Türkiye’s Ministry of Trade has fined a real estate business 28,620 lira after it advertised a flat online at 2 million lira, a figure that turned out to be only the down payment, the ministry said on Monday.
The case was reported by news agencies ANKA and İHA and carried by NTV and Sabah. The business and the location of the property were not named.
Down payment shown as the price
According to the ministry, a citizen called about the flat after seeing the listing and was told that the 2 million lira shown was the down payment (peşinat), not the sale price. The complaint was examined by the ministry’s Sectoral Trade and Movable Pledge Department, part of its General Directorate of Internal Trade, which imposed the administrative fine on the business that published the advert. Sabah said the listing appeared on a widely used online property portal and that the inspection was triggered by the citizen’s complaint, while NTV said a social media post had prompted it.
Bekir Kaplan, the ministry’s press and public relations adviser, said the listing had wasted the buyer’s time and could have led to a wrong decision. Prices stated in listings cannot be used to mislead consumers, he said, according to the reports, adding that the ministry would not tolerate practices that harm citizens.
Kaplan also said that many other advertisers in the same area had received similar penalties and that inspections and sanctions were continuing. He did not say how many listings were involved or where.
Part of a wider tightening of listing rules
The fine is small compared with property prices, but it is a sign that the ministry, which licenses estate agents and oversees property advertising, is watching online listings more closely. Last month the ministry tightened listing rules for foreign-owned homes, requiring identity and title deed checks through the electronic listing authorisation system before a property can be advertised. Istanbul estate agents have also pushed for curbs on brokers without a physical office.
What it means for buyers
Eye-catching low prices on portals and social media are a common way of drawing calls. Before travelling to a viewing, ask the agent in writing for the full sale price, what it includes and whether any payment plan applies, and check that the agent holds a valid ministry authorisation certificate. Buyers who believe a listing was misleading can complain to the Ministry of Trade, including through its consumer channels. Remember that the advertised price is only part of the cost: title deed fees, agency commission and other charges are covered in our explainer on the costs of buying a home in Türkiye, and our guide to buying property in Turkey as a foreigner explains the process step by step.
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Sources
- Ticaret Bakanlığı, peşinatı satış fiyatı gibi gösteren ilana 28 bin 620 TL ceza verdi (ANKA via Son Dakika)
- Yanıltıcı emlak ilanına 28 bin lira ceza (NTV)
- Emlak şirketinden "2 milyonluk" peşinat oyunu! Bakanlık sarı sitedeki o ilana cezayı kesti (Sabah/İHA)
Photo: Maurice Flesier / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
