KONUTDER President: First-Hand Sales Only Half of What’s Needed!
Ramadan Kumova, the President of KONUTDER, addressed the recent housing market statistics released by TÜİK. Despite the apparent increase in housing sales in February 2025 compared to the previous year, Kumova pointed out that first-hand sales are only half of what is required for a healthy market.
In Turkey, housing sales in February 2025 rose by 20.1% compared to the same month last year, reaching 112,818 units. However, this number is almost the same as January 2025 figures. In Istanbul, there was an 18.4% increase compared to the previous year and a 2.3% increase from January. To achieve a balanced market, first-hand housing sales should account for around 50% of total sales, but the current data shows that it is only 30%. Similarly, credit-based housing sales should ideally be around 50%, yet they stood at 14.9% in the first two months of 2025.
Kumova emphasized the need for mortgage interest rates to drop below 1%, land costs to decrease to 30%, and restrictions on housing investors to be lifted for a balanced market. With Turkey’s annual new housing demand estimated at a minimum of 750,000 units, sustainable production conditions can only be met with an average of 62,500 first-hand housing sales per month. However, the average for the first two months of 2025 was only 33,285 units, half of what is needed.
In Istanbul, the situation is even more concerning. While an average of 12,000 sales per month is required, only 4,859 units were sold on average in the first two months of 2025, representing only 42% of the necessary figure. With 39 districts in Istanbul, this translates to an average of 125 new housing units sold per district per month, a significantly low level for a metropolis like Istanbul.
Although the housing market has shown signs of recovery since the second half of 2024, the necessary leap to achieve market balance has not yet occurred. Lowering mortgage interest rates, decreasing land costs, increasing first-hand sales rates, and lifting restrictions on housing investors could lead to market stabilization. Without these conditions, neither rent nor housing prices will remain stable.
Additionally, foreign sales have seen a continued decline, dropping by 21.1% in February. From once aiming for $10 billion in sales, Turkey now struggles to reach $2 billion. Globally, the foreign housing market is valued at $400 billion, expected to rise to $600 billion within the next five years. Turkey is losing ground in this market, necessitating overseas advertising campaigns and incentives to reverse this trend.
