Re: Buying advice - split from Hello

[maryharvie]

Hi Andy,  Me and my wife brought a villa last year, we used a local Kalkan firm called " Kalkan Horizons " run by a English lady called Lea and her Turkish husband Soner,  I can only talk form our experience, they helped us through the buying process and lots lots more, we could not of done it without them, as a matter of fact they are still helping us now, as I sure you will know, the "things to do " list''''s don''''t stop when you sign for your dream home in the sun ! , they have only just started, sorting out all the services you will need ( Water, gas, phone, Internet, furniture) the list is endless, and fun at the same time ,and sorting outany problems you are sure to come across. It can be really hard work at times but the end result is truly worth the effort. If you would like their contact details please send me a PM. I wish you every success in your search or you dream villa in Kalkan

Linkback: https://www.enjoykalkan.com/forum/index.php?topic=2914.0

[kim21]

Hi Maryh, I wish you all the happiness in your new villa,
 as you bought quite recently you could help us, who are also thinking of buying, and Abbo who began the thread, what kind of offer did you put in on the villa, and what kind of per centage was the purchase price to the asking price?
 Any of the established estate agents will get you thru the purchase and set up of services process, this is a matter of course, but did they help you to get the right price?

[maryharvie]

Hi Kim21,

I don''''t really want to go into to much detail about our finances, as I''''m sure you understand, but in answer to your question, yes, our agents (Lea & Soner) did a great job in helping us to get the best deal possible

[kim21]

 what is your view as to the size of offers that may be possible based on the prices contained on the Property sites in the current market?  We are looking for a 3/4 bedroom villa.

Is the original question that abbo posed, not any personal finance info. on this thread
Not an advert, for lea''''s estate agency lea

[Hummingbird]

Hi Kim21

Looks like we are looking for a similar villa and have similar questions/concerns.  For some reason I do feel a little more nervous buying in Turkey than I would say in Spain.  I accept this is probably ilogical and after all my experience of Turkey is as yet very limited.  We are going over in July so will contact some agents in advance.

I feel that a 20% offer from the quoted price must be the absolute minimum, but I need lots more reseacrh before I can conclude a fair price, in the current market. 

Do members agree?  Also have you found a local Independent solicitor yet?
regards
Abbo

[Chucky]

Below is a link that Jon posted. It is a good starting point.
http://www.turkisheconomy.org.uk/buying_property.html
Then have a look through some of the threads on the Owner''s section as there is lots of good advice and info. If either of you need any advise or help just post a question and we will do our best to help you.
Joan

[Hummingbird]

Thank JoanH, the link looks very useful.
regards
Abbo

[kim21]

Thanks Joan, but the information in the owners section is a little out of date, and doesn''t really answer the question.
with so many unsold new properties and so many people trying to sell the propeties they have bought, what kind of realistic offer is possible based on the prices contained on the property sites in the current market?

Here''s another question members might be able to help with; a pool costs between 600tl and 1200tl per year to clean, fill and maintain with chemicals costing no more than 300tl per year, how much does a maintenance company charge to maintain the pool for you?
 regards kim

[felicity]

Hi Kim21

These sorts of questions are REALLY difficult to give categoric answers as no one size fits all!  Even for your pool maintentance question (which has also been covered before - if you do a search).  Most maintenance contracts will cover pool and garden at the bare minimum and some like ours, covers meet and greet of guests, cleaning and light maintenance etc etc so breaking each element down is impossible and of course the amount of pool maintenance and gardening depends on sizes of pools and gardens too so it is SOOO difficult to quantify unless you can compare to an exact match to your own property...!! 

Sorry - we are not trying to be unhelpful or avoid the answers - just so difficult to answer...!!  All very subjective!

Cheers!

[kim21]

Thanks for your reply felicity,
I appreciate it must be difficult to break down maintenance into individual pieces of maintenance, so how much might one expect to pay for an all inclusive maintenance package on say a 3 or 4 bed villa with pool and a small garden, roughly?

