KÜHEYLAN HUKUK
When the Expropriation Price is Determined to be Low: Rights of the Owner in the Price Determination and Registration Case Defense, objection to the expert report, appeal and annulment case in administrative jurisdiction according to Law No. 2942, Article 10, Article 11, Article 14 and Article 15. K.2024/232) and the Supreme Court case law as of October 2026.
If the expropriating administration cannot reach an agreement with the owner of the immovable property through the purchasing procedure, it applies to the civil court of first instance to determine the price and register the immovable property in the name of the administration. Therefore, the owner is the defendant, not the plaintiff, in the price determination case. Malik must notify the court in writing of his defense and evidence within 10 days from the notification, must be present at the discovery and object to the expert report. The court determines the fair and equitable price by using the report of the expert committee and the statements of the parties. The registration decision is final, but the rights of appeal and appeal regarding the price are reserved. The period for filing an annulment lawsuit against the expropriation process itself in the administrative court is 30 days. This guide explains what the owner can do at each stage and the deadlines.
1. By whom and in which court is the case filed?
In case the expropriation cannot be carried out by purchasing method, the administration applies to the civil court of first instance where the real estate is located by adding the information and documents collected and the price determination to a petition and requests a decision to register the real estate in the name of the administration by determining the expropriation cost (2942 art. 10/1). In other words, the dispute regarding the price is resolved in the lawsuit filed by the administration. The owner does not need to file a separate lawsuit to increase the price. He puts forward his claims regarding the price in this case.
The court determines a hearing date for at least thirty days after the administration's application. An invitation with a note is sent to Malik. Those whose addresses cannot be found will be notified via announcement. In the invitation, it is clearly stated that the owner can file which lawsuits, within what period, and when he must submit his defenses (Art. 10/3).
2. Owner's Periods: What and When to Apply?
Written notification of defense and evidence to the court 10 days from the date of notification 2942 m.10/3-h
Annulment case in administrative jurisdiction against expropriation process, correction case against material errors in judicial judiciary 30 days from the date of notification or announcement 2942 art.14/1
Offer for agreement on price At the first hearing, the judge invites the parties to an agreement 2942 m.10/5
Deposit of the price The 15-day period given by the court can be extended once. 2942 m.10/8
The shortest of these periods is 10 days. If the defense and evidence reporting period is passed, the most important tools left to the owner in determining the price will be weakened. Since the law requires this period to be clearly written in the invitation, if there is a deficiency in the invitation, this can also be claimed in terms of procedure.
Experts determine the expropriation cost according to the principles of Article 11. The type of real estate, its surface area, all the qualities and elements that will affect its value, tax declaration and official valuations, if any, net income on land, comparable sales without a specific purpose before the expropriation day on land, official unit prices and depreciation in buildings are the basis of the report. The report must be a reasoned evaluation report in accordance with the valuation standards accepted by the Capital Markets Board. The value increases that will be caused by the development and service undertakings that require expropriation and the profit that will be brought by the forms of use planned for the future are not taken into account (Article 11).
Expert board: The board consists of at least three people. One of the members must be selected among experts who have a master's degree or doctorate in real estate development or real estate appraisers authorized in accordance with the Capital Markets Law (Art. 15).
Valuation day: In the valuation determination made by experts, the day on which the documents are submitted to the court by the administration is taken as basis (Art. 15/5).
New expert board: If the parties cannot agree on the price, a new expert board is appointed by the judge, if necessary, to be concluded within 15 days. The judge determines a fair and equitable expropriation price by making use of the reports and statements (Art. 10/8).
Partial expropriation: If only a part of the immovable property is expropriated, the decrease in the value of the part excluded from expropriation is also calculated (Art. 12). For this reason, the usability of the remaining part should be asked separately to the expert.
4. What Can Be Done in Case of Low Price Claim?
In its decision dated 03.07.2018 (E.2018/1814, K.2018/13723, unanimous), the 5th Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals found the expert report not suitable for audit in a price determination and registration case and overturned the verdict. The Chamber stated that the value of real estate in the nature of land must be determined according to comparable sales, that the equivalents of comparable sales at the evaluation date must be found by applying price increase indices, and that it seeks to explain the deficiencies and advantages between the real estate subject to the case and the comparables with their ratios. In the file, taking special purpose sales as a precedent, determining unit prices with abstract expressions, and reaching very different square meter prices for adjacent properties without providing sufficient justification were the reasons for the reversal.
Submitting precedent information: Title deed records, contract tables and tax values of recent, non-special purpose sales from areas close to the property should be submitted to the court. The Chamber requested that the parties be given the opportunity to submit precedents again and to summon precedents ex officio when necessary.
Concrete objection to the report: It should be stated separately whether the report complies with the CMB valuation standards, which comparables are used, whether indexing is done, and whether the ratios of deficiencies or advantages are disclosed.
Being present at the survey: The owner and the headman are present at the survey. The factors affecting the qualities of the property (zoning status, road frontage, presence of trees and buildings, water resources) should be directly explained to the experts.
