Urban Transformation Process within the Scope of Law No. 6306

This is a comprehensive legal guide to the urban transformation process under Law No. 6306, covering aspects such as risk assessment, objections, lawsuits, evictions, demolition, owner decisions, land share sales, rental assistance, and contractor contracts.

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What is urban transformation under Law No. 6306?

Law No. 6306 on the Transformation of Areas Under Disaster Risk is the fundamental legal basis for urban transformation practices in Türkiye. The purpose of the law is to determine the procedures and principles for improvement, demolition, and renewal processes in areas under disaster risk and on plots and lands outside these areas where risky structures are located, in order to create healthy, safe, and structurally sound living environments. In this respect, Law No. 6306 is not merely a "building renovation" regulation; it is a special transformation regime that simultaneously affects life safety, property rights, zoning planning, administrative procedures, land registry regulations, the decision-making process of property owners, and construction law.

In practice, when urban transformation is mentioned, most people only think of the demolition of the old building and the construction of a new one in its place. However, under Law No. 6306, the process is a multi-stage legal mechanism extending from the identification of risky structures to the annotation of the title deed, from objections to administrative lawsuits, from eviction to demolition, from decision-making by a simple majority of owners to the sale of the land shares of owners who do not participate in the decision, to contractor contracts, rental assistance, and exemptions from fees and taxes.

Therefore, the urban transformation process under Law No. 6306 is a process that must be carefully monitored from start to finish. A procedural error at one stage can cause all subsequent processes to become controversial. In particular, documents such as notifications, announcements, objection periods, lawsuit filing periods, property owner's decision minutes, offer notifications, valuation reports, and contractor contracts are central to potential future disputes.

Basic Concepts in Law No. 6306

To understand the urban transformation process under Law No. 6306, it is necessary to first understand some basic concepts. The law defines a "risky building" as a structure, whether located within or outside a risky area, that has completed its economic lifespan or is determined, based on scientific and technical data, to be at risk of collapse or severe damage. A "risky area" refers to an area designated by the President that carries a risk of loss of life and property due to its ground structure or existing buildings. A "reserve building area" is an area designated by the Ministry, either at the request of TOKİ (Housing Development Administration of Turkey) or the administration, or on its own initiative, for use in applications carried out under Law No. 6306.

The distinction between these concepts is important. While the risky building process typically focuses on a single building or plot, the designation of risky areas and reserve building areas can have broader implications for planning, ownership, valuation, evacuation, and resettlement. For example, designating an apartment building as a risky structure does not have the same legal consequences as declaring an entire neighborhood a risky area. In the risky building process, property owners have more control over their own plots, while in risky areas, the administration may have broader planning and implementation powers.

In the implementation of Law No. 6306, the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, the Urban Transformation Presidency, municipalities, provincial special administrations, TOKİ (Housing Development Administration of Turkey), land registry offices, and licensed risk assessment organizations play roles at different stages. Therefore, the process should not be considered merely a private law relationship between the property owner and the contractor. Urban transformation is a complex process with both administrative and private law characteristics.

Starting the Process with Identifying Risky Buildings

Under Law No. 6306, the urban transformation process usually begins with the identification of risky buildings. The identification of risky buildings is, as a rule, carried out by the building owners or their legal representatives, at their own expense, through institutions and organizations licensed by the Urban Transformation Presidency. The Presidency or the administration can also carry out the risky building identification ex officio, or request the owners to have the identification done within a certain period. If the owners do not have the identification done within the given time, the identification can be carried out or commissioned by the Presidency or the administration.

According to the Implementing Regulation, the identification of risky buildings is carried out through an electronic software system and is performed according to the technical principles in Annex 2. Risky building identification is performed on structures that are independently usable, covered, accessible to people, and used for purposes such as dwelling, working, resting, or worship. Buildings under construction that are not inhabited, as well as buildings whose structural integrity has been compromised due to derelict or other reasons, are not subject to risky building identification.

The important point here is that the unanimous consent of all owners is not required for the identification of a building as risky. In practice, the process of identifying a building as risky can be initiated with the application of a single owner. This does not mean that the rights of other owners are completely eliminated; however, the consent of all owners is not a requirement for the process to begin at the identification stage. After the identification report is prepared, owners are granted the right to object and file a lawsuit.

