If you are not familiar with Turkey’s geography, you may not have heard about Calis, a small seaside resort on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Belonging to the Fethiye Peninsula, its nearby touristic attractions of the Blue Lagoon in Oludeniz or the ghost village of Kayakoy often overshadow its presence. Yet, British holidaymakers highly favour Calis, and it has turned into a pleasant expat destination. Reasons, why property buyers chose Calis as their preferred place to relocate, are plenty.
One of the biggest questions people ask themselves about buying property in Turkey is the language barrier. Since Calis is already an established holiday resort and expat haven, most of the locals speak English, and it is easy to navigate daily life.
Of course, we recommend that if you plan to live there, do try, and learn some new words because this will help you to break the ice with locals and make Turkish friends as well. It will also help you to follow local Turkish news. Licenced and registered translators are available should you encounter difficulties but problems regarding the language barrier are rare.
Calis is an ideal beach holiday destination, so long-term property investors looking to cash in on their purchase by renting out their property have many amenities and attributes to boast about. Obviously, the first is the long stretch of sand at the front of the resort, with sun loungers as well as bars and restaurants nearby. Communal or private swimming pools are also a focal point of most properties.
Known as one of the best places to watch the sunset, restaurants and bars for al-fresco dining feature many cuisines including English and International. Eating and drinking out is cheap and affordable, as is food shopping for a self-catering apartment. The weekly market where fresh, organic fruit and veg are the stars of the day, is a highlight of the week, otherwise large supermarkets stock everything a family needs for a beach vacation.
Companies within the resort advertise rental properties but these days, with the popularity of free advertising on self-rent websites such as Air BNB or Owners Direct, the possibility to broaden promotion campaigns to a wide audience is there. Of course, don’t forget word of mouth advertising between family and friends as well.
For those considering making a permanent move to Fethiye, Calis has an established expat community. This certainly comes in handy for an active social life and making friends. Some people have formed groups for activities such as walking, evening entertainment, or helping charities, and the locals are used to a large foreign community so you will also find it easy to make Turkish friends.
However, more importantly, this is an established network of knowledgeable people experienced in regulations such as residency processes, tips for living here, learning the language and any other small issues that may arise.
Although the resort is an entity in itself, the frequent transport network with the neighbouring hub of Fethiye opens up the possibility to travel cheaply to anywhere else in Turkey. To get about in Calis, you don’t need a car and on those hot summer evenings, the water taxi to Fethiye is frequent and cheap. Calis is also close to the main airport of Dalaman and a private transfer time is just an hour and a half.
Although Calis is a holiday resort mainly operating between May and October, it still receives 300 days of sunshine a year. Many people live there all year round, and the weather climate is milder than places like Istanbul that receive even snow in winter. The Mediterranean climate of Calis is hot summers and mild, wet winters, although rainfall only typically occurs for two months of the year that is February and March.
When Turkey first allowed foreigners to buy property, Calis was neither ready nor fully equipped for the rush of investors eager to take advantage of low prices. The first people to buy in Calis were generally restricted to a choice of off-plan apartments and villas or old style Turkish dwellings.
Fast forward to present day and buyers have a lot more to choose from including re-sale and renovation projects. Buildings standards have also highly improved during this time when architectural styles adopted a more modern and international concept. Therefore, whereas investors ten years ago were limited, these days, Calis really is a ripe buyer’s market.
Although Calis is now established, the infancy of the Turkish real estate market in general means that buyers looking for a long-term investment have a lot of potential simply because prices are still low. In 2016, The Guardian newspaper in the UK reported that the average price of houses in the UK was £200,000.
Statistics said in 2016 that although some remote inland areas of Spain were selling property cheaply, the average price was £100,000. In Calis, a two bedroom apartment starts from roughly £65,000 while for £220,000, you can get a four bedroom fully furnished villa with swimming pool and within walking distance of the beach.
See our full range of properties for sale in Calis here and just fill in the enquiry form if you would like to receive more details including pictures and information about Calis.
Further Reading: Calis Beach belongs to the Fethiye region of Turkey that we frequently appear on our blog. Listing things to do, helpful local tips and much more, the series of articles that you can read here will help you to get to know the Fethiye region of Mediterranean Turkey.