Unless you’re thinking of moving to live in Istanbul, chances are you will find the cost of living in Turkey is incredibly reasonable. Naturally enough the main tourism resorts and big cities have prices on a par with many international hotspots – but away from the madding crowds the day to day cost of living is incredibly affordable.
The fact that Turkey can be such a cheap place to live where savings or pensions go far further is one of the main reasons that a growing number of people are considering expatriating to live in Turkey full time. We examine the day to day cost of living for anyone budgeting to determine whether or not they can and want to afford to live in Turkey.
The average monthly wage in Turkey is still so low when compared to the average in Europe for example, with a worker taking home the lira (or YTL) equivalent of just GBP 150 a month – of course this means that correspondingly essentials such as basic food stuffs, electricity and water are very cheap. Any fruit or vegetable in season is likely to be cheap across Turkey – even in Istanbul or in the main resorts – because Turkey is such a large agricultural producer and the variety and quality of fresh produce in the many markets across the country is generally exceptional as well.
The only things that really cost more than in the UK are telephones, especially mobile phones and related call costs, petrol and the internet. Getting an internet connection is expensive enough but then the monthly rates are extortionate compared to what you might pay back home for example and petrol as well as the costs associated with owning a car in Turkey are quite high which is why many people with holiday homes in Turkey just rely on public transport.
Eating out in Turkey can be incredibly inexpensive - so much so that for some people it’s cheaper than cooking! To eat cheaply and well go to restaurants frequented by local people or go to those serving local Turkish food. Even in the main resorts it’s possible to eat out for about GBP 15 a head – and this is considered expensive by the locals! In terms of alcohol, imported spirits, wines and beers are expensive but then that doesn’t matter because Turkey has fantastic local beer (efes) and wine and it even produces its own versions of popular spirits – if you ask for a local spirit and mixer you can be paying up to a third of the price than if you asked for a named brand like Bacardi and a mixer for example.
For a couple’s weekly shopping bill allocate between GBP 50 and 60 (unless buying imported foodstuffs) and you can always reduce this amount significantly by shopping at the local butcher for meat, the market for fresh produce and avoiding supermarkets altogether.
Other expenses to consider are taxes – property taxes are paid annually and they are calculated based on the declared value of a home, usually one pays between 0.1 and 0.3%. There is also an annual environmental tax which comes out on average to GBP 100 and then anyone deriving an income or realizing a capital gain in Turkey will have to pay tax accordingly. Tax avoidance used to be a national pastime but nowadays as Turkey works hard to align itself with policies and practices in place in the EU, taxation is being targeted! Income tax is due on rental income from property as well as pension income for example and it varies from 15 – 40%...you would be advised to speak to an accountant or your solicitor in Turkey about what your liabilities might be.
