Mersin’s Mediterranean Coastline for Investment
Mersin’s Mediterranean Coastline
Mersin’s coastline is nearly as beautiful as Antalya. To be honest, had there been investment in Mersin instead of Antalya about 40 years ago, we would have seen Mersin as the tourism hub of Turkey. The point is, as Antalya is quite overloaded all the way from Kalkan in the West to Alanya in the east, and prices are relatively astronomical.
Mersin is developing rapidly and the below areas are going to be the stars of investment in the coming 5-7 years.
The most popular areas for developers to consider are:
- Tece: Nearest to the centre, now a neighbourhood of central Mersin, Tece is to the West of Mezitli. Many live in Tece all year round, so rental demand is high, which is the back bone of investment for the lower budget investors. Unfortunately, Tece is already a popular destination and not just in terms of the price of land, also from the point of availability, land is scarce in Tece. Investment potential: Secure, Profitability: Medium, Competition: High, Availability of land: Scarce to none, Land values: Highest of the bunch.
- Cesmeli, Kargipinari, Tomuk, Arpacbahsis: This strip starts right when you exit Tece and towards the South West along the D-400, right behind the sea front branded complexes such as Flamingo, Queenaba and Liparis. Especially further out in Arpacbahsis the D-400 runs closer to the sea side. Formerly agricultural land is available to develop, for decent prices compared to Tece. We can look in to this area in detail and see a number of good pieces of land, accessible, that has sea view chances, and lower in price to increase our chances to maximise profits. Investment potential: Good, Profitability: High, Competition: Modest, Availability of land: Some good options, Land values: Middle of the bunch.
- Kumkuyu, Ayas: Right past Erdemli towards Antalya, the sea gets cleaner, the beaches are sandier, especially in Ayas-Yemiskumu. The largest project of the area Athena Residence represents the last of high-rise buildings in the area. Now, land pieces are smaller and buildings are going to be 7-12 floors. Investment potential: Secure, Profitability: Medium, Competition: High, Availability of land: Some OK options, Land values: Highest of the bunch.
- Yesilovacik, Tisan Peninsula: Especially Tisan Peninsula is a naturally, relatively virgin area of Mersin, which is mainly due to accessibility. Is this really a down side? For example, Kas is about 2-3 ours away from both the Dalaman and Antalya airports. Tisan reminds me of Florianapolis in Brazil. When one side of the beach is windy, the other side is calm. Within an hour’s drive there are many sightseeing chances such as the Aynali Gol (Gilindire) Cave, Narlikuyu, Anamur and Silifke. Investment potential: High, Profitability: High, Competition: Medium, Availability of land: Some good options, Land values: Lowest of the bunch.
Investment strategy
As one of the main points of investment is buying under market value where possible, focusing on the Western Part of Mersin is a no brainer! Prices are very reasonable and there are almost virgin bays, coves, peninsulas which you could choose to settle or invest in for developing a profitable project.
There are ongoing transportation and infrastructural projects ongoing in Mersin, such as the new international airport in Cicekli-Tarsus, The Nuclear Plant in Akkuyu and the motorway extension from Cesmeli towards Silifke and eventually towards Antalya.
The Nuclear Plant brought several 100’s of Russian professionals and their families to the area and initially this has lifted rental prices in Mersin’s West. Investors are very intrigued in Mersin as prices are from just $79.000 unfurnished.
So, what will our strategy be?
- Build where everyone builds and settle for lower but secure profit margins as land prices are higher. We will find the lands for sale and present to you. Once a price has been negotiated, we can start the development within 2-3 months of the acquisition.
- Build where natural beauty meets quality. Without focusing on the number of units we can develop a good number of luxury, sea view villas where people will tend to pay more due to the availability of a private garden and swimming pool. Construction cost increases slightly as the sales price carries more premium than almost any apartment.
Normally when one purchases a flat, about 1/3 of the price paid is the cost of land. This makes our likely land budget about 40-50M TL and we need about 6.000 sqm of land to develop a medium size 120-140 units complex.
Touring the areas and seeing what type of projects are being built is a good idea. Most selling projects, have a database of investor clients and they have made a name in the area already. Our approach should be “Making the Difference” in quality, technology, facilities and price.
Ideally let’s tour all 4 areas over two days, however from the mentioned above if you have a style, and area which you think is best for you, we can eliminate the unlikely.
Your options grouped together from the point of “Distance to the airport.”:
- 30-35 mins: Tece, Cesmeli, Kargipinari, Tomuk, Arpacbahsis – My favourite and recommended areas to invest, however cost of land will be high.
- 45-50 mins: Kumkuyu-Ayas – Well, the area is more seasonal than all year round, so it is mainly good for lower land prices.
- 85-95 mins: Yesilovacik, Tisan peninsula – This area is definitely worth considering, whether it should be your first investment in Turkey is the question. The potential is great, sea views are excellent as a selling point.
We can analyse some options if you liked the idea of investment here in Mersin in our next post.
Call us on +90 530 020 5369 for information in English.
