A new study by the Association of Professional Facility Managers (PTYD) reveals sharp differences in residential maintenance fees across Istanbul, with central districts continuing to carry the heaviest financial load.
The analysis, which evaluates more than 21,000 sites, apartments and high-rise residences and over 1.5 million independent units, identifies Beşiktaş, Beykoz, Sarıyer, Zeytinburnu and Şişli as the districts with the highest monthly maintenance fees, while Adalar, Çatalca, Fatih, Arnavutköy and Silivri remain the most affordable.
According to the findings, average monthly maintenance fees reach TL 13,134 ($308) in Beşiktaş, followed by TL 11,340 in Beykoz and TL 11,214 in Sarıyer. At the lowest end, Adalar posts an average of TL 645. PTYD Chairman Ozan Özen attributes this disparity to higher property values, broader service portfolios and the extensive operational structures typical of centrally located residences.
While some small apartment buildings charge as little as TL 50 per month, luxury complexes offering multiple daily waste-collection rounds, onsite car wash and technical support services can exceed TL 62,000 in monthly fees.
Özen notes an emerging trend described as “maintenance-fee migration,” with residents increasingly relocating from high-cost central districts toward more affordable areas such as Pendik and Büyükçekmece. PTYD’s data suggests that more than 117,000 households in Istanbul moved in 2025 due to high maintenance fees and rising rental costs, underscoring widespread affordability pressures in the city’s housing market.
The study comes as the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change advances a draft law aimed at strengthening oversight of residential building management. Özen believes the legislation, once enacted, will help prevent arbitrary fee hikes and reinforce accountability across housing communities.
Evaluating the rise in public complaints, property law specialist Şeref Kısacık explains that residential maintenance fees reflect multiple cost items, including elevator and roof maintenance, social facility operations, landscaping, recreational-space upkeep, staffing and, in some cases, centrally managed water and natural gas.
He emphasizes the importance of resident participation in general assemblies, where fee decisions are made, and reminds that objections must be filed within legally defined timeframes. Kısacık also underscores the need for professional auditing, noting that large budgets managed solely by residents can lead to oversight gaps.
He added that many fee-related inequities stem from outdated management plans. In numerous complexes, small apartments and large villas pay identical personnel expenses, and some commercial or ground-floor units are charged despite not using elevators or social areas. Updating management plans to reflect actual usage patterns, he said, is essential to ensuring fairness and long-term financial sustainability.
