izmir – Becoming Turkish

I’ve been having some WordPress technical problems and haven’t been able to post. We are still in progress on our CBI!

You may recall our previous post in which I mentioned our two properties. One is located in the city of Istanbul, near the tourist-popular Galata Tower and Istiklal Street. The other is located in a coastal area, not far from Izmir.

Just our luck that the coastal property, in the town of Karaburun, was almost move-in ready! It just needed to be furnished once we purchased it. (Unfortunately, many of the furnishings have been slow going, since several were out of stock as university students needed them to furnish their apartments. Only one sofa to go!) Once that unit is entirely furnished, we will be able to rent it out.

The other one, in Istanbul, is in a fantastic location, but needed to have a different layout to make it useable as a rental. We have a team working on renovations, and we’re told they’ll be finished by Jan ’24. Then, we can rent that one out, too!

Our goal is not necessarily to make money on these. Some people start CBI as a means to invest in foreign property, that they then will earn an income from. While it would be great if we actually earned money from these rental properties, the most important feature, for us, was our means to a second passport.

We will be heading to see our properties in person very soon! I’m always up for a trip to Turkiye, but this will be a special one in two ways. First, seeing our new properties, of course. But secondly, Turkiye’s centennial is on October 29, and we want to enjoy the festivities!

The last time we were in Istanbul in ’21, it occurred to us that ’23 would mark 100 years for the country. We thought, wouldn’t it be nice to come back for that event. Not only are we coming back for that, but we will start the last phase of paperwork to apply for our Turkish passports. Hopefully by my birthday next August, I will be a citizen of two countries!

Watch this space to learn more…

Properties Achieved!

By the end of May ’23, we had negotiated, settled, and purchased two properties in Turkiye. Once those were officially complete, there was quite the sigh of relief!

With the rapidly changing USD to TRY (Turkish Lira) exchange rate, it was a tight squeeze to get these properties while still hitting the $400K mark, required for CBI.

(And we’re still not 100% certain that we’re at $400K, even today in mid-July. More on that complication later. Fingers crossed that these two purchases hit our goal!)

One of our two spots is in Istanbul, close to touristic areas:

This property is an apartment in an historical building, and it’s located where the heart is (underneath the bold KABATAS). It’s a few minutes away from the famous Istiklal Street, famous for its great shopping and eating. In just a few minutes on public transport, you can reach the historic district, featuring the Grand Bazaar and Aya Sofia.

This neighborhood, while not our absolute favorite, is also one that we really enjoy. We’re hoping to use the apartment ourselves sometimes, while also earning some rental income through AirBnb when we’re not there.

NOTE: We are not pursing this as a second income source. If it makes enough money to generate a second income, that will be fantastic! Our main goal is to make back some, or all, of our investment. It’s in a popular area, so hopefully others will also want to stay there!

Our second location is near the town of Karaburun, less than an hour’s drive from Izmir on the Aegean Coast. It’s a small getaway cottage in an up-and-coming area. In fact, Alacati (look south of Karaburun) is quite a popular weekend destination! While the two of us are more city folk, we expect this location to be popular for those who want to escape the city.

The Karaburun location is in the process of being furnished, and it will be ready to rent. The Istanbul property is taking a bit more work, needing some minor renovations. It’s great to have the variety between the two of them!

In the coming weeks, I will keep you updated on the process of getting these properties rental ready. Check back soon!