ordinary Tapu, a share, or an operating right. The answer changes use, resale, tax, lending and citizenship analysis.

Pay Sahipliği(share ownership)Rezidans(residence)Markalı Rezidans(Branded Residence)

A bahçe katı is a garden-level apartment; clarify whether the garden is owned, allocated for private use or merely accessible.

The garden can change privacy, maintenance and resale appeal, but the legal right matters. Check the Tapu, management plan and any tahsisli alan note.

Tahsisli Alan(allocated private-use area)Yönetim Planı(building management plan)Tapu(title deed)

A branded residence is a development whose interiors, services or management carry the name of an international design or hospitality brand.

The brand typically brings a higher specification and hotel-style services, and commands a price premium that can hold value well on resale.

Rezidans(residence)Site(gated complex)Pay Sahipliği(share ownership)New Build vs Resale vs Branded Residence →Branded Residences in Istanbul 2026 →Branded Residences in Istanbul →

A cadde mağazası is a street-facing retail shop within or beside a residential project, priced and valued differently from apartments.

It may sit in the same project as the residences, but its buyer pool, rent basis, VAT position and title use can differ. Treat it as commercial property unless the documents say otherwise.

Karma Proje(mixed-use development)Bağımsız Bölüm(independent section)KDV(VAT · value added tax)

A duplex is an apartment arranged over two floors connected by an internal staircase.

A çatı dubleks is a roof duplex with terrace, and a bahçe dubleks is a garden duplex on the lower floors.

1+1, 2+1, 3+1(layout notation)Çatı Katı(Penthouse)

Home-ofis is a Turkish market label for a live-work apartment or office-capable residence, not a formal dwelling label.

Treat it as a use claim until the title, zoning and management plan confirm what can actually be done there.

Yönetim Planı(building management plan)Bağımsız Bölüm(independent section)Tapu(title deed)

A karma proje is a mixed-use development combining residences with uses such as offices, retail, hotel or leisure in one planned project.

The mix affects privacy, operating costs and visitor traffic, so compare the residence you are buying with the whole project's commercial uses.

Rezidans(residence)Cadde Mağazası(street-facing retail shop)Apart Otel(serviced-apartment hotel)

Konak is a mansion-style residence label that should be used only where the physical product type supports it.

Köşk(mansion or pavilion residence)Yalı(Bosphorus waterside residence)Müstakil(detached)

A köşk is a villa-like mansion or pavilion term used for high-end detached or low-density residences, but the actual title and use still need checking.

Konak(mansion-style residence)Müstakil(detached)Tapu(title deed)

Müstakil means detached or independent use, usually a house or villa rather than an apartment stacked in a building.

Köşk(mansion or pavilion residence)Konak(mansion-style residence)Tapu(title deed)

The Müteahhit is the construction company or developer responsible for building and delivering a project.

Track record matters more than marketing: delivery history, financial strength and the quality of completed projects are what protect an off-plan buyer.

Topraktan(Off-plan)Teslim Tarihi(Delivery Date)Under-Construction Projects in Istanbul →

Net area is the usable space inside your apartment; gross area adds your share of shared spaces such as corridors, lifts and walls.

Prices are often quoted against gross area, which is always the larger figure, so comparing two apartments requires comparing the same measure. We always confirm both.

A Turkish plan sheet frequently prints a third figure as well (the satış brüt alanı, the basis a sale is actually written against), and that one is larger again.

1+1, 2+1, 3+1(layout notation)Satış Brüt Alanı(sales gross area · genel brüt alan)Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Sea-View Apartments in Istanbul →

Off-plan means buying a property before or during construction, usually at a lower launch price with a staged payment plan.

The trade-off is time and construction risk in exchange for price and choice of apartment. It is the stage where developer track record, contract terms and payment protections matter most.

Oturuma Hazır(Ready to move)Kat İrtifakı(construction servitude)Ödeme Planı(Payment Plan)Teslim Tarihi(Delivery Date)Property Delivery: Tapu & İskan →The Buying Process in Turkey →Off-Plan Projects in Istanbul →

A penthouse is a top-floor apartment, usually larger, with terraces and the best views in a building.

Dubleks(dubleks)Markalı Rezidans(Branded Residence)

Ready to move describes a completed property with its habitation certificate, which can be lived in or rented immediately.

It removes construction risk and starts income straight away, usually at a higher price than the same apartment bought off-plan.

Topraktan(Off-plan)İskan(habitation certificate · yapı kullanma izin belgesi)İkinci El(Resale)Property Delivery in Turkey: Tapu and İskan Explained →Ready-to-Move Apartments in Istanbul →

Resale refers to a property sold by its current owner rather than by the developer, on the secondary market.

Resale apartments are usually complete, in established neighbourhoods, and priced with more room to negotiate than a fixed developer price list.

Oturuma Hazır(Ready to move)Topraktan(Off-plan)Resale →Property Delivery in Turkey: Tapu and İskan Explained →Buying Sea-View Property in Istanbul: What to Know →

A Rezidans is a serviced apartment building offering hotel-style facilities such as concierge, housekeeping and shared amenities.

Service charges are higher than a standard building, but so is rental appeal, particularly for short-stay and corporate tenants.

Markalı Rezidans(Branded Residence)Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Site(gated complex)The Buying Process in Turkey →Property Delivery in Turkey: Tapu and İskan Explained →Branded Residences in Istanbul →

Satılabilir alan is saleable area used for pricing, and it must state whether it is net, gross or satış brüt alanı.

The label alone is not enough for comparison. Ask which measurement basis the price uses before comparing square-metre prices across projects.

Satış Brüt Alanı(sales gross area · genel brüt alan)Net Alan ve Brüt Alan(net alan · brüt alan)

The satış brüt alanı is the gross area a Turkish sale is written against: the residence's own floor area plus its share of the corridors, lifts, stairs, plant rooms and other common parts.

It appears on plan sheets under several names (genel brüt alan, toplam satış brüt alanı, ünite satışa esas brüt), and they describe the same basis. It is always the largest figure printed on the sheet, and it is the one a price per square metre is normally calculated from.

That makes the basis part of the price. One residence can be published on three different area figures at once, and a price per square metre worked out from the net one will not compare with anything a buyer is shown elsewhere. Two apartments are comparable only when both numbers are measured the same way.

Where a developer publishes more than one basis, we state which one a size uses rather than quoting the flattering number and leaving the basis out.

Net Alan ve Brüt Alan(net alan · brüt alan)1+1, 2+1, 3+1(layout notation)Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Sea-View Apartments in Istanbul →

A Site is a gated residential complex with shared facilities and security, the standard format for new-build housing in Türkiye.

Facilities typically include landscaped grounds, pools, fitness areas, parking and 24-hour security, funded through the monthly Aidat.

Aidat(service charge · maintenance fee)Rezidans(residence)Rental Yields and Returns in Istanbul →Protected or Borrowed Sea View: Istanbul due diligence →

A yalı is a waterside Bosphorus mansion or residence category whose value depends on shoreline position and heritage constraints.

The word should be used only where the source supports a real waterside position. Heritage rules, shoreline rights and maintenance obligations matter as much as the view.

Tapu(title deed)İmar Durumu(zoning status)Konak(mansion-style residence)