Tenants search for much cheaper rents
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Ocak 14, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - In the rental market, there has been a decline in prices. When a flat is vacated, the new rental amount is occasionally less than what was asked for previously as owners have no chance of renting out a property at old prices, according to brokers
Fluctuations in real estate prices have come down in favor of tenants who are now looking to rent properties for less than half of what they are currently paying, according to an Istanbul real estate agent.
Property prices in two of the most popular neighborhoods on the Bosphorus, Tarabya and İstinye, have not been declining, according to Realty World İca Gayrımenkul broker, İclal Gürpınar. She said some prices had remained the same and there were no recorded significant decreases.
However, there had been flexibility in the past two months, Gürpınar said. "Home owners cannot find buyers for the sale prices they are asking. When a reasonable offer comes, they take it into consideration and show some flexibility," she said.
In the rental market a slight decline has been seen, as is the case throughout the real estate market. "When a flat is vacated, the new rent being asked is sometimes below the previous rent. There is no chance to rent the property with the previous rental amount," she said.
Gürpınar said those investors who wanted to buy apartments to rent them out should look for smaller units. The easiest places to rent are small apartments, Gürpınar said. "People have a high circulation in the rental market, which means a tenant can easily switch to another apartment with lower rent. For example, an apartment owner in a high-quality complex asked for 4,200 Turkish lira monthly for his apartment. He could only rent it out for 3,000 lira. In another location, a property owner had a duplex loft and his initial rent was 2,500 lira, but he had to drop to 2,200 lira. I warned him that he would not be able to rent out the property, even at that price and he is now down to 1,500 lira. These expensive homes were around 215 to 250 square meters."
Gürpınar provided other examples: "An owner in a prestigious living complex started with a rental price of 4,000 lira and she signed a deal for 2,600 lira. Another apartment owner in İstinye asked 1,200 lira but settled for 800 lira."
Prices going down
Another client asked for 1,500 lira but dropped to 1,200 lira, said Gürpınar. "An office space of 300 square meters started at a price of 2,500 lira a month to rent. The price has gone down to 1,800 lira but the place is still waiting to be leased."
On the other side of the market, a client of Realty World, İca Gayrımenkul, was paying $5,000 monthly for an apartment in a site in Emirgan and now looks for a cheaper option. He wants to rent a property for 1,600 lira. He did not agree to a flat to rent for 1,800 lira, said Gürpınar.
"Another client was paying a monthly rent of $3,000, which is approximately 4,600 lira. She is now looking for an apartment with a rental price of 1,200 lira. In other words, she is looking for a place that would be four times less expensive than where she lives right now."
Another client, an engineer, lives in an apartment where he pays 2,000 lira. He is looking for a 1,000 lira apartment now, Gürpınar says. Many tenants are tired of paying for other monthly costs of their rented apartments, such as heating, the janitor’s salary and garden costs. "A client who was paying 2,800 lira for rent and 800 lira for other monthly costs moved to an apartment that was rented for 1,900 lira. Complexes with reasonable monthly costs are also becoming popular," she said.
Another trend among tenants, according to Gürpınar, is the increased wish to buy a small flat of their own: "Paying a huge sum of money every month is seen as throwing money into the bin. The current situation creates an opportunity for small investors. They can look out for small homes. If they do not have the financial means to buy a property, then the next option is halving their current rent."
Property prices in two of the most popular neighborhoods on the Bosphorus, Tarabya and İstinye, have not been declining, according to Realty World İca Gayrımenkul broker, İclal Gürpınar. She said some prices had remained the same and there were no recorded significant decreases.
However, there had been flexibility in the past two months, Gürpınar said. "Home owners cannot find buyers for the sale prices they are asking. When a reasonable offer comes, they take it into consideration and show some flexibility," she said.
In the rental market a slight decline has been seen, as is the case throughout the real estate market. "When a flat is vacated, the new rent being asked is sometimes below the previous rent. There is no chance to rent the property with the previous rental amount," she said.
Gürpınar said those investors who wanted to buy apartments to rent them out should look for smaller units. The easiest places to rent are small apartments, Gürpınar said. "People have a high circulation in the rental market, which means a tenant can easily switch to another apartment with lower rent. For example, an apartment owner in a high-quality complex asked for 4,200 Turkish lira monthly for his apartment. He could only rent it out for 3,000 lira. In another location, a property owner had a duplex loft and his initial rent was 2,500 lira, but he had to drop to 2,200 lira. I warned him that he would not be able to rent out the property, even at that price and he is now down to 1,500 lira. These expensive homes were around 215 to 250 square meters."
Gürpınar provided other examples: "An owner in a prestigious living complex started with a rental price of 4,000 lira and she signed a deal for 2,600 lira. Another apartment owner in İstinye asked 1,200 lira but settled for 800 lira."
Prices going down
Another client asked for 1,500 lira but dropped to 1,200 lira, said Gürpınar. "An office space of 300 square meters started at a price of 2,500 lira a month to rent. The price has gone down to 1,800 lira but the place is still waiting to be leased."
On the other side of the market, a client of Realty World, İca Gayrımenkul, was paying $5,000 monthly for an apartment in a site in Emirgan and now looks for a cheaper option. He wants to rent a property for 1,600 lira. He did not agree to a flat to rent for 1,800 lira, said Gürpınar.
"Another client was paying a monthly rent of $3,000, which is approximately 4,600 lira. She is now looking for an apartment with a rental price of 1,200 lira. In other words, she is looking for a place that would be four times less expensive than where she lives right now."
Another client, an engineer, lives in an apartment where he pays 2,000 lira. He is looking for a 1,000 lira apartment now, Gürpınar says. Many tenants are tired of paying for other monthly costs of their rented apartments, such as heating, the janitor’s salary and garden costs. "A client who was paying 2,800 lira for rent and 800 lira for other monthly costs moved to an apartment that was rented for 1,900 lira. Complexes with reasonable monthly costs are also becoming popular," she said.
Another trend among tenants, according to Gürpınar, is the increased wish to buy a small flat of their own: "Paying a huge sum of money every month is seen as throwing money into the bin. The current situation creates an opportunity for small investors. They can look out for small homes. If they do not have the financial means to buy a property, then the next option is halving their current rent."