Türkiye registered 127,410 home sales in August 2026, 14.7% fewer than a year earlier, according to TÜİK's release on 17 September. The headline decline was not uniform: mortgaged transactions rose 7.2% to 22,131, while first sales fell 4.5% and second-hand sales fell 19.4%. Sales to foreign nationals were broadly flat at 1,938 and represented only 1.5% of the national market. The data measure registered transactions, not asking prices, investment returns or future demand.
First and second-hand markets moved differently
First sales totalled 44,378, down 4.5% year on year. Second-hand sales reached 83,032, a steeper 19.4% decline. That split matters because it describes transaction activity in new and existing homes; it does not show whether one segment became cheaper or more profitable.
Mortgaged sales rose, but remained a minority
There were 22,131 mortgaged home sales, up 7.2% from August 2025 and equal to 17.4% of all transactions. The remaining 105,279 sales were recorded under other sale types and fell 18.2%. A higher mortgage count does not mean every buyer, especially a non-resident, can obtain the same rate, term or approval.
Foreign buyers were 1.5% of the market
Foreign nationals bought 1,938 homes, 0.1% more than a year earlier. Russian citizens led the nationality table with 343 transactions, followed by Ukrainian citizens with 147 and Iranian citizens with 140. Nationality in this table does not establish residence, purchase purpose, property value or eligibility for citizenship.
The eight-month totals remain lower
From January through August, 950,529 homes changed hands, 6.8% fewer than in the same period of 2025. Sales to foreign nationals totalled 13,141, down 6.3%. One nearly flat month therefore does not reverse the weaker year-to-date foreign-buyer trend.
How an international buyer should use the figures
Treat the release as a liquidity and activity indicator. Compare the specific province, neighbourhood, title deed, valuation, building status, taxes and exit costs before making a decision. The transaction count cannot replace an appraisal, legal due diligence or the new secure-payment preparations that become mandatory on 1 October 2026.
Dünya — detailed report of TÜİK's 17 September 2026 release →