Lack of livelihood revealed a new real estate model!
The economic crisis in Turkey and the livelihood of the citizens have revealed a new type of real estate advertisement. Advertisements for rented and for sale houses, as well as for rented roommates, flatmates, and shared houses are now appearing in the real estate sector in big cities such as Istanbul. Even in Bağcılar, Esenyurt and Sultanbeyli, which are known as the cheap settlements of Istanbul, house rents exceeded the minimum wage. The exorbitant hikes in electricity, natural gas and water on top of the increased rents doubled the billing costs. As this is the case, the number of citizens who cannot meet the costs of a house alone has also peaked recently. As the Milli Gazete, we interviewed the owners of the advertisements regarding the thousands of advertisements ‘we are looking for roommates’ on real estate sites on the Internet and included the problems they experienced in our news.
“HOUSE EXPENSES HAVE INCREASED MUCH NOW”
Rabia K., who she is looking for a flatmate to share the expenses of her house in Istanbul Kağıthane, she said, “I am now looking for a roommate for the house where I have lived with my brother for years. I have no choice but to rent the room that was vacated by my brother. The expenses of this house, which I used to pay for it alone, have now increased considerably. Moreover, my salary is above the average, but the rising house prices due to the economic crisis made it necessary to live with a roommate.” Ömer Şık, who is preparing for marriage, said, “I have been living alone in Istanbul for about 2 years, but now I am looking for a flatmate due to increasing costs and high rent. I'm going to get married soon so I need to save money. I receive a salary more than twice the minimum wage, but I cannot live in a house alone in Istanbul.”
DEMAND INCREASES RENTAL
Increasing demand for housing in metropolitan areas has increased rental prices. The monthly rent increase rate was 34,46 percent. Housing rents continue to rise. According to the data of the Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT), the rent increase rate in May is 34,46 percent.
Despite the high prices for rental and sale housing in real estate offices in Istanbul, there is a high demand. Real estate agents say that foreigners' demand for housing also increases housing prices. In addition, the increase in construction costs and the insufficient housing stock cause an increase in rental prices.
ÇOBANOĞLU: “HIGH DEMAND IN LARGE NEIGHBORHOODS”
Realtor Orhan Çobanoğlu, who stated that the rent increases will continue and the demand for big districts increases, said, “People have difficulty in finding a house because there is too much foreign demand, and the prices are rising in the right direction proportionally. Foreigners generally prefer big cities. Demand is high for Esenyurt, Bahçelievler, Büyükçekmece and Beylikdüzü. Supply and demand are not being met in the houses here. Since housing production is currently very low, prices have risen normally. Housing costs have skyrocketed. The construction industry stagnated. If we compare it with last year, we can say that there is a cost increase of approximately 150 percent. Cement, which was 18 Turkish Liras (TL) last year, is now 70 TL. Based on this, housing production cost is very high. I think the rent increases will continue.”
ÇOBANOĞLU: “ABNORMAL RENTAL INCREASES CONTINUE”
Stating that citizens have difficulty in finding rental houses, Çobanoğlu added, “The demand for new buildings for sale is very high. When we look at the apartments for rent, the demand is much more higher than for sale. If urban transformations accelerate and increase, people can find the opportunity to live in more beautiful and new buildings. The rent of the apartments in Bahçelievler starts from 2,000 TL and goes up to 14,000 TL. There is an increase of 3 to 1 in rent increases. There are landlords who increase their rent more than they deserve. In this case, it disrupts the order of the market. Another landlords by seeing this, they say ‘the rents have risen’ and they want to raise the rent of their flats as well, and there is always an abnormal increase.”
ÇELİK: “THE MONEY I EARN IS NOT ENOUGH TO LIVE IN A HOME ALONE”
Mehmet Ş., who shared the housemate ad for Istanbul Beylikdüzü, said, “I shared the ad for my mother-in-law. She has been living at home with his son for 10 years. However, they can no longer afford to bear the cost of rent and invoices. When the landlord wanted to increase the rent from 2,000 TL to 6,000 TL, they had to rent a room in the house. My mother-in-law is getting a pension and her son is working, but now two people can't keep up because the cost of a house has increased.”
Expressing that he has lived alone in Istanbul for 15 years, Mehmet Çelik said, “I could stay in a house by myself for all these years, but now I am looking for a roommate. Because the money I earn is not enough for me to live alone in a house. I am retired and have to work in an extra job. I am complaining about the economic crisis that caused me to become this way after the age of 55.”