Property Risks in Northern Cyprus

For the past 2 years Northern Cyprus has undergone a massive property boom, bringing a large number of potential problems. Hundreds of Brits are buying here attracted by property prices that can be up to 50 percent cheaper than in the south.

There is a large difference in the standard of living between Northern Cyprus and the rest of the island. In the south you can find smart shops, boutiques and many UK high street outlets. Northern Cyprus is still relatively underdeveloped.

Channel 4 ‘s Selling Houses Abroad looked last week at the dilemma of John and Pam who had bought an off-plan 3 bedroom flat in 2004 in Kyrenia in Northern Cyprus. The flat cost £55,000 and they have paid so far £38,000 in staged payments.

However, 3 years later the flat is still nowhere near completed and the development is progressing at a painfully slow rate. John and Pam have become frustrated at the delays.

Pam said, “We thought that we would buy now and it would be somewhere to come on holiday for months at a time and eventually for when we retire.”

Channel 4’s Andrew Winter advised that purchasing property in Northern Cyprus can be risky as land ownership is fiercely disputed in this area. The land disputes stem from the division of Cyprus in the 1970s when the country was partitioned into a Turkish north and a Greek south. Around 200,000 Greek Cypriots were displaced from the north to the south and around 65,00 Turkish Cypriots were displaced from the south to Northern Cyprus. As a result land ownership in Northern Cyprus is still strongly contested. Furthermore Northern Cyprus is not recognised as a legal entity by any country other than Turkey. In contrast, Southern Cyprus is part of the EU.

In 2004 the UN was hopeful of unification and this led to a surge in building developments in the north. However the UN’s proposals have stalled and many developers have abandoned their projects.

Andrew’s advice to John and Pam was to contact their solicitor and use the get out clause in their contract to obtain a refund as the builder has not completed the property within the contracted timeframe.

Until the land disputes have been resolved, the advice from Selling Houses Abroad is to think carefully before buying in Northern Cyprus and to ensure any property that you buy has no land dispute attached to it. Andrew said, “In new markets the rewards can be very high - 200 to 300 percent - but the losses can be high as well.”