Demand for earthquake-resistant homes decreases in Turkey, spurring real estate boom

Turkey is witnessing a prospering real estate industry after the massive earthquakes on February 6, driven by declining demand for so-called earthquake-resistant new residences in important western cities, notably Istanbul. Real estate dealers claimed that compared to February, land sales in Istanbul jumped by 200% in March, which pushed up prices.

A real estate consultant, Erdinc Sahin, described the reaction to the earthquakes in the real estate market as a “wave of fear has grabbed Istanbulites, especially after the calamity.” A fast scanning program on home foundations and their structural resistance conducted by the Istanbul municipality in late February revealed that many old buildings in the city were not resistant enough to strong earthquakes, this increased citizens’ fear, according to Sahin. 

According to Sahin, evacuating weak buildings on a broad scale is difficult. As a result of the scanning exercise, dangerous buildings were either reinforced or demolished. He stated that the need is not just there in Istanbul, but also in the neighboring provinces of Kirklareli and Edirne in the Thrace region, as well as in Kocaeli in the Marmara region. Sahin believes that the overall expenditures are far more than anticipated considering a 40% increase in land sales prices in March and rising building costs. ‘We consider these pricing increases to be unreasonable. This demand won’t stay the same forever. That would eventually come to an end, he said. 

In contrast to building conventional big houses, small houses are much more affordable ranging between 15-40 square meters vary from $15,000 to $30,000, he said. According to him, the demand for tiny homes has grown significantly since “almost 90% of people (in Istanbul) don’t know how earthquake-resistant their homes are therefore they want to plan an independent lifestyle in nature a safer, more remote, and more recuperative lifestyle. Zoning is not necessary for the erection of tiny houses, according to Olmez, which saves money.

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