The e-mail reads as follows: "I am writing to seek your help and possible intervention with regard to a property my wife and I bought in Kadriye, Antalya. … Monies were paid on the due dates. … Under the contract the property title should have been given to us in September 2006. In February/March 2007, my wife waited in Turkey for five weeks without getting the title. Each time we were told that there has been ‘a problem,' and then in September 2007 we were informed, for the very first time, that the title was still owned by Mr. Title-owner (not the seller/developer, but somebody else) who asked for 50,000 euros to sign over the title. … Mr. Title-owner spoke to the lawyer and then sent me a text message in which he stated that unless I paid him 50,000 euros he would sell our villa. … As previously stated, we had already paid this amount to Mr. Developer in September 2006, but we could not risk losing our villa, so we had to agree to pay again. Having agreed to this initially, Mr. Title-owner started to ask for interest, and then he decided he actually wanted us to pay him 170,000 euros, which is the sum that we have already paid to the builder -- Mr. Developer. Of course, we could not do this, and our lawyer is attempting to take further action."
As I have informed my readers many times before, the transfer of a property title can only take place at a land registry office. According to Turkish Civil Code Article 705, the transfer of a property title must be done before an authorized officer in a land registry office in order for the buyer to be considered the legal owner.
A contract signed between a buyer and seller is not really a binding sales agreement but rather, assuming it meets the requirements of Turkish law, a promise to sell. A promise-to-sell agreement is valid only if it is made before a notary public. However, notarizing the contract is not enough in most cases since the seller still has the power to place a mortgage on the property or sell it to another person. In short, a plain sales agreement does not force the seller to transfer the property title to the buyer.
In your case, you do have a written agreement which, technically speaking, is valid, but it is not really strong enough to force the seller to transfer the title. It does not fulfill the requirements of Turkish law as a promise-to-sell agreement through which you can make a claim allowing you to register the title without the intervention of the seller if he refuses to make the transfer. You can make a claim in civil court that, due to his failure to transfer the property title, you would like to get back the money you paid. This option would take longer and have less of an impact on the seller. Your other option is to speak to a prosecutor as soon as possible and inform him that both Mr. Developer and Mr. Title-owner are clearly defrauding you. The written contract and your payment receipts are valuable evidence in this case. Keep in mind that it is vital to submit all documents supporting your claim to the prosecutor, and I hope that you have some written communication and the text message so you can prove the fraud and extortion.
Good luck with your case.
NOTE: Berk Çektir is a licensed attorney at law and available to answer questions on the legal aspects of living in Turkey. Send enquiries to b.cektir@todayszaman.com. The names of the readers are disclosed only upon written approval of the sender..DISCLAIMER: The information provided here is intended to give basic legal information. You should get legal assistance from a licensed attorney at law while conducting legal transactions and not just rely on the information in this corner.
