[U-for-kofte]

Some of the threads I read really make my hair stand on end here. Whoever you are , whatever you buy, and whoever from, it is VITAL you employ a lawyer. It doesn't matter if someone says the agent is great or rubbish that is not the issue. Your Lawyer will see that fair play is done.
Would you buy a house in the UK without a lawyer? no! so why do it here in a strange and alien country where you do not know the full rules.
In Spain it was the same, people coming along and buying and handing over wads of cash to agents who then "did one" with the dosh. When I lived in Spain,I happened to be at Malaga airport one day when loads of Guardia piled ınto the airport and when I got home saw on the news they had got a guy who was about to "do one" with around 1/2 million euro's of folks deposits! Don't do it, use a lawyer and go home with your mind at rest. Whats a grand compared to losing thousands?? You know if you buy a Rolls Royce, some have been known to fail, then you hear "Don't buy a roller, they're crap! another will say "brilliant cars". So personally I would ignore comments about certain agents, as all will have good and bad reports for some reason or other, as long as they are reg. lıcenced etc. and you EMPLOY a lawyer, you should enjoy your purchasing experience here.

[jamela]

This really made my hair stand on end. We met a couple in Kusadasi last year. who happened to be from the same town as us. They had -bought?- an apartment through a friend who was the girlfriend of a turkish boy. They handed over £30,000 in November in good faith, the girlfriend passed it on to the boy, who sent them details, pictures and keys to their new appartment in Kus. It was now May and their first time in Turkey and they had arrived at the address only to find that the keys did not fit and the apartment was occupied. Finding that they had nowhere to stay and, they had brought her elderly parents with them, the owner of the apartments took them to a hotel and made contact with the boyfriend, who still have the money. The woman stayed on while the husband took the parents home, She called to see me when she returned to Ireland, but I missed her, she told my daughter that she eventually got it sorted out and got her money back.

[ally]

Hi Jamela

Was your friend and her husband celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary whilst they were in Turkey? We helped a couple from Derry last year who found themselves in the same situation; paid the money to an AGENT but the keys didnt fit the front door.
This lady also stayed on for a further week whilst the husband & parents went home to Derry.

Alison

[jamela]

Hi Ally
Thats the same people, I was back in Turkey when she called to see me. My husband met her husband in a garage here in Ireland and he was telling him that she had a few more trips to kusadasi before it was sorted out, I believe that they got an apartment, not the one they orginally thought they had. They are not happy, and he said he will never be back in Turkey. Who could blame them, but I cant understand why they handed over so much money to a complete stranger.
Majella

[ally]

Hi Jamela

Thats the problem; some people are too quick to hand money over for something that they think is a great deal.
But the people she paid were proper estate agents and deal with mostly irish people as the wife is the south of ireland and does some shows there.
İ have to say that they didnt help these people one bit and didnt seem too concerned about what happened.
My husband went and sorted it out for them even though we had never met them before; got a solicitor arranged etc.
We bumped into them again when they came out later in the year.
Not a very good start to what was a dream holiday home for them.

Alison

[Aegean2]

A major problem is the bizarre law preventing the legal profession in Turkey from advertising. Some might say that would be a relief but it does limit the access to independent legal help to word of mouth. While this too is a good way of finding legal representation, a wider access would surely be better.

I think the time has come to ignore agents who say the will handle all the legalities for buyers (and there are some who do a good job) and engage your own legal advisor.