In 2026, property sale and purchase transactions are carried out at land registry offices (tapu müdürlüğü) across Turkey in numbers reaching the hundreds of thousands every month, and in a significant proportion of these transactions buyers sign without adequately reviewing the legal history of the property being sold. Law No. 7579 on Amendments to the Land Registry Law and Certain Other Laws, which entered into force in May 2026 (Official Gazette: 22.05.2026, No. 33261), brought wide-ranging changes to land registry, zoning and cadastre matters, yet fraud methods such as forged powers of attorney and multiple sales remain among the most common causes of disputes. Against this backdrop, a handful of checks carried out at the land registry before buying an apartment can prevent a lawsuit that might otherwise drag on for years.
Why the Public Nature of the Land Registry Matters So Much
The provisions of the Turkish Civil Code governing the land registry are based on the principle that entries in the registry can be examined by anyone, and that third parties acting in good faith may rely on those entries. This principle of publicity gives the buyer an important right: rather than relying on the seller’s word, the buyer has the right to view and verify the title deed (TAPU) record in person.
Consider Ayşe Hanım, who wants to buy an apartment in Istanbul and relies on an old photocopy of the title deed shown to her by the person advertising the property, without checking whether the record has since changed. Yet the current title deed record may show a lien or mortgage registered only a few months earlier, information the old photocopy will not reflect. For this reason, every review should begin with an up-to-date record obtained as close as possible to the transaction date.
Verifying the Owner’s Identity and Power of Attorney
A significant share of real estate disputes in Turkey arise when a sale is carried out not by the actual owner but through a forged or misused power of attorney (vekaletname). The method typically works as follows: the fraudster obtains the real owner’s identity information, has a power of attorney drawn up before a notary using forged documents, and then sells the property to a third party.
The most concrete safeguard here is that, if the transaction is being carried out through a proxy (vekil), the power of attorney should be verified against the notary’s records and, where possible, confirmed by contacting the owner directly. For instance, if a proxy is selling on behalf of a foreign investor living abroad, the power of attorney’s validity date, its scope (whether it specifically authorizes a sale) and the notary office that issued it must all be checked. A face-to-face or video call with the owner is a simple, cost-free yet effective verification step.
The same property being sold to more than one buyer is a related risk; for this reason, the consistency between the date of the last transaction on the title deed record and the date of the sales agreement should also be reviewed.
How to Check for Mortgages, Liens and Annotations
Through TAKBİS, the electronic infrastructure of the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, an owner can check mortgage, lien and annotation records relating to their property free of charge via e-Devlet (the government’s e-services portal). Since this inquiry can only be made directly by the owner, however, the practical route available to a buyer is to request an up-to-date WebTapu document from the seller; this document can be verified via a QR code and should generally have been obtained within the preceding 24 hours.
Take a concrete example: a buyer interested in an apartment in Kadıköy who sees a bank mortgage annotation on the WebTapu document provided by the seller should have the contract clearly state whether this mortgage will be deducted from the sale price and at what stage the discharge (terkin) will be recorded at the land registry. In transfers made without the mortgage record being closed, the buyer may later find themselves exposed to the bank’s enforcement rights.
Lien annotations should be assessed in the same way: if the property carries a lien arising from an enforcement proceeding, a sale carried out without this record being removed poses a serious legal risk for the buyer.
Checking Zoning Status and Building Documents
A clean-looking title deed record is not sufficient on its own; the property’s zoning status (imar durumu), occupancy permit (yapı kullanma izin belgesi) and, where applicable, building registration certificate (yapı kayıt belgesi) must also be examined separately. The zoning status document obtained from the municipality shows whether the building was constructed in line with its permit and whether it has been converted to condominium ownership (kat mülkiyeti) or floor easement (kat irtifakı) status.
For example, an investor examining an apartment chosen for its sea view might discover that the building’s top floor was added later without a permit, a situation that could later result in a demolition order from the municipality. For foreign buyers, it is also mandatory for the land registry office to check whether the property falls within a military restricted zone or security zone; more detail on this process is available in our article on military restricted zone permits and the valuation report requirement.
The 2026 Debate: Should a Lawyer Be Mandatory in Land Registry Transactions?
A statement by the Ministry of Justice in March 2026 raised the possibility of making it mandatory for parties to be represented by a lawyer in land registry transactions above a certain value. This proposal has not yet become law, but the debate itself points to the importance of the issue.
Some argue that such a requirement would increase transaction costs, while others believe that, particularly for foreign investors and high-value transactions, it would reduce fraud, given that the land registry official carries out only a formal review and does not assess legal risk. In our view, the second position is the more persuasive one, especially given how often forged powers of attorney and multiple sales occur: the land registry official’s review is limited to the formal compliance of the records and does not evaluate the risks inherent in the contractual relationship between the parties. Even if the requirement does not become law, voluntarily requesting a preliminary review from a lawyer for high-value transactions is already a practical measure, and one whose cost is modest compared with the risk of fraud.
Beyond this debate, some of the cadastre and zoning changes introduced by Law No. 7579 took effect on its publication date, while others will enter into force on 31 December 2026; for this reason, it is advisable to obtain up-to-date information from the land registry office, within the current legal framework, close to the transaction date.
Conclusion: The Order of Checks to Follow Before Buying
The checks to be carried out at the land registry during an apartment purchase are more effective when followed in a specific order rather than at random. First, an up-to-date WebTapu document should be used to confirm ownership information and any mortgage, lien or annotation records; then, if the transaction is being handled through a proxy, the notarial record and scope of the power of attorney should be verified.
After these steps, zoning status and building documents should be requested from the municipality, and foreign buyers should confirm whether the military restricted zone check has been completed. The general framework covered previously in our article on points foreign buyers should pay attention to when acquiring a title deed complements this order of checks. For high-value transactions or those carried out through a proxy, requesting a preliminary review from a lawyer before the sale is one of the most practical ways to avoid the common mistakes made in real estate investment; see also our earlier article on 10 mistakes foreigners make in real estate investment.
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