If you are purchasing real estate development or residential assets in a corporate vehicle, these will not be eligible to receive the same competitive and favourable finance terms that are available for residential mortgages; the costs of arranging the finance, and servicing the debt, will both be considerably higher. Always obtain qualified professional advice before purchasing a single residential house or apartment in a limited company. If in doubt, ask an expert from the Turkish Mortgage Centre.

Real estate secured loans to limited companies and / or businesses are not technically classified as "mortgages" under Turkish law. These loans are governed by laws and regulations pertaining to commercial loans, and not the same legal framework as "mortgages" in Turkey, which is concerned with loans to individuals for the purchase of residential housing. A limited company owning real estate will not be eligible for the lending terms available for residential mortgages.

Real estate secured loans of less than Euro 3-5 million to limited companies or businesses are usually classified as loans to small and medium sized businesses, or SME loans. SME lending in Turkey is administered differently than real estate lending to large and reputable institutional investors. Extensive local negotiation is required and the costs of the arranging the SME loan will always be higher as a percentage of the loan amount. Generally speaking, such finance is not a commodity item in Turkey, where one can easily obtain competitive terms simply by shopping public sources of information. Indeed, the loan terms available are rarely close to the loan terms quoted publicly for either larger real estate finance for institutional investors, or residential mortgage finance.

If you are contemplating the acquisition or financing of real estate assets in a Turkish or off-shore limited company, you are likely to be disappointed unless you obtain the specialist high caliber advice necessary to successfully implement all aspects of your planning.

The principals of the Turkish Mortgage Centre were instrumental in the role of Category I Senior International Experts for the introduction of the European Commission's Small Enterprise Loan Program in Turkey, which provided training in SME lending techniques to local Turkish banks.