Tag: property in Istanbul

Zorlu Center, under construction – a mixed use project which will include five different functions for the first time in Turkey with the culture and art center, hotel, business center, shopping center and residences – is seen in the district of Zincirlikuyu, Istanbul, August 23, 2011.

Turkey’s economy is booming, led by construction in its largest city, Istanbul. Supported by foreign investment, city authorities are embarking on massive redevelopment. But concerns are growing that citizens’ rights have become victim to the projects.

In the Tarlabasi district in central Istanbul, houses are being destroyed as part of a major redevelopment by local authorities. Most of the thousands of people living here have been evicted, even if they own their homes like Mehmet Tas.

He says his children grew up in Tarlabasi, their friends are there and their school is there. Tas says if he moves from the area, he will lose his job because he will not be able to pay for his commute to work.

Tas, like many others in the Tarlabasi district, has been offered state accommodation 40 kilometers away. The plight of the Tarlabasi residents has become a focal point of growing concern about the redevelopment of Istanbul.

On Sunday, hundreds of people protested the redevelopment plans in Taksim square in the center of Istanbul, close to Tarlabasi.

Although occupying a prime location, Tarlabasi is one of the city’s poorest districts. Its dilapidated but cheap housing has made it the traditional home to some of the most vulnerable sections of society.

The mass evictions of its residents have drawn growing criticism. Andrew Gardener of the British-based human-rights group Amnesty International recently published a report strongly condemning the project.

“Tarlabasi is a particularly outrageous example of the way urban regeneration is being carried out, resulted in people being evicted without alternative housing, adequate housing, being provided,” said Gardener. “Frequently, [the] people most at risk, as in Tarlabasi, people from Roma families, transgender women. People who find it very difficult to get accommodation in the private sector for a number [of] reasons.”

But local Mayor Misbah Demircan strongly rejects such criticisms. He says the regeneration project is as much about helping the local residents as the city as a whole.

He says most of the 278 buildings being razed are condemned buildings. Three days ago, he says, a building was burned down because it was so old and dangerous. The buildings are fire hazards, and some even collapse in heavy rain. He says people living there live under risk of death. There is no safety of life or property. He says authorities are offering safe and new houses in exchange.

The new homes Demircan is referring to are state housing, most of which is located far away on the city outskirts. Critics claim most who accept such offers invariably lose their jobs, being unable to afford the commute to work, or are unable to afford the rent of the alternative housing.

Professor Yves Cabannes of the Development Planning Unit of University College London has been studying Istanbul’s redevelopment. He says the experience of a previous redevelopment project in the city supports such concerns.

“Three-hundred-sixty [families] were put 60 kilometers away,” said Cabannes. “Do you know how many out of the 360 are still in the blocks? Two. All the others are just roaming over the city, homeless, and our conclusion is that the renovation, which is claimed by the government, is minimum. It’s about 1 million homes, which is massive. It’s a massive project.”

Throughout Istanbul, construction projects are speeding ahead throughout the center of the city, with the building of high-quality housing aimed at middle and upper classes. Istanbul is at the center of the country’s booming economy, which has enjoyed unprecedented growth for the past decade and continues to flourish despite the world economic turmoil.

The city is in the grip of a property boom supported by investment from across the region from Russia to the oil-rich nations of the Middle East. Istanbul’s city skyline is cut by rising skyscrapers and construction cranes. But critics warn the people of Tarlabasi and many more of Istanbul’s poor are likely to pay a very high price for such redevelopment.

via Istanbul’s Unprecedented Property Boom Causes Concern About Citizens’ Rights | Middle East | English.

Istanbul first choice for property investors as European recovery stalls

Analysis of top property markets by PricewaterhouseCoopers finds London struggling to retain status as gold standard of real estate

Julia Kollewe
guardian.co.uk
Istanbul

Istanbul, Munich and Warsaw are the new hotspots for property investors and developers, as much of Europe remains mired in a vicious cycle of low or no growth, mounting debt and drastic austerity measures.

London – usually seen as the gold standard of real estate – has lost some of its allure and is now just hanging on at the bottom of the top 10, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Urban Land Institute. The UK capital is regarded as “too expensive for the economic outlook” by many. But nowhere can be considered a “must buy” today, the report said, highlighting that Europe’s economic crisis has left the property sector in limbo, with fast-diminishing access to bank loans and depressed rental demand.

“It’s going to be a volatile market across the board,” said John Forbes, real estate partner at PwC and author of the report. “Investors realised there’s no point in hanging around and waiting for an upturn because there wasn’t one coming.”

He believes that regulatory changes forcing banks to sell off risky assets will create opportunities, in particular for equity investors less reliant on debt. Also, insurers and pension funds are beginning to step in and offer finance, although they will not be able to fully plug the gap left by banks unwilling to fund property investments.

Istanbul held on to the top spot for new investment and development prospects for the second year running, thanks to its booming economy and youthful population. Munich, with one of the lowest unemployment rates in Germany, came second, rated for its stability, followed by Warsaw, which is rapidly becoming eastern Europe’s financial hub, boosting the city’s office sector.

Berlin was Europe’s most attractive market for residential investment, and Stockholm, Paris, Hamburg and Zurich were favourites for investors picking safe cities. Moscow made it into the top 10 for the first time, just ahead of London.

London fell to 10th from second place, reflecting investors’ feelings that the city is overpriced and will see very little appreciation of property values. Strong competition is another factor. “Today London is the safest of havens that there is. But once the world is again stable and everyone pulls their money back home, that’s when we will see how oversold it is,” said one interviewee.

Paris also slipped in the survey’s rankings, but less than London because it is less reliant on banking and financial services.

London’s prime assets still attract a lot of demand from overseas, and for the first time more than half the office buildings in the City are foreign-owned, according to a study by Development Securities. South African billionaire Nathan Kirsh acquired Tower 42 and nearby buildings for £283m in December, while Asian palm oil billionaires Kuok Khoon Hong and Martua Sitorus bought Aviva’s headquarters for £288m last June.

Forbes said bargain hunters would turn to places like Dublin and Madrid. “You don’t make money by following the consensus.”

He said: “Debt will be the main story of 2012. There is general pessimism regarding the availability of debt this year, and significantly, lenders are the gloomiest of all.” Just 6% of lenders believe that debt will be as available as it was last year, with 52% believing it will be substantially less.

via Istanbul first choice for property investors as European recovery stalls | Business | guardian.co.uk.

ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

Dutch retail property fund VastNed Retail has increased its presence in Turkey with a 29.5 million-euro purchase in central Istanbul, it’s seventh in the Beyoğlu district.

The transaction involves half of a building located at 161 İstiklal Avenue, next to the Galatasaray Lycee (high school).

“The property will be renovated shortly” and after refurbishment costs of 3.5 million euros, its gross rental income is expected to be around 2.5 million euros per year, according to a press statement. The figure represents a net initial yield of 7.3 percent.

The acquisition brings the total value of Vastned’s Istanbul portfolio, which generally focuses on prime high street shops around İstiklal, to 80 million euros. The company’s investments in Turkey as a whole have reached 90 million euros. Tenants renting retail space from the fund include Turkcell, Topshop, Penti and Abercrombie & Fitch.

“With this transaction we are well on our way to achieve our strategic goal of developing Turkey into a fifth core market. Major European and American retailers are queuing up to install their flagships in the heart of Istanbul,” the company statement quoted Reinier van Gerrevink, CEO of VastNed Retail, as saying.

VastNed owns a portfolio of high street properties, estimated at approximately 2 billion euros, mostly in the eurozone.