Ownership
LeaseholdLeasehold (kullanım hakkı)
Owning a home for a long fixed term rather than owning the ground outright. Almost every London flat is sold this way.
More →FreeholdFreehold (tam mülkiyet)
Owning the building and the land it stands on, without a term. Common for houses, rare for flats.
Lease termLeasehold süresi
The number of years remaining on the lease. It shortens every year and affects both value and lending.
More →Ground rentZemin kirası (ground rent)
A sum payable under the lease for the land. Rules around it have changed for newer leases.
More →Service chargeAidat (service charge)
The building’s running costs, shared between flats: staff, insurance, maintenance, communal areas.
More →Estate chargeSite aidatı
A separate charge for shared grounds and facilities across a whole development, on top of the building’s own service charge.
Reserve fundYedek fon
Money set aside from service charges for future major works. A thin fund can mean a large bill later.
Managing agentYönetici şirket
The company running the building day to day. You do not choose them, but the lease says how they are appointed.
Money
Stamp duty (SDLT)Damga vergisi (SDLT)
The tax on buying property in England and Northern Ireland, charged in bands.
More →SurchargeSürşarj
An extra layer of stamp duty that depends on the buyer rather than the property: being non-resident, or already owning another home anywhere in the world.
More →Reservation depositRezervasyon depozitosu
Paid to take a specific plot off the market. Credited against the contract deposit at exchange.
More →Contract depositSözleşme depozitosu
The deposit paid at exchange of contracts, when the purchase becomes binding.
More →Gross yieldBrüt getiri
Annual rent divided by price, before any costs. Useful only for rough comparison.
More →Net yieldNet getiri
Yield after running costs and empty periods. The only version worth comparing between properties.
More →Capital growthDeğer artışı
Change in the value of the property itself, realised only on sale or refinancing.
More →Capital gains taxSermaye kazancı vergisi
Tax on the gain when UK property is sold. It applies to non-residents too.
More →
Process
ReservationRezervasyon
A short agreement holding a plot at an agreed price until an expiry date. Not binding.
More →Exchange of contractsSözleşme teatisi (exchange)
The moment signed contracts are swapped and the purchase becomes legally binding.
More →CompletionTamamlama (completion)
The balance is paid, ownership transfers and you get the keys.
More →Off-planProje aşamasında satış (off-plan)
Buying before the building is finished, sometimes years before completion.
More →Long-stop dateNihai son tarih
The backstop date in the contract after which you have rights if the building is still unfinished.
More →SearchesAramalar
Enquiries your solicitor makes with the local authority and others about the property and its surroundings.
ConveyancingTapu devri
The legal work of transferring ownership, done by your solicitor or a licensed conveyancer.
More →Land RegistryTapu Sicil Müdürlüğü (Land Registry)
The public register of property ownership in England and Wales. Registration follows completion.
Documents and checks
Reservation agreementRezervasyon sözleşmesi
The document setting the expiry date, whether the price is held, and how you cancel. It governs your reservation, not any web page.
More →AMLKara para aklamayı önleme (AML)
Checks required by law on identity and on where your money came from, run separately by several parties.
More →Source of fundsFon kaynağı
Where this particular money came from and how it reached your account. Not the same as source of wealth.
More →EWS1EWS1
A building safety form lenders may require on some blocks, about the external wall construction.
More →Decision in principleÖn onay
An indication of what a lender might advance. It is not an offer and commits nobody.
More →Mortgage offerMortgage teklifi
The lender’s formal offer, needed before exchange if you are borrowing. Issued with a validity period.
More →ValuationDeğerleme
The lender’s assessment of what the property is worth, instructed by them rather than by you.
SurveyYapı durum incelemesi (survey)
An inspection of the property’s condition. Different from a valuation, and optional.
The Turkish here is not a machine translation. Each term was argued and recorded, and several of our first instincts turned out to be wrong against how the Turkish market actually speaks. Where that happened we changed our term, not the market.
No figures appear on this page. Rates, deadlines and percentages belong on the pages that can keep them current, and in your own paperwork.