Property sales in Turkey up nearly 20 pct

The number of residential properties sold in Turkey soared 19.2 percent annually in October, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) reported on Wednesday.

A total of 146,536 houses changed hands in October, up 15 percent compared to a month earlier.

The number of properties sold to foreigners jumped 134.2 percent year-on-year last month, TurkStat said. 

Of the total sales, 6,276 houses were sold to foreigners, including 36 percent (or 2,283 units) in Istanbul, the country's largest city by population.

Following Istanbul, the Mediterranean holiday resort of Antalya came second with sales of 1,160 properties, while the northwestern province of Bursa ranked third with 448 units.

Official data showed that Iraqis topped the list of buyers in October with 1,439 properties, followed by Iranians with 557 units, Kuwaitis with 378, Germans with 341, and Russians with 336.