Russians top foreign buyers as Turkish house sales rise 38.8%

Turkish house sales rose 38.8 per cent in April (133,058 houses), data from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed on Tuesday, with more than double the houses sold to Russians compared to a month ago as they sought a financial haven.

Sales to foreigners rose 58.1 per cent, the institute said. Russian citizens rose to the top of the list in April with 1,152 houses from 547 in March.

They were followed by Iranians and Iraqis.

Wealthy Russians are pouring money into real estate in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, seeking a financial haven in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and Western sanctions, many property companies say.

The data also showed April mortgaged sales rose 82.9 per cent from a year earlier to 32,030, accounting for 24.1 per cent of the total sales in the period.