Northern Cyprus Solicitors

twoofus


Joined: 05/05/2011
Posts: 98

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 13:36

We are moving to Northern Cyprus in July and we need a solicitor to arrange residency and permission to buy. We have heard some real horror stories about solicitors and would welcome someone giving us a reliable recommendation. We have been told it can take up to 2 years to get permission to buy a property. Whatever the real timescale we will need to rent and are looking for a 2 bed villa with rental in the region of £200-£250 per month.



Can anyone help.



Thanks

Kathy & Tony

Quarmby


Joined: 15/09/2008
Posts: 975

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 13:38

Temp rersidency, you do it yourself.

kaiserphil


Joined: 14/12/2008
Posts: 1096

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 13:55

"Up to two years" for PTP (or not!) is very optimistic!

Deniz1


Joined: 28/07/2009
Posts: 3829

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 13:56

You dont need a solicitor to do either thing you can do it yourself when you get here. Yes it can take up to two years or more to get permission, using a solicitor wont make it any quicker.

SuziSuz


Joined: 13/07/2010
Posts: 135

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 15:35

There are NO solicitors in the TRNC only advocates/lawyers.

martinD41


Joined: 06/09/2010
Posts: 3001

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 15:48

There are Plenty of rentals available,,"DON'T BUY ANYTHING" put you cash in a bank here,don't make the mistake of assuming the property market is SAFE...........So have been lucky ,,many have not!!!All the best of luck to you ..

martinD41


Joined: 06/09/2010
Posts: 3001

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 15:50

Sorry TYPO......................Some have been lucky...Many have not..!!!.

negativenick


Joined: 10/11/2008
Posts: 6023

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 16:10

we were evicted from our hole in the ground........

birdman



Joined: 20/09/2010
Posts: 690

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 23:00

Please. PLEASE, do not part with ANY money until you have " permission to purchase"



Make sure that the KOCAN is available and put your money into a secure account until you get your Kocan.



I received my Kocan within a month, the villa was started being built. Reason ? I asked for it before I would pay the next interim/staged payment. The builder, desperate for more cash from me, had no option but to give me my Kocan. So I had it before the villa was complete. The builder THEN tried to hit me with "EXTRAS" after the completion (almost) and I refused to pay one penny more than the contracted price, so he refused to do any finishing work.( BUT I HAD MY KOCAN!)



When deciding to build, (If building from new) draw up a list of all your personal requirements, including, where the power points are to go, Light fittings/fans/TV points/work surfaces/flooring types/ windows/ skirting boards/ fitted cupboards and wardrobes/doors/bathroom fittings/showers/outdoor taps/ pool size/ garden/

rowlo



Joined: 12/10/2008
Posts: 4796

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 23:11

and dont forget what size safe you need to stach all your fiddly bits ,

birdman



Joined: 20/09/2010
Posts: 690

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 23:15

continued.

Kitchen work-surface/door furniture/fireplace/outside lighting/gates. garden walls/fencing./ ELECTRICITY AND MAINS WATER SUPPLY FITTED (IN THE PRICE OF THE HOUSE)builders tax to paid BY HIM!

The list is inexhaustible. BUT DO MAKE A LIST and then get your builder to sign it with your agreed price for the complete build.

I did this and when the builder asked me to pay all "The extras" I had "Agreed" to during the build, I was able to produce 5 foolscap pages, signed by him prior to the build with all the "agreed extras" on the list. I was then able to say "EXTRAS, WHAT EXTRAS"? THEY WERE ALL IN THE AGREED HOUSE PRICE !



The very best of luck, you will love it here and if I can help you in any way then please send me an e mail.



Gerry

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
18/05/2011 23:19

If you need sound local advice and paperwork sorted then use one of the Turkish Cypriot notars/certifying officers whose offices are close to the law courts. A hell of a lot cheaper for the same (or better) service.