Preventing the identification of a risky building does not stop the process. In cases such as being denied entry to the building or independent section, doors not being opened, or the identification officers being threatened or subjected to force, it is possible to carry out the identification with the support of law enforcement, after obtaining permission from the local administrative authority. This regulation clearly demonstrates the public safety aspect of Law No. 6306.

The Process of Notifying the Land Registry and Announcing the Risky Building Report

After the risk assessment report is prepared, it is sent to the relevant directorate or, if authority has been delegated, to the administration via an electronic software system. If the report is found to be incomplete, it is returned for correction. If there are no deficiencies, the risky building is reported to the relevant land registry office within ten working days at the latest, to be entered into the declarations section of the land registry. In addition, the minutes containing the assessment information are posted on the building, the owners are notified via the e-Government Portal, and it is announced in the relevant mukhtar's office for fifteen days. The risk assessment process is deemed to have been served to the owners of real and personal rights on the last day of the announcement made in the mukhtar's office.

This stage is extremely important for property owners to be able to exercise their rights. This is because the commencement of objection and litigation periods is often linked to the notification and announcement procedures. Property owners remaining passive on the grounds that "I did not receive separate notification" can lead to serious loss of rights. This is because the legislation stipulates specific notification procedures such as posting on the building, e-Government notification, and announcement by the local administrative office.

Therefore, as soon as property owners learn of a risky building designation or announcement, they must immediately obtain the risky building report, ensure its technical and legal review, and identify any grounds for objection. In particular, older buildings, unlicensed additions, subsequent renovations, constructions deviating from the project plans, soil problems, and sampling methods can directly affect the outcome of the risky building report.

Objection to the Determination of a Building at Risk

Under Law No. 6306, property owners or their legal representatives have the right to appeal against the determination of a building as risky. The law stipulates that appeals against risky building determinations can be made within fifteen days, and these appeals will be examined and decided upon by technical committees. The technical committee is composed of faculty members from relevant professional disciplines at universities and personnel from the Ministry or Presidency.

The Implementation Regulation also states that objections to the determination of a risky building must be submitted to the Urban Transformation Directorate in the area where the building is located, or to the administration if authority has been delegated, within fifteen days from the last day of the announcement made at the relevant neighborhood office. Objections not submitted within the specified time or not submitted by the building owner or their legal representative will not be processed.

When preparing an objection letter, general and abstract statements should be avoided. Statements such as "Our building is sound," "We do not accept the report," or "Our neighbors are acting in bad faith" may not be sufficient on their own. An effective objection requires demonstrating the technical and legal flaws in the report. Whether the sampled columns represent the building, whether the load-bearing system has been correctly analyzed, concrete strength, reinforcement identification, soil effects, building code, address compatibility, project information, on-site inspection method, and calculation principles should be concretely evaluated.

Filing a Lawsuit Against the Determination of a Building at Risk

The determination of a building as risky constitutes an administrative act. According to Law No. 6306, a lawsuit may be filed against administrative acts established under this law within thirty days from the date of notification, in accordance with Law No. 2577 on Administrative Procedure.

The primary goal in a lawsuit challenging a risk assessment of a building is to demonstrate that the assessment is contrary to law and technical principles. This lawsuit is filed in the administrative court. The lawsuit should not only claim that the building is sound; it should also explain in what ways the report is deficient, erroneous, or procedurally flawed. For example, issues such as failure to properly notify the owners, the report being based on insufficient examination, jurisdictional problems of the organization conducting the assessment, errors in technical calculations, the sampling process not representing the building, or the failure to evaluate the structure as a whole can be cited as grounds for litigation.

The most important point to consider here is time. Since the timeframes in urban transformation projects are short, property owners need to act quickly after learning about the situation. If no objection or lawsuit is filed within the specified time, the risky building assessment becomes final, and the evacuation and demolition phase begins. Therefore, as soon as the risky building assessment is learned, the technical report, title deed, building permit, architectural and structural projects, current situation photographs, and any previously obtained technical reports should be evaluated together.

Confirmation of Risk Assessment for Buildings

If no objection is filed within the specified time frame regarding the risky building assessment, or if any objection is rejected, the assessment becomes final. With the finalization of this assessment, the legal status of the building changes. The structure becomes deemed unsafe in terms of disaster risk and must undergo evacuation and demolition procedures.

