Turkey’s middle class priced out of home ownership
Buying a home has become an elusive dream even for middle-class professionals in Turkey as the country’s economic woes erupt into a perfect storm over the housing market.
A home loan facility by the government has caused little excitement in Turkey as skyrocketing real estate prices and melting purchasing power make home ownership a distant dream even for middle-class professionals.
The relatively cheap loans, announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan May 9, came amid unprecedented turmoil in the housing market. Home prices have doubled over a year, outpacing the overall consumer inflation, which hit 70% in April, stoked mainly by the severe depreciation of the Turkish lira since last year.
Alper Ozkok, a physician and faculty member at a university hospital in Ankara, is among millions who feel priced out of suitable homes even after the loan facility. “As a doctor of 12 years, I’m now unable to buy a home in Ankara,” he told Al-Monitor.
Ozkok and his wife, also a health care worker, thought of purchasing an apartment when their landlord asked them to move out before the loan package was introduced. “We reasoned that we’d rather buy a home than pay 5,000 liras [$313] for rent,” the 35-year-old said, noting that he and his wife bring in 25,000 liras ($1,570) a month together.