HarryHornet



Joined: 18/07/2007
Posts: 291

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 07:15

buy a resale and use naomi mehmet for the legal work.

Deniz1


Joined: 28/07/2009
Posts: 3829

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 09:11

An English lawyer working in TRNC asked me for £600 to apply for PTP. You can do it yourself for about £30.

crofter


Joined: 16/12/2008
Posts: 1035

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 09:56

Naomi Mehmet comes highly recommended.....see advertisement banner at the top of this thread.

dippersgirl



Joined: 04/05/2010
Posts: 795

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 10:26

Also Mine Konat, she sorted all the mistakes when the previous guy got it all wrong and helped us since with various small non buying issues without charging.

ilk22


Joined: 18/05/2011
Posts: 136

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 11:11

I had a property built, had all the work listed with timescale and payment plan, had the items like tiles and flooring matched against actual code number supplied by wholesalers when styles were chosen, and had then recorded and signed by developer in front of Noter. End result was that 3 month build took 10 months and was only completed 95% (guess I was lucky), cheaper marble floor tiles were laid to the ones I chose as well as many other things done wrongly to save developer money. In the end I had choice of getting others to complete the work at extra cost to me and have a finished home within a few weeks or spend 2 years in court only for the developer to possible declare himeself bankrupt. I had the work completed ofcourse.



Rentals in TRNC are going up, and you may find it difficult to rent for £250 pm in a good location. I have several properties in TRNC and rent a 2 bed appartment for approx £300 pm in Lefkosa. You will be able to rent cheaper in villages.

birdman



Joined: 20/09/2010
Posts: 690

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 13:56

ilk22 message 17

I too had similar problems. The builder produced cheap taps which I told him to put in his own villa which he was building at the same time.( My stipulations had been for QUALITY throughout) I Bought t he ones I wanted. The shower fittings he brought were dreadful so I told him the same and bought my own. Fortunately I was living on site and was able to monitor the build on an hourly/daily basis and was able to stop many malpractices in the build as they were occurring, otherwise plaster would have been laid and the dreadful brick working would have been hidden. I chose my own tiles for the floors and bathrooms but had to supervise the laying to get the pattern I required.

The door fittings, brushed stainless steel, have turned out to be crap and as with the cupboard handles, have all started to rust !

I had to supply all the light fittings and fans and air conditioning although they were in the build price.

In all spent £10,000 extra on things the builder didn't

twoofus


Joined: 05/05/2011
Posts: 98

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 14:14

Where is Mine Konat situated and could you give me a contact number?



Thanks

Kathy

twoofus


Joined: 05/05/2011
Posts: 98

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 14:14

Where is Mine Konat situated and could you give me a contact number?



Thanks

Kathy

twoofus


Joined: 05/05/2011
Posts: 98

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 14:16

I've heard Naomi Mehmet mentioned several times. Do you have a contact number?



Thanks

Kathy

ilk22


Joined: 18/05/2011
Posts: 136

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 14:52

Birdman Message 18



Mate I can sypathise, my list is long and can spend all day rolling out the proplems I had, from internal hollow door used as a front door to inferior windows to the ones I had ordered. I to spent over 10k, would have probably cost that much to take to court with no result.



You are right, best to be there 24/7 to oversee work being done. I flew back and forth 5 times from the UK.

Groucho



Joined: 26/04/2008
Posts: 7993

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 18:15

Ask your 'lawyer' to sign a contract setting in stone their duty of care towards all your dealings i.r.o any property purchase they handle on your behalf in the TRNC.

Include need to oversee and ratify searches for impediments to purchase such as, outstanding debts, military objections They must also certify that they have no conflict of interest due to acting on behalf of the builder/developer in any way shape or form.

Then stand back and watch them wriggle...

