Can a New Owner End an Existing Lease in Turkey?

The dispute: sale during a prepaid commercial lease

The case concerned a ten-year lease beginning in 2005. The tenant said that rent had been paid in advance, the premises renovated and then sublet. Following a sale in 2010, the tenant sought compensation, including lost subletting income.

The dispute therefore concerned a particular commercial arrangement involving advance payments and subletting. Its facts should not be treated as identical to an ordinary residential tenancy, although the rule that a sale does not itself terminate a lease is relevant to both.

What the Court of Cassation decided

The Third Civil Chamber’s decision of 17 September 2019 emphasised that the purchaser becomes the lease’s new party under Article 310:

Unofficial English translation:

No need-based eviction action had been brought by the new owner, and the tenant had not been removed under a judgment or through enforcement. The court concluded that the conditions for the compensation addressed under Article 355 were not met. It stated that the court should order repayment of the prepaid rent attributable to the period from termination of the lease to the agreed end of its term.

The judgment was reversed. This should not be presented as an unconditional award of lost subletting profits, or as a finding that tenants can never recover unused advance payments.

Current rules for a buyer seeking possession or a rent change

The following statutory points concern residential and roofed commercial leases. They are a current-law explanation, separate from the specific findings in the 2019 decision.

• Genuine need: Article 351 provides a route where the purchaser must use the premises for a qualifying housing or business need. It involves written notice to the tenant within one month of acquisition and an action after six months from acquisition. An alternative permits an action within one month after the lease term ends. The applicable route, notice service, need and deadlines require assessment together; six months does not mean automatic eviction.
• Rent: Article 344 generally limits agreed renewal increases by the applicable twelve-month average consumer-price-index change. Judicial rent determination after the statutory five-year threshold follows separate criteria. A sale does not create an unrestricted right to impose a new rent.
• Procedure: Pre-action mediation is generally required for rental disputes under Law No. 6325, Article 18/B. The statutory exception for non-judgment enforcement eviction under Law No. 2004 must be distinguished. Mediation and litigation timing should be checked together.

Practical analysis

For a foreign buyer planning to occupy a Turkish property, “ownership on completion” and “vacant possession on completion” are different expectations. Before purchase, establish who occupies the premises, the lease term, the rent and advance-payment history, and whether any notices or proceedings exist.

For a tenant, notice of a sale should prompt verification of the new owner and payment arrangements. It does not justify assuming that the lease has vanished. For both sides, the contract and actual payment record matter more than an informal assurance that the property will be empty after transfer.

Documents to assemble

• The lease, extensions and any subletting documents.
• Ownership records and the exact acquisition date.
• Rent, deposit and advance-payment records.
• Notices, proof of service and existing court or enforcement documents.
• Documents relevant to any asserted housing or business need.

Further reading

• Does a Tenant Who Leaves Early Owe All the Remaining Rent in Turkey?
• When Must a Rental Security Deposit Be Returned in Turkey?