Positive experiences earning a living in Turkey?

[Scunner]

Oh I just saw member "kismetbar" come online - they are both British and seem to do ok - but they are very much the exception!

[debbie]

OOOh!! Their story would be of interest to us if they read this blog!! No apologies needed Scunner - :-)..and again..thanks x

[scareylady]

As has been said already I wouldn't recommend setting up a business in Turkey.  There are very few that make a success, we did it and lost the lot.  We tried to do everything within the legal system, with support from lot of fantastic local dignitaries and busness men but the red tape and the language barrier became unsumountable. Bars and guesthouses are also subject to jelousy and family loyalties from the locals so you need to be really careful.  Turks find it almost impossible to survive in the long term so Brits stand almost no chance at all.  If you still have your options open for all the rest of the world, I would say stick within the Euro zone.

[Firo]

Debbie I think the message hopefully you are getting is...
If you need to work here to earn a living... go to another country where you can legally work with out the jealousy that most seem to encounter in Turkey.
When you have retired and don't need to earn a living then move to Turkey.

[c1]

You could look at Greece, simular climate and Euro land and property quiet cheap a B and B just of the major east / west motorway would work, or you could possibily run an internet business from Turkey,with small items (as postage can be a problem).I think until Turkey / EU makes their minds up about joining the posiblity of starting anything is slim, take heed of what other have said and please don't think we are raining on your parade.

[Janice1971]

Debbie my advice is to leave well alone, we tried and failed with a business and lost £70k along the way, seriously if i thought any ex-pat would succeed i would say go for it but unfortunately you havent got a hope in hell of being successful!

[debbie]

Good grief!! Just read all the posts - Janice and Scareylady im sorry about your losses - that must have been apsolutely awful - thankyou for your advice - We have got the message!! :-) You all have been so lovley and helpful - we do have plans b and c - but like I said Fethiye was our first choice. We have also looked at N/E Brazil (one extreme to another!) We were impressed after a visit there a couple of years ago, and to be honest if it was closer Brazil would have been our first choice - beautiful country and people, so diverse and lots of choice with property - also comes with the bureaocracy but by the sounds of it alot easier to set up a business than Turkey. We shall keep everyone posted, and to no doubt ask for advice from this fab forum!
Thankyou to you all again.

Debbie and Billy xx

[scooby doo]

No. Dont do it.

[nichola]

I have a British friend who has renovated several properties in the past few years. She has learnt and speaks Turkish fluently.

This means she doesn't need to put her trust in or rely on anyone else to understand and more importantly know what is being discussed and happening. She does all the groudwork herself, researching and shopping around for the best prices which can vary enormously for the exact same product.

She recruits and employs the people she wants to do the job and even though she has found a builder she trusts stays on top of what is going on and pro actively monitors progress and doesn't leave anything to chance or interpretation.

Her renovations could easily feature in magazines as she definitely has the ability to see the potential of a property and an eye for interior design and have all been done at a fraction of the price you might expect.

Learning the language is probably the most important thing you can do if you wanted to try and make some kind of independant living here.

[LeeGlo]

Hi Debbie, you could consider Bulgaria. Next door to Turkey, so has a similar climate, and you could come to Fethiye for holidays. In the EU, so not so much hassle, loads of cheap property ripe for conversion and modernisation. I don't know about the language but it couldn't possibly be harder to learn than Turkish. Just a thought.