Turkey has a total surface area of 775,000 sq
km. It is covered by 26% forests, 36% agricultural
land and 11% grassland. The total coastline measures
7200 kilometers! The longest distance from north to
south is 660 km; the longest distance from west to
east is 1570 km. The population of Turkey is 65.5
million people. That means 85 people per square
kilometer. Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey
with a population of 7.7 million people. The capital
of Turkey, Ankara, has 2.8 million people, the
seaport Izmir is the second largest city with 2
million people.
About Alanya
Alanya is approximately 120 km east of Antalya
Airport and has around 138,000 inhabitants. Alanya
district has 25.6 km of coastline (taking in
Konakli, Oba, Kestel and Mahmutlar) and Alanya town
stretches along the Mediterranean coast for
approximately 8 kilometres and goes inland for
approximately 1 kilometre. The most expensive part
of Alanya for property is the Old Town, which juts
out on a hill into the sea. Here you will find the
Old Harbour and Castle.
Alanya walk about tour.
http://www.alanya360.com/en/
Communication
The primary language is Turkish, however, the
majority of people can speak English.
Currency
The Turkish currency is the Turkish Lira, however,
you can pay nearly everywhere in Euro. However, you
may get your change in Turkish Lira, based on the
daily exchange rate. The best place to exchange your
currency into Turkish lira is in Turkey as the local
exchange rate is far better. Don’t change very large
amounts all at once as the exchange rate varies from
day to day. You can pay also by credit card,
however, price negotiation will often be impossible
and sometimes you will have to pay an extra charge
too.
Travel & Visa
It takes about four hours by plane to travel to the
airport of Antalya from the UK, one of the most
frequently visited airports in Turkey. There are
direct flights from many European airports, and
further flights in the tourist season from many more
smaller local airports, to Antalya. You will require
your passport and will need to buy a visa on arrival
which costs £10 GBP or ˆ15. You have to show this
visa again when you leave Turkey.
Alanya Airport
Alanya (Gazipasa) Airport Set to Open August 2009
In the world of overseas property few things have
such a major impact on market forces as a new
airport and Alanya is one of the lucky ones. Back
when Ryanair and Easyjet were barely out of nappies,
the impact of new flight routes into obscure
provincial airports throughout France, Italy and
Spain has made a huge impact on property prices and
regional tourism and who today can potentially make
or break a new destination. An announcement last
week by Tepe Akfen Airport Holding (TAV) that it won
a 25 year lease to operate the small Gazipasa
Airport in Alanya on Turkey’s Mediterranean Coast
which should drastically improve the current 1.5 hour
airport travel times to the region.
TAV which manage the international airports of
Istanbul, Izmir and Ankara have already started
construction to incorporate necessary runway changes
in order to increase airport capacity to 3 million
passengers annually.
The new Alanya-Gazipasa International airport is
widely expected to have a huge impact on tourism and
the real estate sector throughout the Antalya
province both from a residential and commercial
perspective attracting not only Europeans in search
of a holiday destination but also Turks from
Istanbul and Ankara seeking a city weekend getaway
not to mention the jobs the new airport will provide
boosting the local economy. Since the announcement
property prices in Alanya are already on the up and
local agents are predicting price rises of between
20-50% over the next 2 years bringing the area in
line with neighbouring Bodrum and Fethiye
Golf is also a main interest with the nearest
courses only 1 hour away in Belek.
UK newspapers, described the announcement of a new
airport being built near Alanya as “good news” for
British investors and holiday home buyers. Already
on the back of the news has encouraged further
investment with a UK and Irish consortium committing
funds of 100 million euros to develop a new golf
resort at Gasipasa. Along with five star hotels and
residential complexes planned, there is also a new
taxi boat service to connect Gazipaşa with Kaş and
Kalkan which is also bound to lead to increased
numbers of visitors to the region.
On the back of Turkey’s newly acquired status as a
high-growth market, The Turkish Daily News recently
stated that investment in the country’s real estate
was becoming a “hot new trend” among overseas
property investors seeking higher yields than
currently offered by more established markets. The
newspaper believes foreign investments in Turkish
real estate, on a national scale were likely to
increase from £896 million to more than £1 billion
and over the coming decade more than 7 million new
properties could be built across the whole Turkey.
The new Alanya-Gazipasa International airport is
sure to have a positive impact on housing in Alanya
and should bring more competition to the market for
cheap flights to Turkey.
Residents Visas
You can stay for a maximum of three months in Turkey
with a standard tourist visa, however to replace
this with a residents visa, you need to apply for
this visa within 1 month of first entrance. The
Ikamet can be for a period of one to five years. OR
you may leave the country for 24 hours, then return
on another standard 3 months visa. (Most people take
advantage of this by organising a trip to Northern
Cyprus, which is only a 3 hours ferry ride from
Alanya). Please note you will require a residents’
permit should you want to have a phone or buy a car.
Make sure you have plenty of passport-sized
photographs before you start.
Insurance(s)
When the deeds are finally in your hands, do not
forget to insure your investment. Insurance policies
based on Turkish Lira values can depreciate rapidly
because of high inflation. Policies operating in the
hard currencies are available and worth
investigating.
You are not required to take out medical insurance
but we find that most ex-patriots do arrange private
medical insurance. The standard of medical and
dental care here is very high, and the region boasts
several new purpose built private hospitals.
Tax Position
A tax agreement between Turkey and the U.K has been
ratified which prevents double taxation. The
professional advice of your lawyer and accountant is
strongly recommended.
