The effect of increased housing sales to foreigners in Alanya on the regional housing sector: A qualitative research

Housing sales to foreigners in our country are increasing every year. The demand for housing, which emerged when foreigners bought real estate in our country, caused the construction sector to become active and an intensive construction process to begin. Alanya, a district of Antalya, which is one of the leading cities where foreigners buy housing in our country, has been experiencing active days in terms of housing production and sales in recent years. These developments in the district reveal the necessity of a comprehensive and multi-dimensional research in the region. In this context, firstly, housing sales to foreigners in Turkey were examined and the background of the study was created. By using the data obtained from TUIK, the provinces where the most housing was purchased between 2013-2022 were listed and evaluations were made. It has been determined that Istanbul and Antalya are the cities where the most housing sales are made to foreigners. Alanya, which is the district with the highest number of housing sales to foreigners in Antalya, was chosen as the research region. The district attracts attention with its climatic characteristics, historical texture and developed tourism activities. Housing sales to foreigners, which have increased due to these features, have been found worthy of research. All these developments reveal the necessity of examining the housing sector in Alanya in a regional context. In this thesis study, the current situation of the housing sector in Alanya district has been revealed and evaluations have been made about the future. In the study, qualitative research method, which is suitable for the characteristics of the research subject and used to examine social events that change according to time and place, was used. The aim of this method is to investigate the reason why events occur within a defined area and to examine how the people living in that area are affected by the events. In this method, generalizations are made within the framework of the field in which the study is carried out. Semi-structured interview, one of the qualitative research methods, was used to obtain the data to be used in the study. Face-to-face interviews were held between March and May 2023 with 23 people from 3 different participant groups who play a role in housing production and sales. According to the data obtained from the interviews with the participants in the application study, it was determined that foreigners purchased most of the houses sold in the market due to the depreciation of the Turkish Lira and the decrease in the purchasing power of local citizens due to the developments in the exchange rate. It has been stated that the construction sector has become active due to the housing demand from foreigners and an intensive construction process has begun. Contractors who found that houses were mostly sold to foreigners stated that they started to produce projects in line with the wishes and demands of foreigners. It has been concluded that this approach, which is more profitable because the demand is in this direction and more independent sections are obtained, also has negative aspects. It has been stated that the fabric of the region has been damaged as green areas have been opened to construction in order to meet the housing demand. On the other hand, it has been stated that with the increase in the number of independent sections, problems have arisen in infrastructure services such as transportation, sewerage and water in the district. It has been determined that as the production of houses appealing to foreigners increases, a housing shortage for locals has emerged. It has been stated that the number of residences appealing to local citizens has decreased due to the production in new projects in line with the demands of foreigners. It has been determined that as the production of houses appealing to foreigners increases, a housing shortage for locals has emerged. It has been stated that the number of residences appealing to local citizens has decreased due to the production in new projects in line with the demands of foreigners. It has been determined that as the production of houses appealing to foreigners increases, a housing shortage for locals has emerged. It has been stated that the number of residences appealing to local citizens has decreased due to the production in new projects in line with the demands of foreigners. There have been many studies on real estate sales to foreigners in Turkey, but there is no study specific to Alanya, Antalya, which is one of the provinces where foreigners buy housing. It is expected that this study, which deals with the effect of foreigners on the housing sector in Alanya, a region where foreigners have settled permanently and purchased housing in recent years, will contribute to the literature.