How many years must a minimum wage earner in Istanbul work to buy a home? The crisis is reflected in the numbers

The economic crisis and inflationary environment have broken the backs of citizens.

For a minimum wage earner to buy a home in Istanbul, they would need to save their entire salary for 22 years without touching a single penny.

According to a report by Hülya Keskin Oruçoğlu from Sözcü, a low-income earner would need to save their entire salary for 7.4 years to buy a 50-square-meter 1+1 home nationwide, and for 10.9 years to buy a 50-square-meter home in Istanbul. If a low-income earner manages to save their 22-year salary without spending a single penny, they can purchase a 100-square-meter home in Istanbul.

A 100-SQUARE-METER APARTMENT IN ISTANBUL IS 4.4 MILLION LIRA

According to Central Bank data, as of November 2023, the average price of a 100-square-meter home nationwide rose to 3 million 31 thousand 860 TL, and in Istanbul, it reached 4 million 453 thousand 250 TL. While a worker earning the minimum wage of 17 thousand 2 lira following the latest raise would need to save their salary for 22 years to buy a home in Istanbul, when the minimum wage was 11,402 lira, the employee would have needed to save their entire salary for 390 months, or 32 years.