Top 5 reasons to buy real estate in Antalya

Beaches - Sandra Dean, United Kingdom

First up - the obvious choice: any list chronicling Antalya’s charms is bound to mention the seaside. Sandra says that’s probably because Turkey’s beaches are “among the best I’ve seen. Side’s in particular is fantastic - a long stretch of white sand, and it’s quite shallow so brilliant for young kids.”

“We [a family of five] prefer Side as it’s become something of a family tradition to spend our summers there. Now that the kids are a bit older they love visiting the arcades and the shops, while my husband and I like chilling out in one of the beach cafes.”

The Dean family are planning to buy an apartment in Side which they will spend two weeks in each summer and rent out to other families the rest of the time.

“We worked out that we will earn around £3000 each year from rentals which, for a family of five, will come in very handy.”

City - Katya Dembinski, Russia

Katya recently bought an apartment on Konyaalti Beach, which she lets to a professional couple.

“Antalya is a very popular destination for Russians and there are more and more business opportunities appearing for both countries. It’s also just a really great city - the old town is beautiful, there are good restaurants and cafes, the nightlife is amazing, there are museums and the beach is close by and easy to reach.”

Antalya’s population has grown exponentially in the last decade or so and Katya believes that this is due to the strong economy. “People are coming from all around the country to work here, especially the young people. There are jobs available and you can see the city is prospering with the extra investment in its economy. All the new arrivals need property - and that’s why Antalya is one of the best places for investment right now.”  Relatively low property prices, coupled with a limited building area and a strong economy, mean the chance to make money by investing in property is an appealing one.

“I earn around 5% of the total value of the property each year in rental, and property values are rising by 10% each year. I have steady tenants who are managed under a reliable management scheme.”

Katya is planning to add to her portfolio with an off plan apartment scheduled for completion next year. “property for sale in Antalya is so attractive from an investment viewpoint because unlike other big centres like Istanbul you don’t need to be a multi-millionaire to get your foot in the door. With as little as 50,000 euros of investment you can still see significant returns.”

Golf - David Bates, UK

To some people, golf is a hobby to be indulged at the weekend. To others, it’s a religion. David claims his love of the game led to the breakdown of his marriage. “But that’s ok - I have more time for golf now,” he laughs.

The British engineer living in Dubai picked Turkish golf hotspot Belek as his new second home.  “ There’s a sound reason that you see more and more pros in Belek now. This town has some of the best golf courses I’ve seen anywhere,” he explains. “There are now so many of them I’ve lost track, but I try and get round all of them each year if I can.”

David bought a small golf villa in Belek, where he spends at least 10 weeks of the year. “The simply brilliant thing is that you can play golf all year round in Belek. It does get a bit hot over the summer though so I play in the evenings.”

“I received a free membership to the nearest golf club when I bought this villa, so I feel as though I need to get my money’s worth now.”

Sightseeing and the great outdoors - The Gonnet family, France

“We can be in Antalya in a matter of hours,” says Pierre, who regularly travels to Turkey with his wife and three children. “From the airport we hire a car and explore the coastline.”

The investment banker says the family are “crazy about the outdoors” and love hiking, rafting, skiing and horse riding. “One of our favourite outdoor places is Manavgat,” he says. “You can hike, raft, go canyoning - for this reason we usually stay in Side.”

Pierre says the family try to explore heritage sites. “The boys don’t like ruins as much as they do swimming and sailing, but even they were impressed by Termessos [ancient city in the mountains], although it was a bit of a hike to get there.” Pierre is impressed by Turkey’s efforts to make its history as accessible as possible. “In Side you can walk among the ancient stones and try to imagine ancient civilisations. It’s breathtaking.”

Lifestyle - Bill and Joan West, United Kingdom

“We moved here around two years ago straight after Joan retired,” says Bill. “We now live in Kemer full time.”

The beach resort of Kemer is around 45 minutes from Antalya Centre and Airport.

“We wanted somewhere that was warm all year round, and quiet, but also near hospitals and supermarkets,” Joan adds. “Kemer is close enough to the city for easy access, Bill sometimes has hospital appointments and we will spend the day in Antalya picking up bits and pieces and trying out a new restaurant.”

“From our Kemer villa we have views of mountains and pine forests, it’s so peaceful,” she says. “During the summer it gets pretty busy, both in the centre and at our place as we often have family visiting. But we are quite far from the centre so the lively goings-on don’t affect us too much.”