Condominium Ownership Status Risk Review
A risk review of condominium ownership in Türkiye should begin with the legal status actually recorded for the independent unit, not with the wording used in an advertisement, sales brochure or old copy of a title deed. In Turkish land-registry practice, Kat Mülkiyeti is the condominium-ownership regime established for a completed structure. TKGM guidance distinguishes it from Kat İrtifakı, which may be established while the building has not yet been built or has not been completed. The first risk question is therefore simple but decisive: does the current land-registry record for the exact unit show the status that the seller says it has?
Risks created by a status mismatch
The most important warning sign is a discrepancy between the marketed property and the registered independent unit. Compare the province, district, neighborhood, block and parcel, building or block designation, floor, independent-unit number, registered type or use, owner and land share. A genuine title document can still be the wrong document for the apartment being sold. A copy can also be outdated after a correction, conversion, mortgage, annotation or other registry event. For that reason, this review should rely on a current official record and should preserve the identifiers used for the comparison.
A second risk is treating Kat Mülkiyeti as proof of matters it does not prove. The ownership status is important evidence about the registered legal form of the unit, but it is not by itself a structural-safety certificate, a guarantee that the unit is free of mortgages or annotations, or proof that every physical alteration inside the apartment matches the approved architectural project. TKGM’s condominium guidance explains that the authority approving the project is responsible for determining whether the structure was built in accordance with planning and building rules; the land-registry office does not independently re-evaluate the technical nature of the building merely because a project has been submitted.
Land share and common-property exposure
Review the arsa payı attached to the independent unit. TKGM defines the land share as the common-ownership share allocated to an independent unit. It is inseparable from that unit for transfer purposes: when the independent unit is transferred, its land share follows it. A risk review should therefore flag a unit number or land-share figure that differs between the current record, the approved project information and the seller’s documents. The review should not invent a “correct” ratio from floor area alone; TKGM notes that determining whether the original land shares were assigned in proportion to unit values is not a task performed by the land-registry directorate.
Common areas create a different category of risk. Condominium owners hold rights in common areas according to the legal regime and their land shares. Parking spaces, storage areas, terraces, gardens or other spaces marketed as “private” should not automatically be treated as part of the independent unit unless the registered/project documentation supports the claimed legal status. If a feature is only a common-area use arrangement, that distinction should be recorded before the buyer prices it as exclusive ownership.
Conversion history matters
Where the property was previously registered under Kat İrtifakı and later converted to Kat Mülkiyeti, keep the conversion history clear. TKGM states that, for a structure where construction servitude exists and an occupancy permit has been obtained, conversion to condominium ownership can occur on the application of one of the owners or upon transmission of the occupancy permit by the competent authority, and the registry can complete the conversion ex officio under the applicable procedure. An older title copy showing Kat İrtifakı is therefore not necessarily evidence of a current defect, but the current status and the official basis for the change should be clear.
Practical risk classification
Classify the file as low documentary risk when the current official record shows Kat Mülkiyeti for the exact unit, the identifiers and land share are consistent, the registered use is understood, and no unexplained conflict exists with the approved project or conversion history. Classify it as conditional when the core status is plausible but a current extract, project match, conversion record or clarification from the competent authority is still missing. Treat the issue as a stop condition when the seller claims condominium ownership but the current record shows another status, when the unit identity cannot be reconciled, or when a material mismatch is dismissed only with verbal assurances.
Do not combine this conclusion with separate risk topics. Mortgages, liens, family-residence annotations, zoning, DASK, structural condition and tenant occupancy require their own evidence. A clean Kat Mülkiyeti status can coexist with one of those issues, and an issue in one of those fields does not automatically change the ownership regime itself.
Primary official sources
- Tapu ve Kadastro Genel Müdürlüğü (TKGM), 2021/4 Kat Mülkiyeti / Kat İrtifakı guidance.
- TKGM Frequently Asked Questions, including the procedure for conversion from Kat İrtifakı to Kat Mülkiyeti.
Additional questions and context
How recent should the evidence for Kat Mülkiyeti condominium ownership be before signing?
Risks include confusing Kat Mülkiyeti with Kat İrtifakı, relying on an old title copy, or overlooking a mismatch in unit number or registered use. Condominium status also does not replace checks for mortgages, annotations or physical-project conformity. Risks include confusing Kat Mülkiyeti with Kat İrtifakı, relying on an old title copy, or overlooking a mismatch in unit number or registered use. Condominium status also does not replace checks for mortgages, annotations or physical-project conformity. This record applies that evidence specifically to Kat Mülkiyeti condominium ownership, and should be reconciled to the exact property rather than generalized from another unit.
Which part can change between reservation and closing — Kat Mülkiyeti condominium ownership?
Risks include confusing Kat Mülkiyeti with Kat İrtifakı, relying on an old title copy, or overlooking a mismatch in unit number or registered use. Condominium status also does not replace checks for mortgages, annotations or physical-project conformity. Risks include confusing Kat Mülkiyeti with Kat İrtifakı, relying on an old title copy, or overlooking a mismatch in unit number or registered use. Condominium status also does not replace checks for mortgages, annotations or physical-project conformity. For Kat Mülkiyeti condominium ownership, preserve the current official record, its date and the identifiers used to reach the conclusion.
What should be rechecked on transfer day — Kat Mülkiyeti condominium ownership?
Risks include confusing Kat Mülkiyeti with Kat İrtifakı, relying on an old title copy, or overlooking a mismatch in unit number or registered use. Condominium status also does not replace checks for mortgages, annotations or physical-project conformity. Risks include confusing Kat Mülkiyeti with Kat İrtifakı, relying on an old title copy, or overlooking a mismatch in unit number or registered use. Condominium status also does not replace checks for mortgages, annotations or physical-project conformity. For Kat Mülkiyeti condominium ownership, an unresolved conflict remains a transaction condition until the competent record or authority resolves it.