Lease Agreement Records — Red Flags Guide
A lease-file red flag does not automatically mean that a purchase must be abandoned. It means a fact is uncertain, inconsistent or unsupported and should not be converted into a positive assumption before verification. When an occupied property changes ownership, Article 310 of the Turkish Code of Obligations makes the new owner a party to the existing lease. A defect in tenant identity, contract version, payment history or security can therefore pass directly to the buyer. The following warning signs are designed to be found from the records themselves before closing.
1. More than one “final” lease
If the seller supplies two versions with different rent, term or signatures and no clear amendment chain, treat the conflict as open. Addenda are normal, but the file must show what each document changed and when. Do not select the version most convenient to the buyer merely because its filename is newer. Check dates, signatures, references to the original agreement and any written acceptance of the change.
2. The occupier is not the named tenant
There may be family members, corporate users or another legitimate arrangement, but it must be understood. Article 322 addresses restrictions on subletting and transfer of use in certain residential and roofed workplace leases. An unexplained occupier is a possession and management risk, not just a data-entry error. Record who actually uses the property and what evidence supports that status.
3. The stated rent does not match bank transfers
Reconcile the lease and amendments to actual receipts month by month. Repeatedly different amounts, unexplained cash, payments from unknown persons or long gaps need explanation. Article 313 establishes the tenant’s duty to pay rent and Article 315 deals with default. Revenue Administration Communiqué No. 328, effective from 17 October 2024, also broadened the requirement for residential and workplace rent collections and payments to be evidenced through banks or PTT.
4. Frequent or sudden changes of bank account
If the beneficiary moves between personal and company accounts without a documented reason, investigate. Risk increases when the latest change arrives only through a messaging application or immediately before sale. Identify the account owner, the authority to collect rent and the rental period to which each transfer relates. A clean payment history requires a reliable recipient history as well as a reliable amount history.
5. The lease mentions a security deposit but the file does not
A deposit amount without proof of payment or custody is a major warning because a liability may surface at the end of the tenancy. Article 342 contains specific security rules for residential and roofed workplace leases. Claims that the security was “used” or “returned” should be supported by a settlement, bank record or another document capable of being verified.
6. Large arrears exist only in the seller’s narrative
If the seller says the tenant owes a substantial amount, the buyer should be able to recompute that debt from due amounts and actual payments. Unsupported arrears should not be valued as a receivable. A payment may be missing from the ledger, a set-off may have been agreed, a rent increase may be disputed or an ancillary charge may be contested. Any balance that cannot be reproduced from documents remains a risk.
7. Financial clauses may not be enforceable
A printed clause is not automatically collectible. Article 346 restricts additional payment obligations for tenants of residential and roofed workplace premises and invalidates certain penalty or acceleration arrangements linked to late rent. If expected return depends on a penalty, fee or future-rent acceleration, obtain legal review before treating it as an asset.
8. The seller assumes the expiry date means automatic vacancy
A common warning sign is the statement: “The lease ends next month, so the unit will be empty.” Article 347 sets special continuation and termination rules for residential and roofed workplace leases. If the purchase price or intended use depends on vacant possession, the assumption needs a valid legal path and factual evidence, not merely a date printed on the contract.
9. An eviction undertaking exists only as a poor copy
If an eviction undertaking is used to support a promised handover date, review it separately. Verify when it was signed, whether it was given after delivery of the premises, whether it is written, the stated evacuation date and whether any required enforcement or court action was started within the relevant time. A blurry photograph should not close a possession risk.
10. Notices have no delivery evidence
A file may contain several notices but no proof of service. Where the claimed legal effect depends on sending or receipt within a deadline, that is material. Preserve the notice, sending date, channel and delivery result. Article 348 requires written form for certain termination notices, while good record review also requires a traceable timeline.
11. A dispute is only partially disclosed
If the file contains a lawyer’s message, mediation reference or case number but not the underlying documents, keep the status open. Since 1 September 2023, rental disputes within Article 18/B of the Mediation Law are generally subject to mandatory mediation before litigation, subject to statutory exceptions. Determine whether mediation, litigation, enforcement or a formal claim is active and how it affects income or possession.
12. The tenancy file will be delivered “after title transfer”
This is itself a warning. The buyer should know before releasing final funds exactly what records will be received. If signed agreements, bank evidence, security records or dispute papers are promised later, ownership may transfer before the information needed to manage the tenancy does. Convert every missing record into a written closing condition.
Classify the warning, do not just label the file “messy”
Separate administrative gaps that can be cured, financial discrepancies requiring settlement, legal conflicts requiring specialist advice and possession risks that affect the purchase decision. Each red flag should have a required item of evidence, an owner, a deadline and a defined consequence if not resolved.
Conclusion: The most dangerous lease file is not always the one with the fewest papers. It is the one that looks complete but cannot reproduce the lease, payment history, security, possession and dispute status. If the conclusion still depends on an oral explanation, the red flag remains open.