There are two interest-free ways to buy a home in Turkey and they answer different questions. A participation bank's murabaha home finance (murabaha konut finansmanı) buys the house now and sells it to you on instalments; Ziraat Katılım printed a 3.19 percent monthly profit rate on terms up to 120 months on 30 September 2026, with a 0.50 percent allocation fee and a 3,600 TL mortgage fee. A savings-finance company (tasarruf finansman şirketi) such as Eminevim or Fuzul charges a one-off organisation fee, pools your instalments with other members and hands you the purchase money at a delivery month that can be years away. The bank route costs more and delivers today; the pool route costs less and makes you wait.
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What a participation bank actually sells you
Emlak Katılım describes its product in one sentence: the home you want to buy is purchased by the bank in line with participation banking principles and sold to you over the term you choose. That is murabaha, a cost-plus sale, and the Diyanet High Board's 19 December 2018 ruling on participation banks sets the condition that matters: the seller's counterparty must be the bank and the bank's counterparty must be you, so the invoice should be cut to the bank first, or at minimum the bank must give you a written agency (vekâletname) to buy on its behalf and the contract must state that the bank is selling the property to you. Our murabaha explainer walks through the paperwork step by step.
The practical consequence is that the bank's profit is a sale margin fixed at signing, not a floating charge. Kuveyt Türk's pre-contract information form confirms the standard product is fixed-profit (sabit kâr oranlı) with the total amount payable shown in the sample repayment plan, and that early payment of one or more instalments earns a discount rather than a penalty on the bank's own form, while the law allows the compensation described below. Everything the bank sells sits under the BDDK loan-to-value caps that our BDDK caps guide explains, and under the broader rules on the home financing hub.
The printed cost of murabaha home finance at Ziraat Katılım
Ziraat Katılım is the only participation bank that prints a full fee and rate schedule for retail home finance on its website, so it is the benchmark. On 30 September 2026 its Konut Finansmanı page for amounts up to 10,000,000 TL showed a profit rate of 3.19 percent per month for terms of 1 to 120 months, last updated 11 May 2026, and a campaign package at 2.89 percent per month updated 12 June 2026. Both are exempt from the KKDF levy and from BSMV. The allocation fee (tahsis ücreti) is 0.50 percent of the financing, the mortgage establishment fee (ipotek tesis ücreti) is 3,600 TL including VAT and is paid to the registry firm, and the appraisal fee (ekspertiz ücreti) starts at 16,500 TL excluding VAT for homes up to 150 square metres and is paid to the SPK-licensed appraisal company.
The page also prints the annual cost rate (yıllık maliyet oranı) the law requires: 46.18 percent for 100,000 TL over 120 months at the standard rate, and 41.14 percent on the campaign rate, both including the allocation and mortgage fees but excluding compulsory earthquake insurance (DASK), life insurance and home insurance because those premiums vary. Early repayment compensation follows the Housing Finance Law: 1 percent of the amount prepaid when 36 months or less remain, 2 percent when more than 36 months remain, exempt from BSMV. Those two percentages are the same at every bank because the law sets them, so the real differences between banks are the monthly rate and the appraisal bill.
What Kuveyt Türk and Emlak Katılım publish instead of a rate
Kuveyt Türk prints terms and loan-to-value tables but not a current rate; its home finance pages offer up to 120 months, fixed or irregular instalment plans, and a separate İlk Evim product for people whose household owns no home. The İlk Evim table allows financing up to 90 percent of appraised value for A or B energy-class homes valued at 5,000,000 TL or less, 80 percent for C class and 70 percent for other classes, stepping down to 40, 30 and 20 percent for homes above 20,000,000 TL. If you, your spouse or a child under 18 already owns a home, Kuveyt Türk states the available financing falls by 75 percent, and its standard table starts at 22.5 percent of value. The rate itself is quote-only: ask the branch for the monthly profit rate, the annual cost rate and a sample repayment plan in writing.
Emlak Katılım finances up to 80 percent of appraised value, prints a loan-to-value table that runs from 90 percent for A and B class homes at 5,000,000 TL or less down to 40, 30 and 20 percent above 20,000,000 TL, and gives a 2-point profit rate discount on homes with an A or B energy certificate under its Çevreci Konut Finansmanı. Its website rates apply only to 100,000 TL of financing; larger amounts are priced at the branch. It also runs Memlekette Konut Finansmanı for Turkish citizens resident abroad, in TL up to 120 months or in USD and EUR up to 60 months, on condition that the applicant lives abroad and, for FX financing, earns in foreign currency, with documents translated and notarised in Turkey.
