10 replies to this topic

[LisaO]

Hi,

I am new here so Hello (I will introduce myself on the welcome forum later!)

I got married to my husband in May and we are looking at buying an empty shop that has just become available in our building along with his brother in law. We will be investing a fair bit of money and I just wondered where I stood legally with the fact that we don't have children, yet!

If we divorced or he left me, would I be legally entitled to half of what we invested, and is it hard to include my name on the deeds as I am not yet a citizen of Turkey although have a 3 years residence permit? I have heard so many horror stories about the family claiming half, the woman being left with nothing etc. We are both early 30's and are planning to have children (I know this makes a difference in the event of death) but if my name is not included on the deeds do I still have rights!

We have no intention of divorcing (well I don't!) but just want to protect myself for the future.

Thanks in advance for any replies,

Lisa

[Abi]

Lisa, I think you will find the link below useful. Actually, although the document is detailing womens legal rights, it's a document that should be read by men and women who are married to Turks as it has sections on divorce and inheritance as prescribed by law and they are very important things to know about so people don't have a shock at a later stage, especially the section dealing with inheritance.

http://www.turkeycen...oman-in-turkey/

As far as buying a property goes I think, but could be wrong it wouldn't be a problem buying a share of the shop in your name, maybe others who have more knowledge will add to this question as I'm not sure if different rules apply to business premises. If you can I think you would have to apply for a military search in the same way as you would do when buying a house/apartment. However this would take time, how much I'm not sure as it would depend in which area it is located as it varies from region to region.

Please feel free to ask further questions, we will try our best to help you.

[Lizaliza]

Hi,

I am new here so Hello (I will introduce myself on the welcome forum later!)

I got married to my husband in May and we are looking at buying an empty shop that has just become available in our building along with his brother in law. We will be investing a fair bit of money and I just wondered where I stood legally with the fact that we don't have children, yet!

If we divorced or he left me, would I be legally entitled to half of what we invested, and is it hard to include my name on the deeds as I am not yet a citizen of Turkey although have a 3 years residence permit? I have heard so many horror stories about the family claiming half, the woman being left with nothing etc. We are both early 30's and are planning to have children (I know this makes a difference in the event of death) but if my name is not included on the deeds do I still have rights!

We have no intention of divorcing (well I don't!) but just want to protect myself for the future.

Thanks in advance for any replies,

Lisa

Hi Lisa, as far as I know a foreigner's name can go onto Turkish business deeds but you won't be able work in the shop legally without a work permit, and they are very hard to obtain! Although legally you will have a third share of the business divided between yourself, husband and brother-in-law, if anything were to go wrong (either with the business or your relationship) and you decided you wanted out of it, can you be sure that your husband and BIL would be prepared to buy you out?

What if they wouldn't, or couldn't?


That's what I would be considering at this stage - how easy would it be to get my money back if my marriage collapsed? With the business being in Turkey it could be very difficult (and costly) forcing them to buy your share out if things did go wrong. At the same time, IF your marriage came to an end maybe your husband and BIL would happily liquify your money and pay you back.

But that's just the worst case scenario, it may never come to that at all!

Out of interest what type of business are you going to start up?


L x

[sunny]

As you are married, theoretically you would be entitled to a share in the proceeds of the shop if it is sold or you want your share but if your name is not on the tapu your husband and BiL could sell it without your knowledge and you would probably get nothing, so I would advise having your name put on it even if the formal buying of it is held up while military permission is sought.

[LisaO]

Thanks for you replies. We're not actually buying the shop to work in it personally but as an investment to rent out and in the future, if we sell it, we will get a profit! I just spoke to my husband about getting my name put on the deeds incase anything happens in the future and he said that I shouldn't worry as that will never happen, but I am not naive enough to know hoe nasty people can get when divorces etc get invoved! I iwill definitely get my name on the deeds. I will be the main contributer to the payments afterall!

Thanks again and will look into a soliciter here in Izmir to help when the time comes.

[Abi]

Good for you Lisa, just stick to your guns if you are the main contributor and don't be ground down or made to feel guilty for "not trusting". It may be true and nothing will change in your relationship but one never knows what the future holds for us,

[sunny]

Glad to hear that Lisa. As Abi says, don't let them make you feel guilty for wanting your name on the deeds, stick to your guns.

[Lizaliza]

Thanks for you replies. We're not actually buying the shop to work in it personally but as an investment to rent out and in the future, if we sell it, we will get a profit! I just spoke to my husband about getting my name put on the deeds incase anything happens in the future and he said that I shouldn't worry as that will never happen, but I am not naive enough to know hoe nasty people can get when divorces etc get invoved! I iwill definitely get my name on the deeds. I will be the main contributer to the payments afterall!

Thanks again and will look into a soliciter here in Izmir to help when the time comes.

Hi Lisa, I agree with Abi and Sunny, make sure you get your name put on the deeds before you hand over one penny!

If your husband is telling you not to worry about that, and that nothing will happen, then he won't mind having your name on the deeds! And after all, it is YOUR money you're investing!

With regards to the business side of things, do you have any experience in this field? I think you said you'll be putting a lot of your money into this project, which means if it goes wrong it will be you who loses a lot of money!

Have you done any research into this shop? Have you got a guaranteed rental income already? How can you be sure your renters don't default on their payments? How can you be sure you can later sell this shop at a profit? Do you know why the present owners are selling it? Why don't they rent it out themselves and sell it at a later date if they know for certain that it's going to increase in value? The economy all over the world is in bad shape, and no-one really knows what's going to happen to property prices - both private and commercial. Lots of very well established businesses are going to the wall, and some of them have been operating for almost 100 years! So I would be wary of anyone telling me I could make a GUARANTEED profit on something when the economy is as it is right now!

I know there are often situations where sellers have to sell besides profits being down and running at a loss (retirement/relocating etc) but I would look into every single aspect of this business venture and find out why the present owners are selling up now. It's very easy for other people to gamble with your money. I'm not saying your husband and BIL are not good, decent people, but even if they are it doesn't mean they have good business sense. They may well have experience and knowledge of running a business, but if they haven't any experience in this field I would RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH before parting with a penny!

I hope for your sake they do have good business sense and know what they are doing!

Good luck!

L x

[sunny]

" I'm not saying your husband and BIL are not good, decent people, but even if they are it doesn't mean they have good business sense. They may well have experience and knowledge of running a business, but if they haven't any experience in this field I would RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH before parting with a penny!
I must say that I agree with this. Turks have a tendency to get involved with businesses without doing enough/any research so there is a high percentage of new businesses failing. Unfortunately there isn't the same help and information for new businesses that exists in the UK so you would be well advised to heed Liza's advice.

[Meral]

I have to say I also agree wholeheartedly with Liza's sensible advice. If the current owners assure you will make good money, why don't they make this good money themselves ? And don't forget, as a part-owner you would not only share in the profits, but also any losses. And of course you are not getting divorced, but since you did mention it in your first post, a divorce doesn't automatically get you out of the partnership --- in fact getting out of such a partnership is a whole lot messier and time-consuming than getting in. Better continue research as wisely suggested above. Good luck !

[LisaO]

Thanks for all your sound advice. Plans are on hold at the moment due to some unexpected news (not relating to the business), but I assure you that if I ever decide to invest in anything here ı will make sure to get a good solicitor behind me. Afterall that is exactly whaat ı would do in the same position in the UK.

Thanks again,

Lisa