Ask any expat in Turkey their reasons for relocating and the common answers will be: the sun, a new life and to escape the rat race. Another huge advantage to living in Turkey is the cheap cost of living.
Turkey is not in the E.U (European Union) and therefore has its own currency, which is theTurkish Lira (YTL). Turkey may choose to use Euro as their currency, if they join the E.U in the future.
Most people would agree that when pay day arrives at the end of a hard-working month, the utility bills, food, and drink put a huge strain on ones bank account.
Compared to many other countries, renting property in Turkey is nearly half the price.
For example: to rent a two bedroom apartment with a communal pool costs around 300 GBP per month.
Water meters are used in Turkey to measure the amount of water used. Water bills are then calculated by this reading. A monthly water bill is on average 10-15 GBP for two people, or annually 200-300 GBP.
An Electricity bill per month is around the same as for water, for two people 10-15 GBP.
Owning a car in Turkey can be expensive.Road tax and insurance is much cheaper than in the U.K., but petrol is approximately the same as the U.K.
Many choose to take advantage of the public transport system,mainly due to the presence of heavy traffic on the inner city roads.
Utility bills such as rent, water and electricity must be paid monthly,however, there are other taxes to be paid annually. If working in Turkey,it is obligatory to pay income tax. The income tax percentage ranges from 15-40% depending on your earnings. It is also compulsory to pay an environmental tax, for around 100 GBP per annum..
Then depending on the size of your property, you must pay 0.1-0.3% property tax. This bill costs on average between 20-40 GBP per year.
There is an option to pay for health insurance, which is recommended, these costs are about 1, 500 GBP per person for 1 year.
Turkey has a number of supermarkets, where you can find local Turkish produce and imported goods too. Imported goods are more expensive than the local Turkish alternatives. A weekly shopping bill for a family of four, buying only local brands, is approx100 GBP.
For a family of four, buying mainly imported brands, this takes the food bill up to 150-200 GBP. If you were to buy a turkish made loaf of bread, you would expect to pay 0.30 GBP, for an imported equivalent it would cost 1.20 GBP.
If you were to go shopping in an average Turkish supermarket, this is what you could expect to pay for your shopping: (prices are in GBP)
500g butter – 0.70
1kg tomatoes – 0.20
1kg peaches – 0.40
soft drinks in can - 0.60
1kg meat – 2.70
1kg cheese – 1.30
10 eggs – 0.40
1 litre milk – 0.50
packet of cigarettes – 2.00
4 litre bottle mineral water – 2.00
500ml bottle beer – 0.60
bottle of wine – 4.50
Prices are generally lower in supermarkets, compared to the 'bakkals'/ the local stores.
Eating and drinking out in Turkey is rather inexpensive too. These prices are taken from an average priced restaurant in Turkey: (prices in GBP)
1 course meal – 5/6.00
bottle of wine – 6.00
spirits (per shot) – 1.20
500ml beer – 1.25-4.80
soft drink – 0.80
3 course meal – 10-15.00 per head
Prices often vary, depending on whether you are buying imported or local goods.
In Turkey, the men and women have separate hairdressers to go to. A man will visit a barber and women go to their own salon. A men’s haircut costs 2 GBP, whilst a women’s hair cut costs 10 GBP.
Turkey has a very reasonable cost of living.
If you choose to use bars and restaurants on coastal resorts and buy imported food and drink, expect to pay more.
Choosing local bars and shops for traditional Turkish food and drink will cost considerably less, and help make friends with the locals.