[Cosetta]

The question of what percentage off ask price is obviously a matter of how much the owner wants or needs to sell.  We would not sell our villa more than 5% below our asking price, meaning, we will wait 10 years if need be.  I''m sure though that other owners, especially Turkish owners who need to cover their loans, will be more accommodating.

Regarding maintenance and pool costs, a friend who just bought a small villa with a small garden and small pool signed a contract for 1,200 pounds / year for garden and pool maintenance.  In past before we bought the pool wizard, our pool chemical costs were higher than the ytl 300 you quoted.  We use the imported CTX chemicals, these are quite expensive.  However, with the pool wizard we''ve bought very little chlorine, mostly acid as the water here is very alkaline and that encourages the growth of algae.

As for someone to maintain just the pool, we have someone who can do that (but he already has too much work to also maintain a garden unless very small).

[howmad]

The question you should be asking is what you are prepared to offer for a particular villa. Some villas are badly built and would be a bad buy at any cost while some well built villas are a bargain at the asking price.To look for a percentage off cost is not always possible . You need to research the villas you like, the builders and talk to owners who have bought their villas. The cost to repair a problem can be enormous and you get all sorts of horror stories. That said when you see your perfect villa sense can fly out of the window. There is plenty of time, so research while holidaying is the key and if in doubt do more research and come back for another holiday.

[Cosetta]

Howmad, what you say is absolutely true.  I have friends who paid "a reasonable price" for their villa bought from the local builder, then to repair it, spent half that again.  The best advice is really to ask people who have bought villas from the builder in question.

[kim21]

I guess the next question must be do forum users or buyers have a particular surveying company that they use? Is there a good surveyor in kalkan and what kind of service and survey do they give? Is it best to get a structural survey or a full building survey?
 Surely the results of how well built a property is or what problems there might be with a property will come out after the survey is done.

[felicity]

mmm - trouble is Kim - turkey ain''t england - and it really isnt as cut and dry as all that...!!  I dont know if there are ANY surveying services and even if there were - chances are they might be in the pocket of the builder/developer/agent and therefore will say or sign anything and chances are - that you would have the devils own battle on your hands if you decided to take it to court.

Certainly - when we bought our villa and when i talk to other people - structural surveys just are not done....it didnt even occur to us to have one done...we simply trusted (maybe foolishly in hindsight) the various checks (??) that the Belediye do and the photos of the construction that we saw prior to purchase....  So far, maybe we are lucky - but nothing major or structural has come to light - just poor workmanship which seems par for the course in all mediterranean countries except those properties that you pay through the nose for...!!

I hope that makes some sense... 

[Wendy]

Kim / Abbo I have sent you a PM re buying. If you want any in depth information please feel free to get in touch.
Cheers
Wendy

[Cosetta]

By asking people about specific builders / contractors, you can get a rough idea what you are getting into.  There are reputable builders and many disreputable ones.  There are also specific questions that should be asked.  One of the main ones is:  what kind of insulation has been put in the roof?  Is it guaranteed leakproof?  Idem for the windows and doors.  If the builder won''t give a written guarantee, then buyer beware.

[kalkan wife]

I would also suggest you consider 2nd owner villa''s (not new) as any teething problems, and indeed any major faults (I know of a villa that needed a new roof when water started pouring down the stairs!), should have been ironed out by the (sometimes unfortunate) first owner.

[christopple]

I agree with the previous comment we had to have a new roof and complete re build of the pool due to leaking of both.

[kim21]

I guess new roofs and pools aren''t too expensive in Turkey?
Leaky roofs do seem to be a bit of a recurring theme, how do you know if you buy a brand new villa that it won''t have a leaky roof or pool?
   About how much should you keep back off the price for such eventualities?
Why do pools and roofs leak, is it the par for the course poor workmanship or is it something to do with the building materials?
 thanks for all your help