How to Check a Turkish TAPU for Mortgages, Liens and Encumbrances Before Buying

When you buy a home in Alanya, the most important question is not the price or the sea view — it is whether the title is clean. A Turkish title deed, the TAPU, can carry hidden debts and restrictions that pass to you the moment you sign. This guide shows you, step by step, how to verify that an Alanya property is free of mortgages, court attachments, and other encumbrances before you commit a single lira. Why a clean title matters In Turkey, most encumbrances are registered against the property, not the person. If a previous owner pledged the home to a bank, or a court froze it for an unpaid debt, that burden travels with the deed. Buy without checking and you may inherit a mortgage, discover you cannot resell, or lose your deposit to a developer whose land is still collateral for a construction loan. The paper TAPU the seller hands you is not proof of anything — it can be months out of date. The Turkish word you want to see is takyidatsız: free of encumbrances. Never accept a verbal "it's clean" — confirm it in the registry yourself. For a foreign buyer who cannot read the deed columns, this verification is not a formality; it is the difference between owning your home outright and quietly taking on a stranger's liabilities. The main types of encumbrance A Turkish title deed records burdens in dedicated columns. Three matter most: İpotek (mortgage / pledge). A voluntary security interest, usually a bank loan, governed by Articles 826 and following of the Turkish Civil Code. It stays on the property and binds the next owner until it is formally released (fek). Haciz (court attachment). An involuntary seizure ordered by an enforcement court to secure a debt judgment. A property under haciz cannot be freely sold until the debt is paid or the court lifts the order. Şerh (annotation). A note recording personal rights that bind successor owners — a pre-sale contract (satış vaadi), a right of first refusal (önalım hakkı), a usufruct (intifa hakkı), or a long-term lease. You may also see a beyan (declaration) column for notices such as construction status, and unpaid belediye borcu (municipal tax debt), which can let the municipality place its own lien. How to check: TAKBİS vs parsel sorgulama There are two very different tools, and confusing them is the classic mistake. TAKBİS (Tapu ve Kadastro Bilgi Sistemi) is the live, authoritative land registry run by TKGM. It shows the real-time encumbrance status — every ipotek, haciz, and şerh on record. Notaries, lawyers, and authorised users can query it, and through the WEBTAPU portal (tapu.gov.tr) owners can view their own records using an e-Devlet login or a foreign identity number. This is the only source that proves a title is clean. parselsorgu.tkgm.gov.tr is the free public cadastral lookup. Enter the province, district, neighbourhood (mahalle), block (ada), and parcel (parsel) and it returns coordinates, land classification (cins), and ownership class — useful for confirming location and that the land is not, say, restricted agricultural land. But it shows cadastral data only: it does not reveal live encumbrances. Treat it as a map, not a clearance check. The practical route for a buyer: have a Turkish lawyer run a full TAKBİS query on the ada/parsel before you sign anything. The developer construction mortgage — the most common risk If you are buying a new-build or off-plan unit in Alanya, watch for the inşaat ipoteği (construction mortgage). Developers routinely pledge the land to a bank to finance construction, and that single ipotek encumbers every unit in the building, including yours. This is normal — but it must be removed before or at the moment your title transfers. Your purchase contract must explicitly oblige the developer to obtain a bank release letter (ipotek fek belgesi) and have TKGM cancel the ipotek on your specific unit at, or simultaneously with, your deed registration. If you take title while the bank's mortgage is still attached, the bank's claim outranks yours. Never pay the final instalment until you have confirmed the release in TAKBİS. Re-check on the day of transfer A TAKBİS query a week before closing is not enough. A new ipotek or haciz can be registered on the very morning of the transfer. Best practice is to request a fresh TAKBİS printout at the TKGM deed office on closing day, immediately before signing. Your lawyer should confirm the title still reads takyidatsız at the counter, then proceed. This single step prevents the worst-case scenario of inheriting a same-day lien. Also have ready the municipal "borcu yoktur" (no-debt) certificate and the mandatory DASK earthquake insurance, both of which the title office may request at closing. Practical pre-purchase checklist Get the exact il / ilçe / mahalle / ada / parsel (and bağımsız bölüm for apartments). Have a Turkish lawyer run a TAKBİS query and read every encumbrance column. Confirm the title is takyidatsız — in writing, from the registry, not the seller. For new-builds, secure a contract clause requiring ipotek fek before transfer. Request a municipal belediye borcu yoktur certificate. Verify DASK insurance is in place and transferable. Do a same-day TAKBİS re-check at the TKGM office before signing. A clean TAPU is the foundation of a safe Alanya purchase. Spend a little on legal due diligence now — a TAKBİS query and a careful contract — and you avoid inheriting someone else's debt later. The cost of a lawyer is a fraction of one mortgage you never agreed to.