Should you buy a house with a mortgage? What should you pay attention to?

The General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre explains that there is no obstacle to transferring a mortgaged real estate together with its mortgage debt to someone else. The Turkish Civil Code also states that the transfer of the mortgaged property does not automatically change the liability of the debtor and the guarantee unless otherwise agreed. In other words, ownership may change hands; If the mortgage is not removed separately, it may remain on the property.

This distinction is important to the buyer. The fact that the seller promises to pay the debt does not mean that the bank has closed its receivables and the mortgage on the title deed has been canceled. While the mortgage continues, the real estate continues to carry legal and economic risks in terms of the secured debt. In the concrete file, the identity of the debtor, the degree, amount and scope of the mortgage should be examined with a lawyer.

Short answerA mortgaged house can be purchased; The mortgage is not canceled automatically.

Buyer protection is possible by removing the mortgage before the sale or by securing the cancellation and payment steps in the same closing plan.

An old title deed or a screenshot on the seller's phone does not prove the current situation. In preparation for the transaction, the property's island, parcel and independent section information, as well as owner and encumbrance records, must be verified. The beneficiary of the mortgage, its rating, establishment date and any other liens or liens should be seen in the same file.

The single word “mortgage” can hide different scenarios. The mortgage given to the bank for a housing loan and the collateral for another commercial debt may not follow the same closing path. Moreover, there may be more than one mortgage, lien, family residence annotation or other records affecting the sale on the real estate. Therefore, the check should not be completed by simply asking about bank debt.

In the simplest scenario, the seller pays off the debt before the sale, the creditor bank sends the electronic cancellation document to the land registry office and the mortgage is removed from the current record. However, if the seller must provide the cash to cover the debt from the sales price, payment, cancellation and transfer become interconnected steps on the same day.

In this case, you should learn in advance from the bank the valid debt settlement amount for a certain date, the official account to which the payment will be made, how the cancellation document will be sent after the payment, and what will happen to the money if the transaction cannot be completed. Payment should not be made unless the bank employee, the land registry office, the lawyers of the parties and, if necessary, the new bank providing the loan agree on the same flow.

• Completely abandoned before sale
• Payment of a portion of the sales price directly to the creditor bank
• Simultaneous closing of the new loan and the old loan
• The mortgage remains on the real estate or is transferred with the debt
• Determining how payments will be refunded if the transaction does not occur

The most important risk for the buyer is that the mortgage cannot be removed even though the sales price is transferred to the seller. For the seller, it is the failure to pay the remaining sales price even though the debt is closed or the title deed transfer is not completed. This two-way risk requires a conditional and traceable payment plan rather than verbal trust.

Starting from the deposit stage, it should be written that the real estate is mortgaged, how the debt settlement amount will be updated, which payment will be made to whom on the title deed day, what will happen if the abandonment is delayed and who will bear the expenses. Bank receipts, official notifications and title deed transaction documents should be kept in the same closing file.

The fact that the mortgage is removable does not mean that the house is correct in terms of plan, structure, license, occupancy, earthquake risk or market value. Similarly, a good house does not translate into a safe purchase with an uncertain flow of payments and abandonments. Legal registration, financing and the nature of the structure must come together in the same decision file.

Before making an offer, bring together the current title deed record, bank closing letter, total cash requirement, appraisal result and delivery conditions. Manage any unresolved issue with an offer condition or opt-out limit, not a “look at it later” note.

• Has an up-to-date title deed and encumbrance record been obtained?
• Has the dated closing letter of the creditor institution been seen?
• Is the order of abandonment and title deed transfer clear?
• Are payment channels and unsuccessful transaction scenarios written down?
• Has the technical and architectural evaluation of the house been completed separately?