How tasarruf finansman works under Law 6361
Savings-finance companies have been licensed and supervised by the BDDK since the 2021 amendments to Law 6361 brought them inside the regulated perimeter. The BDDK's own question-and-answer document describes the model plainly: customers finance each other through a savings pool, the company organises and manages the pool, and in return charges an organisation fee (organizasyon ücreti), which the BDDK defines as the amount customers pay for the savings-finance activity and the management of the pool. The service can only be sold to finance a registered home, a roofed workplace or a vehicle in Turkey. Our guide to Eminevim, Fuzul and the Elbirliği model covers the group mechanics; here we focus on the rights the law gives you.
Two rights are the ones to remember. You may withdraw (cayma) within 14 days of signing without giving a reason and without penalty, and the company must refund everything you paid, including the organisation fee, within 14 days of your notice. After that you may terminate (fesih) at any point until the end of the savings period, and the company must refund your accumulated savings minus the organisation fee within the period the BDDK sets. Eminevim's own pages say a member leaving its individual (bireysel) plans before delivery gets back all instalments plus half the organisation fee, while on its draw-based (çekilişli) plans the whole organisation fee is deducted and the refund is paid six months later. Read the exit clause of the specific plan before signing.
What the organisation fee looks like in print
Eminevim states that the organisation fee is not a fixed percentage and depends on the property value, the plan and the number of instalments, and it publishes worked examples. In the no-deposit individual plan, a 200,000 TL property carries an organisation fee of 17,200 TL, 80 instalments of 2,500 TL and delivery in month 41; a 400,000 TL property carries 34,400 TL with 5,000 TL instalments. In the 10 percent deposit plan the same 200,000 TL property carries 16,800 TL with delivery in month 30 over 72 instalments. The property values in those examples are illustrative rather than current Istanbul prices, but the ratios they imply, roughly 8.4 to 8.6 percent of the property value by our arithmetic, are the number to ask for on a real quote.
The Diyanet High Board ruled on 10 December 2025 that acquiring a home, workplace or vehicle through the tasarruf finansman system is permissible on four conditions: the company takes no fee other than the organisation fee; what you pay into the pool, excluding that fee, equals what you receive at delivery; the company finances members from the pool and not from its own equity, except that it may join a group as a member to complete the minimum number after withdrawals; and if you pay late after delivery, nothing beyond the inflation difference may be demanded. Those four tests are also a practical checklist for reading any company's contract.
Bank murabaha and savings finance, side by side
| Question | Participation bank murabaha | Tasarruf finansman |
|---|---|---|
| Who pays the seller and when | The bank, at signing | You, at the delivery month, from the pool |
| What you pay for the money | Fixed profit margin; Ziraat Katılım prints 3.19 percent a month | One-off organisation fee; Eminevim examples imply about 8.5 percent of property value |
| Other printed costs | 0.50 percent allocation fee, 3,600 TL mortgage fee, appraisal from 16,500 TL at Ziraat Katılım | BDDK states no fee other than the organisation fee may be charged |
| Maximum financing | BDDK loan-to-value caps; up to 90 percent of value on A or B class homes at 5,000,000 TL or less at Kuveyt Türk İlk Evim | You choose the target amount; the pool, not an appraisal, sets it |
| Early exit | 1 or 2 percent compensation on prepaid amounts by law | 14-day withdrawal with full refund; later exits refund savings minus the fee |
| Regulator and insurance | BDDK; no TMSF cover on a financing | BDDK under Law 6361; the pool is not TMSF insured |
| Diyanet position | Permissible if the bank buys first, 19 December 2018 | Permissible on four conditions, 10 December 2025 |
Why Katılım Finans Kefalet does not help a homebuyer
Readers often ask whether the participation guarantee scheme can replace a deposit. It cannot. Katılım Finans Kefalet, founded on 29 March 2023 by the Treasury, the TKBB and the participation banks, guarantees business financing for SMEs and larger firms that lack collateral. Its published packages on 30 September 2026 are all corporate: the Treasury Investment Support package guarantees 80 to 85 percent of investment financing up to 45,000,000 TL for an SME with an investment incentive certificate, for a 0.5 percent guarantee commission and no application fee, and the own-equity working capital package guarantees 80 percent up to 20,000,000 TL for an SME at a 1.5 percent commission. Applications go through Albaraka Türk, Kuveyt Türk, Vakıf Katılım, Ziraat Katılım, Emlak Katılım and Türkiye Finans. There is no retail housing guarantee in Turkey's participation system, so a homebuyer's deposit has to come from savings, a Konut Hesabı with its state match, or family.
