A Visit to Turkey..

I recently returned from Istanbul, Turkey where I had the privilege of attending a press conference announcing the change in ownership of REALTY WORLD-Turkey. For those who may not be aware, REALTY WORLD has a growing presence in this historic country that bridges Asia and Europe. Currently REALTY WORLD has over 50 offices with 350 agents in Turkey.

The new ownership group is Garanti Koza (www.garantikoza.com), a well respected construction company in existence since 1948. With projects involving heavy construction and infrastructure being built throughout Eastern Europe, Garanti Koza is also building new luxury villas and sees REALTY WORLD as the perfect vehicle to market these properties.

The short term goal is to increase the REALTY WORLD presence in Turkey to 300 offices and three thousand agents! With a booming real estate industry, combined with a strong commitment by the new ownership group, this is a very achievable goal. While in Istanbul I had an opportunity to visit several offices and meet with REALTY WORLD brokers and agents. I was not surprised to learn that the same opportunities and challenges that we face in the USA are common on the other side of the world. Building solid relationships with buyers, sellers, and potential agent recruits are their priorities every day. While not quite as technologically advanced as we are in the real estate industry, they are quickly learning the advantages of cooperating among themselves.

If you know of anyone wanting to invest in a foreign country, keep Turkey in mind as it is a beautiful country, with friendly people and you may even get a good referral fee from one of our very aggressive offices!