Freezing the lease position before the buyer commits
A buyer who prices a property on the assumption that it is vacant, rented at a certain amount, or capable of producing a particular income needs a fixed reference point before signing a binding commitment. Lease records can change during negotiations: the parties may sign an addendum, adjust the rent, settle arrears, renew a fixed term, agree on a move-out date or issue notices. A pre-commitment freeze is therefore a dated snapshot of the tenancy that identifies exactly which documents and facts formed the basis of the buyer’s decision.
Define what is being frozen
The freeze should list the lease version being relied on, every signed addendum, the parties, the exact independent unit, the commencement date, current rent, payment frequency, security deposit, known arrears, notices, disputes and the person actually occupying the premises. It is not enough to save a file named “lease.pdf.” The file should record the document date, number of pages and, where practical, a checksum or other method of proving which digital copy was reviewed. If a later version appears, the buyer can then see what changed rather than trying to reconstruct the earlier position from memory.
Connect the snapshot to Turkish lease law
The Turkish Code of Obligations gives several facts in the snapshot legal significance. Article 310 means that transfer of ownership does not automatically remove the lease; the buyer generally enters the landlord position. Article 342 limits the contractual security in residential and roofed workplace leases to three months’ rent and regulates money or negotiable instruments given as security. Article 343 prevents changes against the tenant outside the rent determination rules, and Article 346 restricts clauses imposing penalties or making later rent immediately due merely because rent is paid late. The purpose of citing these rules in the review is not to turn the file into a legal opinion; it is to prevent commercial assumptions that contradict the statutory framework.
Record the economic position as of one date
Prepare a short rent ledger up to the freeze date. It should show what was contractually due, what was paid, what remains disputed or unpaid, and whether there are payments described as deposit, advance, common expense or another item. Bank records should be matched to the tenant and period rather than simply totalled. If the seller states that rent will increase, that the tenant has agreed to leave or that arrears will be cleared before transfer, place those statements in a separate “future actions” section and do not treat them as completed facts.
Freeze possession evidence, not just financial terms
The buyer should also preserve a current statement of who possesses the property, together with the evidence supporting it. A tenant’s current confirmation, a management record, inspection note or other lawful evidence may be relevant. A written eviction undertaking, notice or pending mediation file should be copied and dated separately. Article 352 gives specific significance to a written undertaking to vacate made after delivery, but the existence of such a document does not justify marking the unit “vacant” before the legal and factual conditions have actually been satisfied.
Set a rule for changes after the freeze
Once the reference package is fixed, any later change should trigger a documented comparison. A new addendum, different monthly payment, settlement, new notice, tenant substitution or changed move-out date may alter price, yield, financing, handover planning or the buyer’s willingness to proceed. The buyer should decide in advance which changes require renewed approval and which are merely administrative.
The value of a pre-commitment freeze is therefore practical: it prevents a moving lease file from silently changing underneath the purchase decision. It creates a clear before-and-after record and makes the seller disclose later changes rather than allowing them to disappear into an updated folder.