Syrians refugees exhausted by extra commissions, charges for rented houses

By Tareq Haj Bakri

(Eqtsad) Syrian refugees have introduced foreign customs into Turkish commercial practices regarding residential and commercial rental contracts. These practices have a negative effect on Syrians in Turkey, and were exploited by opportunistic brokers and intermediaries concerned for their material interests only.

Most of the Syrian refugees who came to Turkey fled from the threat of arrest, death and destruction enforced by the al-Assad regime against the Syrian population.

Others, including some who support al-Assad, came to Turkey to maintain their business investments that have stopped in areas under either the opposition or regime control. Large groups, especially young men, came to Turkey fleeing the mandatory military service they are expected to complete as Syrian nationals. In addition to these various groups, the regime has sent many agents to harass and exhaust Syrians present in Turkey working to liberate Syria and continue the struggle against the regime.

In 2011 when Syrians first start arriving in large numbers to Turkey, rent for houses varied between 150-400 Turkish Lira (TL) based on the quality of the house and its location. By 2017, the prices have risen to astronomical level where rent is more than 1000 TL in many places across Turkey.

Brokers Impose Commissions and Raise Rents

With the increase in the number of Syrians arriving, an emergent class of opportunists became visible. These people work as intermediaries between newly arrived Syrians searching for housing and real estate agents. They impose a commission on the newly arrived which at times is equivalent to one month rent. This phenomenon is unprecedented in Turkey, but Turkish real estate offices welcomed the idea of mediators as they raise the rent prices. Syrian rentiers are then expected to pay two commissions one to the broker and another to the real estate office.

“According to Turkish commercial practice before brokers entered the scene, rentiers did not pay real estate offices a commission for renting a house through them. The responsibility to pay the office fell on landlords and rentiers were only expected to pay a small sum that was the equivalent of electrical and water bills for a month as a guarantee for when they leave the property. The real estate offices used to pay the ordinary bills and hold tenants accountable without any extra charges. With the entry of mediators, they started to take a fee for each bill they pay for tenants which is an additional burden on Syrians,” explained Murad Osman, who owns a real estate business in Hatay province.

-Speculation Raises Rent-

There have been many cases were Syrian capitalists have paid large sums of money to rent a property they like even if it caused the eviction of the poor Syrian tenant living in it.

Abu Ahmed rented a house in the Agasia area in Antakya for 450 TL per month at the end of 2013. He paid 450 TL as a commission for the house, and another 450 TL to the Syrian broker through whom he rented to house. The key to the house remained with the intermediary on the basis the intermediary was going to clean the property before Abu Ahmad’s family moved in.

Abu Ahmad returned to Syria and came back to Antakya with his family. When he went to the office to bring the key from the broker, the latter returned the sum Abu Ahmad paid as commission and rent. The broker informed him that the house had been leased to another Syrian for 650 TL because the new tenant had a shop selling used furniture close to the house and could afford to pay more.

-Commercial Charges-

The Syrians introduced another issue that has a negatively impacted on refugees who wanted to open small businesses such as grocery stories or other small businesses to provide for their families.

Brokers intervened in this sector of the real estate business and introduced charges on anyone seeking to rent a shop regardless of its size in addition to the monthly rent and the necessary insurance fees.

This custom was not previously known in Turkey where leases are subject to Turkish law and under Turkish law rentiers are obligated at the end of the contract to vacate the property and deliver it to the landlord.

The appeal of imposing these charges is due to the large number of Syrians seeking to start businesses in Turkey and the high demand for shops especially by Syrian investors coming to Turkey.