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If their presence at this year’s EXPO REAL in Munich is anything to go by, Turkey property players are keen to attract foreign investment. Turkish developers, property law firms, mortgage lenders and accountants were all singing the praises of Turkey’s property market.

‘Turkey is ready to take off and it is the place to be for all classes of property investments,’ as one panel member put it.

The stable financial system, which was completely rehauled after the 2001 crisis, was a big selling point, along with a burgeoning population with a median age of 28, compared with a median age of 42 in the EU and an economy set to recover in 2010.

Analysts admit, however, that there are still legal barriers to foreign investment and there were few kind words for Turkey’s central and municipal governments. The country is facing a huge shortage of residential and commercial property, especially in Istanbul, which adds around 500,000 people to its population each year. Foreign investors could provide a much-need injection of cash in a market hogtied by banks’ reluctant to cough up finance.