According to the Implementation Regulation, if an objection to the determination of a risky building is rejected or the determination becomes final due to the absence of an objection, the directorate requests the administration to make the necessary notifications and demolish the risky building. After this stage, simply stating "we do not agree with the report" is no longer sufficient to stop the process; the stages of evacuation, demolition, and reassessment legally begin.

Once a building is definitively deemed at risk, owners have two main options. The first is to reinforce the building if it is technically and legally feasible. The second is to evacuate and demolish the building, and have the plot redeveloped under Law No. 6306. The reinforcement option is not suitable for every building; factors such as technical reports, reinforcement projects, building permits, and the owner's consent must be considered separately.

Evacuation and Demolition Process

According to Law No. 6306, owners of risky buildings are given a period of no more than ninety days to demolish their structures. If the building is not demolished by the owner within this period, they are notified that the building will be demolished by the administrative authorities. If the owners still do not carry out the demolition, the evacuation of people and belongings from the building and the demolition process are carried out or commissioned by the local authorities, with the participation of the provincial governors.

The evacuation and demolition phase affects the rights not only of the owners but also of tenants, holders of limited property rights, and business users. Continuing to reside or operate a business in a building once it has been definitively declared risky poses a serious risk. Therefore, evacuation notices, demolition schedules, and applications for assistance must be carefully monitored.

If the evacuation is prevented, administrative authorities can take action with the support of law enforcement. The law also stipulates that the costs of identifying risky buildings, evacuation, and demolition can be collected from the owners in proportion to their shares. Therefore, owners unnecessarily delaying the process may face additional demolition and evacuation costs in the future.

Decision-making process by simple majority of owners

One of the most important stages under Law No. 6306 is obtaining a decision from the owners regarding how the parcel will be evaluated before or after the demolition of the risky building. According to the law, in the case of risky buildings, decisions regarding the consolidation, subdivision, abandonment and registration of parcels, reconstruction, sale of shares, redevelopment through methods such as profit-sharing or revenue-sharing can be made by a simple majority of the shareholders in proportion to their shares.

This regulation is of great importance in practice. Because in the past, urban transformation projects could be stalled due to the pursuit of high majority or de facto unanimity. In the current system, however, it is possible to make decisions with a simple majority of the stakeholders in proportion to their shares. However, here, the "land share/share ratio" is taken into account, not the "number of people".

A decision made by a simple majority does not completely eliminate the rights of the owners who did not agree with the decision. The majority decision must be in accordance with the law, equity, the principle of good faith, and the essence of property rights. In particular, issues such as the division of independent units, the distribution of land shares, the shares left to the contractor, differences in square meters, goodwill calculations, rental assistance, security deposits, and delivery times must be regulated fairly.

Notification to Owners Who Do Not Agree with the Decision and Sale of Land Shares

Under Law No. 6306, the sale of land shares belonging to owners who did not agree with a decision made by a simple majority is possible. However, this sale cannot be done automatically. First, the proposal containing the decision and agreement terms, made by a simple majority, must be notified to the owners who did not agree with the decision. Notification can be made through a notary public or by posting it in the relevant village headman's office for fifteen days. The notification must state that if the proposal is not examined or accepted, the land share will be sold under Law No. 6306.

The Implementation Regulation stipulates that owners who do not agree with the decision must submit a written application to the directorate or, if authority has been delegated, to the administration for the sale of their land shares; the application must include documents showing that an agreement has been reached by a simple majority, documents proving that the offer has been communicated to the dissenting owners, and valuation documents prepared by real estate valuation firms authorized by the Capital Markets Board (SPK). It is not a requirement for the sale to take place that the structures have been demolished.

The sale of a land share is an extremely serious transaction that directly affects property rights. Therefore, the fair market value must be determined accurately before the sale. The valuation report should take into account the property's location, zoning status, comparable values, building rights, existing land share, the equivalent of an independent unit in a new project, and market conditions. If the sale price is set too low, the dissenting owner may suffer significant economic losses.

Contractor Agreements and Construction Model Based on Share of the Land

Under Law No. 6306, the method of constructing a new building after the demolition of a risky structure largely depends on the owners' decision. One of the most frequently preferred methods in practice is a construction contract in exchange for land share, also known as a construction contract in exchange for apartments. In this contract, the owner undertakes to transfer a specific land share or the equivalent of an independent unit in the property to the contractor; the contractor, in turn, undertakes to complete the specified project and deliver the independent units to the owners.

