Acquiring commercial property in Turkey is fast becoming a profitable business due to the low corporate income tax rate which has been reduced from 33% to just 20%, with individual income tax scales from a low of 15% to a peak of 35%. There are also tax benefits and incentives in Turkey’s Technology and Development Zones, Industrial zones and Free Zones which offer partial or total exemption from corporate income tax, plus a grant on employer’s social security share in addition to land allocation. The government also offer various incentives for strategic investment to decrease imports and for large scale investments like hotel developments. Our commercial property in Turkey team will be delighted to advise you on whether your plans would be acceptable for any of the government incentive investment schemes.
Turkey has had a Customs Union with the EU since 1996 and Free Trade Agreements with 22 countries, but it is the large domestic market which makes investment in commercial property in Turkey an exciting prospect. In 2011 there were over 50 million internet users and 65 million mobile phone subscribers, plus 51 million credit card users compared to just 16 million in 2002. There were 118 million air arrivals in 2011 with over 31 million tourists, which have seen an increased demand for commercial property in Turkey along its Aegean and Mediterranean coastlines.
Among the OECD countries Turkey is the second biggest reformer in terms of its restrictions on FDI since 1997 (OECD FDI Regulatory Restrictiveness Index 1997-2010). In the last decade commercial property in Turkey is attracting huge crowd, presenting ever greater opportunities for investors every year – rise in number of sold apartments is commendable, you’ll be surprised that it increased by 18% in the second quarter of 2011 as compared to 2010. This shows amazing story of growth in the real estate sector.
