Northern Cyprus Property Developers

Compared to the likes of Florida or Spain, the property market in Northern Cyprus is relatively young and Northern Cyprus property developers are mainly small to medium sized companies offering a limited range of houses for sale.

That does not in any way deter from the quality or overall choice of property for sale in North Cyprus, it just means you may have to shop around to find exactly what you’re looking for. No one estate agent on the island has access to every single property developer for example, and so there are certain steps you should take to find the best property developer to suit your personal requirements.

1) What are your North Cyprus property requirements?

Before you travel to North Cyprus on a property hunting trip you should establish in your own mind your idea of the ideal property in terms of its size, the included features - from a pool to a BBQ from a fireplace to air-conditioning etc., - and also far more importantly - you must set yourself a maximum budget above which you will not be moved!

If you fail to set yourself a budget you’ll find yourself open to the eager persuasion of the property developer keen to take you to your financial limit! And you can’t blame them, they don’t know what your budget or requirements are, they just want to ensure that you get the best of the best and that they are the ones to sell it to you!

So, set yourself a budget and stick to it, write a list of all the ‘must haves’ and all the ‘nice to haves’ and this will help you very quickly sift through the weight of property details you will no doubt collect and narrow down the number of property developers to visit.

2) Find out all about buying property and living in Northern Cyprus.

If you arrive in Northern Cyrus with no understanding of the political situation on the island and without having done your research into the different types of title deed available for example how will you know whether the properties you view are safe to purchase?

It’s essential that you do a little background reading all about North Cyprus and that you find out about the different towns and villages, where the local facilities are, how easily accessible a given area is in terms of its access to the airport, the larger towns, the local supermarket etc., and all this research can be done on the internet before you even travel.

Armed with background information about Cyprus and detailed information about the different towns and villages on the island from Alsancak to Zeytinlik you can determine whether you want to live east or west of Kyrenia, whether you’d prefer to live near Famagusta or in Bellapais or Ozankoy, and again this will further narrow down your search as many of the property developers in Northern Cyprus concentrate on a given location as this is where their family have land available for building on for example.

3) Build quality versus value for money.

Don’t compromise - it IS possible to buy a beautifully built family home on a substantial plot of land in Northern Cyprus in the best location and built to the highest European and British standards for as little as GBP 110,000.

You can pay far more for far less and far less for far less so you have to ensure you view properties with a very critical eye. First things first consider the location where the property developer is building his homes. Undoubtedly you can pay a premium for properties in the towns of Kyrenia (Girne), Bellapais, Ozankoy and Karmi (Karaman) because these are the most desirable areas in which to live and land prices in these areas are higher.

If you move away from these areas expect prices to drop because land is cheaper but don’t be surprised when you see strange price discrepancies because a developer will charge what he thinks he can sell a property for - not necessarily what a property is worth!

Next, if you’re buying off plan in North Cyprus from a developer, examine the build quality of an already completed home built by him and his company. Be very wary if a developer cannot show you a single example of his work even if it is his own family home!

Make sure your property developer insists on building with cavity walls - you’d be surprised how many build villas and apartments in Northern Cyprus with just a single layer of bricks - they won’t keep you cool in summer and they definitely won’t keep you warm in winter! Next make sure the houses are seismically reinforced have proper damp proof courses and double glazing etc., and if a property doesn’t look like it’s built as well as properties are built ‘back home’ don’t buy it.

There are some exceptional property developers in Northern Cyprus who build above and beyond the standards insisted upon in the UK particularly, make sure you find one and make sure he builds you your dream home. And finally, speak to other expatriate buyers and consider the option of soliciting their expert help as they have already bought property in Northern Cyprus and can give you a guide to buying property in North Cyprus based on their own experiences.