Istanbul yields 9.92%, Batumi 7.28% — measured the same way
Global Property Guide measures gross rental yields the same way in both countries: median asking rent times twelve, divided by median list price, from a local listings platform. On that basis Turkey averaged 7.86% in the third quarter of 2026, with Istanbul at 9.92% and Antalya at 6.57%. Its Georgian survey, updated in August 2026, puts Batumi at 7.28% and Tbilisi at 7.23%. So a Black Sea flat out-yields Antalya and trails Istanbul — before any of the costs that differ most between the two markets.
Why comparing like with like matters here
Yield comparisons across borders usually fail because each figure comes from a different method: one country's number is built from signed leases, another's from asking prices, a third from a developer's brochure. These two come from one publisher applying the same rule — median asking rent annualised over median list price, assessed for one, two and three-bedroom flats in the largest cities. That does not make them precise. Asking rents overstate what landlords collect, and list prices overstate what buyers pay, so the ratio can be roughly right while both inputs are optimistic. It does mean the gap between 9.92% and 7.28% is a real difference in the data rather than an artefact of two incompatible surveys.
What the gross number leaves out
Both pages say the same thing about their own figures: these are gross yields, before tax, repairs, ground rents, agents' fees and management, and net yields typically run one and a half to two points lower. The costs that differ most between the two markets are the ones at purchase. Global Property Guide's Turkey buying guide lists a title deed fee of 4% of the price, notary fees of 0.10% to 0.20%, agent commission of 2% each side and legal fees of 0.50%, putting total roundtrip costs at 8.60% to 8.70%. A buyer should set that entry cost against the extra yield before deciding that Istanbul is simply the better number.
The currency question nobody puts in the yield
A yield is a ratio within one currency, so it says nothing about what that currency will be worth when you convert the rent or sell the asset. Turkish rents and prices are quoted in lira, Georgian sale prices are commonly quoted in dollars with rents in lari, and the two markets have behaved very differently on that front in recent years. The sensible way to use these numbers is as a first screen rather than a decision: they tell you which cities are worth a closer look, and the closer look then has to cover entry costs, tax on rental income, the currency the lease is written in, and how much of the gross figure survives the trip to net.
Written by us from the source linked above, not investment, legal or tax advice. Figures and rules change — confirm anything that matters before acting on it.
