The Purchase Process

There are 4 types of title deeds offered in North Cyprus. The process to purchase your property is dependent on which title deed your property holds.

Freehold - Foreign Title
This is property owned by European residents, (eg. British, German, Dutch). The title deed is internationally recognised. There are a number of checks to be carried out by the Council of Ministers, which means the sale will take approx. 3-12 months to complete.

Freehold - Turkish Title
This is property Turkish Cypriot owned prior to 1974. There are a number of checks to be carried out by the Council of Ministers, which means the sale will take approx. 3-12 months to complete.

TRNC Title
This property was previously Greek Cypriot owned prior to 1974. Again there are a number of checks to be carried out by the Council of Ministers, which means the sale will take approx. 3-12 months to complete. TRNC Title Deeds are considered safe to purchase.

Leasehold Title
The Government owns this property. Long-term leases are granted for 49 years. You can apply directly or via a solicitor to the Ministry of Tourism to transfer the lease.

However, there are a number of lengthy in-depth checks carried out by the Ministry of Interior, mainly to determine that the property titles are free from encumbrances, this of course, is of benefit to you, the purchaser.

So what is the process for buying a freehold property?

  • Decide on a property and agree a price.
  • Contracts will then be drawn up by a solicitor, setting out the terms of sale: price, timescale, purchaser and vendor details and any other relevant conditions including the payment plan for new-build properties.
  • Signing of contracts by vendor and purchaser.
  • Purchaser provides an agreed deposit.
  • Solicitor applies for your purchase permit from the Council of Ministers.
  • Once the purchase permit has been issued, the remaining balance is due from the purchaser.
  • The vendor will then sign the title deed into the name of the purchaser, stamp duty will be paid and this is known as transfer of title deeds.

SO THE SALE IS ACCOMPLISHED!

The process to purchase a property in Northern Cyprus will be entirely dependant on the tenure of the property you decide is right for you.

As you will be aware there are 4 types of Title Deeds - 'Foreign Title', English, German etc, 'Original Foreign' pre 1974, 'Turkish Title', Turkish prior to 1974 and 'TRNC Title', previously Greek owned prior to 1974. There are also leasehold properties - owned by the Ministry of Tourism, who grant long-term leases of 49 years. To purchase a Freehold title property, there are a number of checks carried out by the Ministry of Interior. This will inevitably mean the sale will take approximately 3-12 months to be completed.

The process for buying any freehold property is as follows:

  1. Secure property and agree price.
  2. Contract drawn up by solicitor, setting down the terms of sale, i.e. price, timescale, vendor, purchaser and any special conditions.
  3. Vendor and purchaser sign.
  4. Purchaser provides 10-20% deposit.
  5. Solicitor applies for a Purchase Permit from the Council of Ministers.
  6. As soon as purchase permit is received, remaining balance (stage payments) due from purchaser.
  7. Purchaser pays balance and vendor signs title deed into name of purchaser.
  8. Sale completed.

COSTS:
Solicitors cost, including; drawing up of contract, power of attorney, purchase permit application and seeing sale through to completion approximately £ 1,000.

Process for buying a leasehold property is as follows:

The process to purchase is much the same as freehold purchases, however, instead of an application going to the Ministry of Interior, you must apply either directly or via a solicitor to the Ministry of Tourism, who grant the lease.

At the time of application a deposit of 10-20% must be paid and held on behalf of the vendor. Once application is accepted the sale can proceed to a completion at a convenient time for vendor and purchaser and then the lease is transferred into name of the buyer.

  1. Secure property and price.
  2. Contract drawn up by solicitor agreeing terms and conditions.
  3. Vendor and purchaser sign.
  4. Vendor applies to Tourism Office to transfer lease.
  5. Purchaser applies to take over lease. (May include personal interview)
  6. Once Purchaser application is approved, 10-20% deposit transferred.
  7. On completion, remaining balance paid over to vendor and lease transferred.
  8. Sale completed.

COSTS:
Application for purchase permit and Solicitors legal costs are approximately £1,000.
Stamp Duty which is levied by Land Registry is 3% (%5 for VAT)

All above prices are subject to change.

CONSTRUCTION & PLANING
If you wish to purchase land and build a house or villa, the laws are as follows:
Outside the Municipal boundaries, there are restrictions on the area that one can build on 20% of the land area, and a height restriction of two stories.

There are good architects and engineers who will plan and design your villa at reasonable rates. We are pleased to be able to recommend reliable practices for interested clients. Once the plans have been lodged with the District Office, work may commence.

Land in North Cyprus is measured in donums.

1 donum = 1338 m2 or 14400 ft2
1 donum consists of 4 evleks
1 evlek = 3600 ft2
1 acre = 3 donums

Building costs vary, depending on finishing and quality of materials used. Most buildings are constructed in the reinforced concrete frame system that is prevalent in the Mediterranean countries. Buildings tend to be over-specified, but this can only be an advantage to the buyer. Materials are readily available from Turkey, Spain, Italy, Germany and UK.

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