Turkey panel tip wide range of asset types

Panellists at PropertyEU's second Investment Briefing on Turkey last week cited a wide range of property segments as being attractive for cross-border investors.

When asked how he would spend a notional €500 mln on Turkish real estate, Anthony Labadie, managing director at CBRE Turkey, said he would invest some of the money in the Istanbul office sector.

Panellist and government official Ahmet Iplikci said he would theoretically invest in residential property. 'What I see is that the Istanbul residential market is completely undervalued, he said.

Iplikci is a UK-based senior advisor at the Prime Ministry's Investment Support and Promotion Agency of Turkey (ISPAT). The agency advises and supports foreign investors and companies on doing business in Turkey.

The panel and members of the audience also cited the increasing importance of hotels, resorts and retirement villages for foreign nationals in the country.

Iplikci noted that Turkey surpassed the UK last year to become the 6th most visited nation in the world. This equates to 30 million tourists a year generating revenues of up to $30 bn annually.

Fellow panellist Herman Kok, research director at Dutch retail developer Multi Corporation, said €500 mln was a lot of money but perhaps not enough to buy a large super-prime shopping centre in Istanbul. Multi already operates the 175,000 m2 Forum Istanbul - one of the largest European shopping centres - and Marmara Forum (130,000 m2) in the city.

Kok said he would therefore look around for mid-sized shopping centres in regional centres 'where you can build up long-term dominance in the area'.

Both Labadie and Kok said they would invest in Turkey's logistics sector, which they said is extensive and very professionally organised. Labadie said he would focus on logistics in areas undergoing re-generation to help safeguard population zones from earthquake damage. 'I would go for logistics and industrial assets in the new areas in Istanbul as these are major markets that will enjoy stable growth.'

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