Run a mile!

walkerscott


Joined: 13/08/2009
Posts: 901

Message Posted:
19/05/2011 21:44

http://www.no-deeds-no-money.moonfruit.com

HarryHornet



Joined: 18/07/2007
Posts: 291

Message Posted:
20/05/2011 07:37

message 21 see naomi mehmet ad at top of page

bazzagirl


Joined: 09/05/2010
Posts: 525

Message Posted:
20/05/2011 10:29

i do not recommend naomi mehmet let us down badly

stellasstar1



Joined: 02/07/2008
Posts: 1519

Message Posted:
20/05/2011 11:25

My solicitor has always been excellent. His name is Izzie Okray. telephone number0392815 7989, and is at the back of the telephone exchange where there are a lot of solicitors.

dippersgirl



Joined: 04/05/2010
Posts: 795

Message Posted:
20/05/2011 12:33

Mine Konat's tel no is. 03928155326. her office is diagonally opposite the English church(St. Andrews??)

dippersgirl



Joined: 04/05/2010
Posts: 795

Message Posted:
20/05/2011 12:38

Link to previous thread on Mine, which I did not see before. Just wanted to see that she was well thought of by others as well



http://www.cyprus44.com/forums/1825.asp

birdman



Joined: 20/09/2010
Posts: 690

Message Posted:
21/05/2011 10:15

Mine was my advocate when I was buying/building.

She was good but not excellent.

The contract was done in English and Turkish but there were many pages missing in the Turkish translation which I put down to the language being shorter ! (She had just run off, normal computerized contracts without any of my additions !)

WRONG, she had NOT put in the Turkish translation, many of the stipulations I had requested/demanded in my original purchase request. This was amended by her after I queried the shortage during the signing of contracts, with my builder present. I asked her to point out in the Turkish translation my contractual requests which she couldn't do, so she had to produce a New contract at a later ate which she then did efficiently. (Much to the chagrin of my builder!)



Gerry

AnthonySmith


Joined: 14/05/2009
Posts: 455

Message Posted:
21/05/2011 10:25

Twoofus, speak to Marian Stokes of the Homebuyers' Pressure Group. She will give advice, point you in the right direction.

Trust no-one, double, triple and quadruple check everything.

The law in the TRNC might be silly to some, but they took the "advice" of estate agents, builders and advocates and a substantial minority are now in the doo-doo.

You need permission to purchase before you buy by law. Simple as. It is not a formality, as some would have you believe. Hundreds have been refused PtP. After you get PtP for a specific house, then you can go through the purchase process, but not before. If you do, you're inviting a whole load of trouble.

Hope this helps.

Ant.

IanBetts


Joined: 21/05/2011
Posts: 2

Message Posted:
21/05/2011 11:09

I have a lot of property experience in northern Cyprus. I sold my house back in 2006 and I go back and rent now, or house sit. You will not find a good straightforward lawyer, your will not find a good straightforward estate agent. So buyer beware. They seem to have stopped issuing permission to buy, presumably until the long awaited settlement arrives, but none of us expect that to happen. My advice is to take your time, go there by all means it is a delightful place. Take a six month rental, look around - then go to the Grapevine and put the word out, you will almost certainly find a better long term rental that way than going through an agent, but you need to be there hence the suggestion of an initial six month agreement. If you do find a pre 74 property that you really want to buy, haggle, but don't expect too much legal support and be prepared to wait and wait and wait for your title deeds. You dont really need help with immigration go to Girne Police station to start out.

stellasstar1



Joined: 02/07/2008
Posts: 1519

Message Posted:
21/05/2011 18:26

Re- Message 32. They are still issuing PTP's as I got mine on Friday.

Hector


Joined: 26/08/2008
Posts: 2352

Message Posted:
21/05/2011 18:54

stellasstar1

What title was your property and how long has it taken to get?

birdman



Joined: 20/09/2010
Posts: 690

Message Posted:
21/05/2011 23:05

Congratulations Stella, at last !!! LOL

philbailey


Joined: 17/01/2011
Posts: 3534

Message Posted:
23/05/2011 15:54

Msg 33 , but yours was a transfer?