Dominic Whiting, editor of the Buying in Turkey guide, picks the hottest property spots for the year ahead.

Turkish Property

With Turkey gearing up for a record-breaking tourist season in 2008, with 25 million visitors expected, it also looks set to be a busy year for estate agents and developers along the country’s beautiful Mediterranean coast.

The affordability of Turkish property, particularly compared to Spain and Portugal, is a major attraction for British buyers, along with the country’s excellent climate, beautiful scenery and the government\’s ambitious tourism development plans.

Shrugging off worries about global recession and a credit crunch, the Turkish property market is expected to perform well this year, with average price increases in the resorts of 15 per cent forecast - or higher in some of the coastal hotspots.

Dalaman

Dalaman is set to be a hotspot for 2008 with the announcement by low-cost airline Easyjet of a new service between Gatwick and Dalaman airport, four times a week starting in March.

“The long-anticipated arrival of no-thrills flights to the Turkish coast is big news,” says Mr Whiting.

“Improving access from the UK should have a very positive effect on tourism and the property market in Dalaman and other nearby resorts - with a recent Europe-wide study by Savills finding an average price premium of 37 per cent for property in an area served by a budget airline.”

Adding to the area’s appeal is a 18-hole golf course due for completion at the end of the year and 70,000 new hotel beds being created under ambitious government-led development plans. A road tunnel, opened in 2006, brings the upmarket yachting resort of Gocek within 15 minutes drive. Local developer, Curbanoglu, have property in the beautiful rural area of Akkaya, which overlooks a lake and unspoilt mountains just 15 minutes from Dalaman and its international airport.

Dominic Whiting, Buying in Turkey: “Bodrum has a great choice of property - from city centre apartments to sea view villas or multi-million pound palaces; along with excellent nightlife, entertainment, dining and leisure facilities.”

“This is a unique spot due to its spectacular rural location and there are a range of apartments, villas and bungalows with communal facilities including a stream-side café and bar, swimming pools and a shuttle bus into town,” says Mr Whiting.

Apartments in Akkaya Gardens range from £44,000 to £72,000; the semi-detached Lakeside Villas have three-bedrooms and cost £79,000 or detached villas with private pools at The Hills range from £134,000-£156,000.

Bodrum

The Bodrum peninsular is one of Turkey’s most popular areas for British property buyers - and that doesn’t look like changing in 2008.

“Bodrum has a great choice of property - from city centre apartments to sea view villas or multi-million pound palaces; along with excellent nightlife, entertainment, dining and leisure facilities,” says Mr Whiting.

“Along with thousands of British and European tourists, Bodrum attracts the cream of Turkish society, who come each summer to see and be seen.”

Local planning controls limit the height of building but there has been a lot of development in recent years. This makes choosing a high-quality property in a good location essential if you intend to rent or resell. Avoid the cheaper re-sale properties, which are often poor quality. Buy from a well-established company with a proven track record of sales to foreigners.

Despite significant increases, local prices remain affordable with new apartments costing between £60,000 and £90,000; and villas available from £130,000. The village of Gumusluk, with its small beach, harbourside fish restaurants and pretty surroundings is very popular. Local developer Harmony Homes have two-bedroom apartments with sea views ready to move into for £63,000 and £75,000.

In neighbouring Yalikavak, the sea-front promenade and town centre have been sensitively redeveloped and a plush marina adds to the resort’s appeal. Many properties have sea views and local prices have risen sharply on the back of strong demand. Harmony Homes have two-bedroom apartments at their 14-unit Beach Park, which is just 100 metres from a sandy beach, available from £72,000 to £86,000.

A number of new developments are underway in Tuzla near two golf courses under construction. Most have good on-site facilities, which is important as Bodrum town is a 15-minute drive away. One-bedroom apartments are available for £54,000 and two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments for £79,000 at the Harmony Dream Village. The development has a fitness centre and sauna, children’s play area, communal outdoor and heated indoor swimming pools and spacious landscaped communal gardens.

Cesme

The small Aegean resort of Cesme has become the darling of the Turkish media and the Istanbul jet set. Despite its domestic appeal, very few foreign buyers have discovered it great sandy beaches, varied dining, lively nightlife and world-class windsurfing - a notable exception being the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who is rumoured to have bought a $17m plot of land for development in the area. Top local spots include the atmospheric former Greek village of Alacati, which has a marina and several ambitious waterside developments.

“The Cesme market has been red-hot thanks to strong demand from Turkish buyers, and this domestic popularity makes property in the area a good investment. It is also ideal for people who want to be in a real Turkish resort and not surrounded by foreign tourists,” says Mr Whiting.

New apartments are available from £68,000, with new semi-detached, three bedroom villas, the standard local offering, starting from £130,000.

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For those looking to further their wealth, the option of property investment is one that cannot be ignored - particularly in Dubai where we’re inundated with investment options on a daily basis.

Taking nothing away from Dubai - a market still offering excellent investment opportunities - one should embrace the perhaps cliché word, diversification. After all, you wouldn’t want to put all your eggs in one basket, would you? One country offering fantastic property investment opportunities is Turkey. This large country offers scenic coastlines, excellent weather and value for money.

The Bodrum peninsula on the western coast of Turkey offers potential investors the full criteria, making the area highly attractive. The peninsula is a beautifully rugged area with an historical past and glamorous present. Staying open all year round, the coastline favours a strong boating community with numerous world-class marinas in towns such as Bodrum and Yalikavak.

Outside of Istanbul, Bodrum airport is currently the busiest in Turkey with connections through 24 different airports in the UK and Ireland. Flying times from Dubai to Turkey are also around the three-hour mark. It’s therefore no wonder that plans are underway to expand the airport - all of which bring in new interest to the region.

Ascension to the European Union is by no means a given - it may happen in the years to come, perhaps not. But this is not the be all and end all for Turkey. Its economy is firing on all cylinders, with various sectors of the country’s industry performing exceptionally well recently. Turkey has gone through profound transformation in the past five years and the economy is now the 16th largest in the world and has been identified by the US Department of Commerce and the World Bank as one of the ten most promising emerging economies.

Turkey also offers some tax incentives that are of high interest to property investors, such as its regulations regarding capital gains tax. If you sell your property after four years, there is no capital gains tax. Property that is sold before the period is over will be charged at the standard rate of income tax (between 15 per cent and 35 per cent), calculated on the difference between the buying and selling price.

Turkey’s strong economic growth has delivered better job prospects, improved real wages and higher GDP per capita, which has fuelled demand for higher living standards. This increase in wealth and demand for high quality properties, coupled with the fact that 70 per cent of the population are under 30 years old, indicates a huge domestic demand for housing.

The Turkish property market is still in its infancy and has recently undergone a period of radical transformation following a number of significant reforms. The housing deficit, new mortgage legislation, increasing personal wealth, a change in attitudes towards debt and a strong expanding economy indicate that the Turkish property market is set to continue its considerable capital growth in the years to come.

As Turkey is large, the young population’s wealth will continue to grow, and this will put strong upward pressure on property prices. Specialising in international property investment, Mackenzie Macmillan advises a solid client base throughout the GCC. Partnered with Braemore-Gemini, a UK/ Turkish developer with multiple international awards, Mackenzie Macmillan will host a three-day Investment Interactive this week, giving potential investors of all levels the unique opportunity to sit and discuss investment options directly with the developer and gain invaluable property investment advice from the company.