Examining the lawsuits of neighboring parcels: Similar values must be reached in neighboring real estate lawsuits filed for the same project. If there is a difference, it should be justified.
The law states that the registration decision is final and that the parties' rights of appeal or appeal regarding the price are reserved (Art. 10/8). The amount determined by the judge is deposited into the bank account determined by the court and upon presentation of the receipt, the immovable property is registered in the name of the administration. If, as a result of the appeal or appeal, the finalized price is less than the amount paid to the beneficiary in advance and in cash, the difference is requested from the relevant party. For this reason, after the registration decision, legal remedy periods in terms of cost should be followed separately.
6. Cancellation of Expropriation Procedure: Decision of the Constitutional Court Dated 2024
If the owner wants the annulment of the expropriation against him on the grounds that, for example, the public interest decision is missing, the administration has not made a proper purchase negotiation, or there are no urgent expropriation conditions, he files an annulment lawsuit in the administrative jurisdiction within 30 days from the notification or announcement. Cases filed in the administrative judiciary are heard first (Art. 14).
The Constitutional Court annulled two rules in its decision dated 25.12.2024 and numbered 2024/101 Principles, Decision 2024/232 (Official Gazette: 27.03.2025). The first is the fourteenth paragraph of Article 10. This paragraph stipulated that the annulment case filed in the administrative judiciary would be considered a pending matter only if the civil court had decided to stay the execution. The court stated that if the stay of execution is not decided, the civil court may order the price determination and registration, and that the subsequent annulment decision will not have any effect on this registration, and found the rule contrary to the right to property and the right to effective application. The second is the sixth paragraph of Article 14. This paragraph regulated that the results of the lawsuits filed would not affect those who did not file a lawsuit. The court deemed it contrary to the property right to consider the illegal expropriation as valid for the stakeholders who did not file a lawsuit, when the annulment lawsuit filed by one of the stakeholders was won. The reflection of the decision on the concrete files should be evaluated separately according to the opening date of the case in the administrative judiciary and whether there is a stay of execution decision.
The following scenario is fictional; It has been prepared to explain a typical situation in practice.
In a fictional example, a municipality will expropriate a section of land for road widening. When bargaining with the owner failed, the municipality applied to the civil court of first instance. Malik did not submit a written statement within seven days after receiving the court invitation and did not attend the discovery. The expert panel calculated the price based on an old unit price, not on similar plots sold recently.
The period for defense and submission of evidence is ten days. The owner must not miss the deadline, submit the title deed records regarding comparable sales, and state his concrete objections to the report at the hearing. If the report does not comply with the precedent sales and indexing principles, it may not be deemed suitable for audit, as in the decisions of the 5th Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals. The appeal period regarding the fee must be followed independently of the registration provision.
If the expropriation price is low, can I file a price increase lawsuit?
The law requires the judge to determine the price in a case filed by the administration. Malik presents his defense and evidence in this case and appeals against the price determined by the court.
I received the invitation, how long do I have?
Defense and evidence regarding the subject and the value of the real estate must be notified to the court in writing within 10 days from the date of notification.
How long does it take to file a lawsuit against the expropriation process itself?
An annulment lawsuit may be filed in administrative jurisdiction within 30 days from the date of notification or announcement.
The registration decision has been made, can I still sue for the fee?
The registration decision is final, but the rights of appeal and appeal regarding the price are reserved. Legal remedy deadlines should also be followed.
If the expropriated land is a part, is the loss of value of the remaining part taken into account?
Yes. Article 12 stipulates that the decrease in the value of the part excluded from expropriation should also be taken into account. The usability of the remaining part should also be asked to the expert.
Passing the 10-day defense period: The period is short. The collection of comparable sales and title deed documents should begin as soon as the invitation is received.
General objection to the report: The general objection that "the price is low" will not be enough. It should be stated clearly which precedent is wrong and why or which criterion was not taken into account.
Missing the annulment lawsuit period: The lawsuit period against expropriation is 30 days and operates independently of the deadlines in the compensation lawsuit.
Ignoring the risk of payment and refund: If the price decreases as a result of appeal or appeal, the difference is requested from the person concerned. Therefore, the use of the paid price should be planned.
Expropriation is one of the most severe interventions on property rights and the rights of the owner are limited to limited periods. The owner is the defendant in the price determination case. It is decisive that the defense and evidence be presented within ten days, concrete objections based on precedent sales are made, and the thirty-day period is not missed for the cancellation of the expropriation transaction. The Constitutional Court's decision dated 2024 once again emphasized the importance of effective judicial review in the expropriation process. Küheylan Law Firm follows the deadlines in expropriation files, starting from the notification date of the invitation, prepares the precedent and valuation file, presents the reasoned objection to the expert report and, when necessary, carries out the annulment case in the administrative judiciary and legal remedies regarding the price.
Important Legal Notice: The legal explanations contained in this guide have been prepared by Küheylan Law Firm for general information purposes and do not constitute legal advice. Since the unique circumstances of each file may change the outcome, it is recommended to seek support from an administrative law attorney from the beginning of the process.
KÜHEYLAN HUKUK