Lack of available land for development in city centres, particularly in Istanbul, has forced residential developers to shift towards the periphery with large-scale projects. In Istanbul, the Municipality supports the emerging residential areas with planned transportation and other urban infrastructure projects such as Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, the 3rd Airport, the extension projects of the metro network, and the Eurasia Tunnel.
One of the topics on the agenda recently has been urban renewal. Its essential purpose is the rehabilitation of urban spaces that have decayed and collapsed due to fast urbanization and the uncontrolled growth of cities under industrialization. Urban renewal is also being undertaken because of the emphasis on seismically sound construction, and as such urban renewal projects will see the transformation of regions at elevated risk for earthquakes.
Mass market residential is also growing rapidly. The Housing Development Administration (TOKI) is leading mass housing development and regeneration projects, with a focus on providing social housing for low and middle-income households.
Branded residential projects – not only on the outskirts of cities but also in heart of cities – have been taking the residential market to new heights.
Over the last five years, mixed projects incorporating residential areas with retail, office, and hotels are on the rise. Retail areas in the branded residential projects are often designed to answer the needs of the project itself, but in some cases retail areas are designed as shopping centres targeting outside customers.
Looking at typologies in big cities, 3+1 and 4+1 residential units are on the rise, catering to families instead of single professionals. At some locations, such as close to a university, smaller units such as 1+1 and 2+1 are still preferable and have higher absorption rates, but the overall trend is towards larger flats. (‘+1’ stands for living room.)
The sector is also seeing the transformation of vacant units in large-scale projects into serviced apartments, a fully furnished apartment which is useful for both short-term as well as long-term stays, providing all the hotel-like facilities.
This trend is likely to continue, particularly in highly touristic cities, due to the fact that investors are attracted to the serviced apartment sector as they can generate higher profit margins than the average hotel.