Who should choose what
- You have found the home and the seller will not wait: take the bank route, get Ziraat Katılım's printed 3.19 percent (or 2.89 percent campaign) as your floor and make Kuveyt Türk and Emlak Katılım beat it in writing.
- You are two to four years from buying and can pay a fixed instalment reliably: a savings-finance plan costs a single fee instead of a decade of profit margin, provided you accept a delivery month rather than a date.
- Your household already owns a home: Kuveyt Türk cuts available financing by 75 percent, so price the pool route or a larger deposit before assuming a bank will fund you.
- You live abroad and earn in foreign currency: Emlak Katılım's Memlekette product in USD or EUR up to 60 months is the only printed FX option we found.
- You want to stress-test the instalment: run the bank numbers through our mortgage calculator with the annual cost rate, not the monthly profit rate.
Our view is that the bank route is the default for anyone with a deposit and a seller in hand, because the margin is fixed, the law caps prepayment compensation at 1 or 2 percent and the paperwork follows the Diyanet's murabaha conditions. The pool route is a disciplined savings plan with a purchase at the end, and it suits people who would otherwise rent for years while saving. Never sign a savings-finance contract whose organisation fee, delivery month and exit refund are not written on the first page, because those three numbers are the whole product. Facts checked against ziraatkatilim.com.tr, kuveytturk.com.tr, emlakkatilim.com.tr, bddk.org.tr, eminevim.com, katilimkefalet.com.tr, kurul.diyanet.gov.tr on 30 September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is murabaha home finance from a participation bank cheaper than tasarruf finansman?
No, measured purely in lira paid. Ziraat Katılım's printed 3.19 percent a month over 120 months produces an annual cost rate of 46.18 percent on 100,000 TL, while Eminevim's worked examples imply an organisation fee near 8.5 percent of the property value. The bank is dearer because it pays the seller today; the pool is cheaper because you wait for the delivery month.
What fees does Ziraat Katılım charge on home finance?
On 30 September 2026 it printed a 0.50 percent allocation fee, a 3,600 TL mortgage establishment fee including VAT, an appraisal fee from 16,500 TL excluding VAT for homes up to 150 square metres, and early repayment compensation of 1 percent when 36 months or less remain and 2 percent when more remain. DASK, life and home insurance are extra and vary by property.
Can I cancel a tasarruf finansman contract?
Yes. Under Law 6361 as described by the BDDK you can withdraw within 14 days of signing with no reason and no penalty, and the company must refund everything, including the organisation fee, within 14 days. After that you can terminate until the end of the savings period and receive your savings back minus the organisation fee, with company-specific rules on timing and partial fee refunds.
Does Diyanet consider tasarruf finansman halal?
Yes, conditionally. The High Board's 10 December 2025 decision permits buying a home, workplace or vehicle through the system if the company charges only the organisation fee, pays out exactly what members paid in, finances from the pool rather than its own equity, and demands nothing beyond the inflation difference for late payments after delivery. A contract that fails any of those tests falls outside the ruling.
Can Katılım Finans Kefalet guarantee my home purchase?
No. Its published packages guarantee business financing for SMEs and larger companies through six participation banks, with commissions of 0.5 and 1.5 percent and limits up to 45,000,000 TL. It has no retail housing product, so a homebuyer's deposit must come from savings, a state-matched Konut Hesabı, or family rather than a guarantee.
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How much of the house price will a participation bank finance?
It depends on value and energy class under the BDDK caps. Kuveyt Türk's İlk Evim table and Emlak Katılım's table both allow up to 90 percent of appraised value for A or B class homes at 5,000,000 TL or less, falling to 20 percent for the lowest class above 20,000,000 TL. Emlak Katılım separately states a general ceiling of 80 percent of appraisal, and Kuveyt Türk reduces the amount by 75 percent if your household already owns a home.