The most important aspects to consider in these contracts are: division of independent units, net and gross square meters, technical specifications, licensing obligations, occupancy permit, delivery time, compensation for delay, penalty clause, rental assistance, relocation costs, security deposit, stages of title transfer, liability for defective and incomplete workmanship, termination conditions, and the competent court in case of dispute.

Law No. 6306 stipulates that if the construction of a new building is not started within one year due to reasons attributable to the contractor, or if construction is halted at a certain level and the necessary team and equipment for the completion of the project are not used for at least six months, the owners may decide to terminate the contracts with a simple majority of their shares. This provides owners with a significant legal safeguard against contractor default in urban transformation projects.

Rent Assistance and Interest Support

Under Law No. 6306, one of the most important forms of support for property owners, tenants, and holders of limited real rights in the urban transformation process is rental assistance. According to the Implementation Regulation, property owners in the application area whose buildings are evacuated by agreement may receive monthly rental assistance, as determined by the Presidency, starting from the date of evacuation or demolition. For risky buildings outside of risky areas, the rental assistance period is 18 months; for risky and reserve building areas, the rental assistance period is determined by the relevant institution and may not exceed 48 months.

Applications for rental assistance must be submitted within one year of the eviction date or the date the risky building is demolished. For risky buildings, applications are made to the directorate or, if authority has been delegated, to the administration. Rental assistance applications are also offered as a service accessible via e-Government.

The regulation also addresses interest subsidies. According to this, interest subsidies may be provided from the special account for transformation projects at specified rates for loans taken from banks by real or legal persons under the Law. However, the same person cannot receive both rental assistance and interest subsidy; someone receiving rental assistance cannot also receive interest subsidy, and vice versa.

Tax, Fee and Charge Exemptions

One of the significant advantages of the urban transformation process under Law No. 6306 is the provision of tax, fee, and charge exemptions for certain transactions. Certain sales, transfers, registrations, mortgages, initial sales of new buildings, and other transactions related to transformation carried out under this law may be exempt from items such as notary fees, land registry fees, municipal fees and charges, inheritance tax, revolving fund fees, stamp duty, and bank-insurance transaction tax.

These exemptions are extremely important in terms of reducing conversion costs. However, not every transaction is automatically considered within the scope of the exemption. The transaction must be directly related to the conversion under Law No. 6306, the parties and the property must meet the scope conditions, and the necessary documents must be submitted to the relevant institution. Therefore, it is important to clearly state the exemption request in title deed, notary, municipality, and tax transactions and to submit all supporting documents completely.

Lawsuits that can be filed under Law No. 6306

Under Law No. 6306, different types of lawsuits may arise at different stages. Lawsuits challenging the determination of a risky building, challenging a risky area designation, challenging a reserve building area designation, challenging a demolition order, challenging a land share sale transaction, and other lawsuits against administrative actions may fall within the jurisdiction of administrative courts. The general time limit for filing a lawsuit against administrative actions established under this law is thirty days.

In contrast, disputes arising from construction contracts between contractors and landowners in exchange for a share of the completed building mostly fall within the jurisdiction of the judicial system. Cases concerning contract termination, cancellation and registration of title deeds, delay compensation, incomplete and defective workmanship, loss of rent, penalties, division of independent units, and contractor default can all be considered within this scope.

Therefore, the first step in urban transformation disputes is to correctly determine whether the dispute arises from an administrative act or a private law contract. Choosing the wrong legal course can lead to wasted time and loss of rights.

Conclusion

The urban transformation process under Law No. 6306 is a multi-stage legal process that begins with the identification of risky buildings and continues until the delivery of the new building. In this process, technical reports, administrative procedures, land registry records, owner decisions, eviction and demolition notices, rental assistance applications, contractor contracts, and litigation periods must all be considered together.

To avoid any loss of rights, property owners must obtain the report as soon as they learn of the risky building assessment, not miss the deadlines for objections and lawsuits, ensure that simple majority decisions are made in accordance with the procedure, fully notify property owners who do not agree with the decision, and subject the contractor's contract to a thorough legal review.

A properly managed process under Law No. 6306 can provide property owners with a safer, more valuable, and legally compliant property. Conversely, a poorly managed process can lead to unfair land share sales, low prices, incomplete contracts, unfinished construction, lengthy lawsuits, and significant economic losses. Therefore, the healthiest approach in urban transformation is to proceed with technical and legal support from the very beginning of the process.