The Exploded House in Turkbuku Bodrum not for the faint-hearted
2013-06-27 01:32:30
Dreamed up by the Turkish architect Gokhan Avcioglu and made a reality in 2001, this Turkbuku home is known as the “Exploded House”, due to its fragmented design.
As you’d expect in a home of this calibre, the fittings and fixtures exude quiet luxury. The kitchen’s Gaggenau appliances and Corian countertops are sleek and unobtrusive. The living area’s Focus woodburner is ideal for cool evenings. A circular roof holds a 3.5 by 15 metre pool. This also acts as a natural cooling system for the property.
A pair of glass doors provide passage from the living area to a large terrace surrounding the pool. This terrace connects the main house with a two-bedroom, two-bathroom guest suite. A 327 square metre lower level could be converted into another unit.
Property Turkey director Cameron Deggin says the Exploded House is “the ultimate hideaway that’s just minutes from one of Turkey’s best resorts”. What he means is that while this 1.4 acre property, ensconced in its garden of olive, oleander and bougainvillea, is the perfect refuge for anyone craving tranquillity, its proximity to the heady action of Turkbuku means another world is never far away.
Turkbuku is around 45 minutes drive from Milas-Bodrum International Airport, which connects Bodrum to wider Europe and the Middle East.
Over the past ten years, Turkey’s real estate market has gone from strength to strength, bolstered by a strong economy, rapidly growing cities, consumer lending and a leap in construction in urban areas. Knight Frank data released this year shows that in the first quarter of 2013 Turkey was the seventh overall fastest-growing real estate market in the world, with prices growing by 11.5 per cent in a year’s period.
“The levels of foreign investment in Turkey are growing year on year,” said Deggin. “Despite global economic uncertainty Turkey’s growth has remained steady. Investors are of course attracted to stable conditions. The market is doing very well.”
Deggin dismissed fears of a property bubble. “Low bank lending, coupled with a large population who need housing mean that conditions are likely to remain favourable for a long time.”
The recent unrest, with protests against the government still ongoing in major cities, has not affected the Bodrum peninsula, or indeed many coastal areas, he said.
The top foreign buyers so far in 2013 have been Russians, Deggin said, closely followed by buyers from Germany, Britain, USA, Sweden, Ukraine and Norway. Relaxed regulations for Middle Eastern buyers has also seen an increasing number of buyers from Gulf countries.
Deggin said that the average price for a two- to three-bedroom apartment on the Bodrum peninsula is 115,000 Euro. High end homes start at around 500,000 Euro.
To read the full article featured in the New York Times, please click here.