Speaking to Sunday’s Zaman, TNL Real Estate Development Managing Partner Furkan Bayoğlu said he has been running from one meeting to another with investors from Gulf countries for the last year, and he already has many meetings set for the next eight months.

“When we take the investors to malls in İstanbul to show them around, they are surprised by the vitality of the malls,” he said, pointing to the mall construction projects mushrooming across the country as evidence of the high level of activity in the property market.

Noting that Turkey’s high number of young people plays an important role in consumption, he underlined that these investors from the Gulf region wants to buy property in Turkey not to live in it, but to rent it or later sell it because they see a huge profit potential in their investments.

For example, Bayoğlu said, Dubai has been losing its appeal and there are decreasing sales figures in the region because the population cannot keep up with the excessive number of properties that have been constructed in the region. “In addition, people in the Gulf region previously wanted to transfer their investments to North Africa; however, with the Arab Spring, the region is now deemed unstable. And due to crises in Europe, these investors moved their attention to Turkey, which they consider the safest location and because of its profit potential.”

“These investors also make minor investments in Brazil and India, but if they don’t have any connections there, the ultimate location is Turkey,” Bayoğlu said. On the subject of investment in Turkish properties from people in the Caucasus and Europe, he said, “European interest in Turkey is mostly in residential property because they see the country as a retirement location due to mild weather and cheaper living expenses. Caucasus countries that have major investments in Dubai are now looking forward to transferring their capital to growing economies like Turkey’s because it offers possibilities to expand their businesses.”

Stressing that the economic and political stability in the country has a major impact on attracting these investors in addition to the secure property market, Bayoğlu stated, “Since the construction sector has the least need for capital to begin a project due to the high demand of people wanting to make housing purchases, this consistent interest in the market causes the market prices to remain stable.” He concluded by explaining that the willingness of Turkish people to make sacrifices in order to be able to own a house makes them loyal to their debt so people make their payments on time, which lessens the risks for investors.”