Urban Transformation in Güngören and Merter: Tozkoparan, Güneştepe and Haznedar Guide (2026)

With Merter's trade and textile axis, the dense apartment blocks of Güneştepe and Haznedar and the large transformation area in Tozkoparan, Güngören is one of Istanbul's most densely built districts. This fabric creates both opportunities and difficulties for urban transformation. ÇET Yapı completed a project of 40 homes and 2 shops in Merter. This guide covers the planning framework, the factors that affect feasibility and the right process.

Planning framework: plan notes protecting acquired rights

In November 2020 the Istanbul Metropolitan Council unanimously approved Güngören Municipality's zoning plan amendment on urban transformation. According to news reports, the proposal covered three neighbourhoods and about 20,000 people, and aimed to encourage the renewal of risky building stock while protecting rights acquired through earlier building permits and/or occupancy certificates. The chair of the zoning committee said similar plan notes for the district's other eight neighbourhoods had been approved the year before.

For owners this means rights acquired in permitted buildings with occupancy certificates can be taken into account. Unpermitted floors are not covered, however, and the exact conditions for your parcel are on its current zoning status certificate. We explain how unpermitted floors affect the new project in will my flat shrink?

Tozkoparan: area-based transformation

Tozkoparan has a large-scale transformation carried out by public bodies. At a ceremony in June 2025, 768 homes and 30 workplaces in the area were handed over to their rights holders. In such area-based projects, the design, rights-holder status and contracts are managed by the public body, which differs from building-based transformation where owners work with their own contractor. If your building is in such an area, ask the relevant body about the process.

Values and feasibility

January 2026 data put the average housing price in Güngören at TL 45,326 per m², compared with TL 110,484 in Bakırköy. Construction costs vary little between districts, but sale values vary a lot. In Güngören it can therefore be harder to find a sharing ratio that favours owners while the contractor's share still covers construction costs.

The main ways to improve feasibility:

• Merging with neighbouring parcels: a larger plot, a more efficient layout, shared parking and lower unit costs. See our guide to multi-block sites and block-based renewal.
• Commercial ground floor: where zoning allows, street-facing shops raise the project's total value.
• Support: Yarısı Bizden grants and loans can reduce what owners have to pay the contractor.
• Realistic expectations: keeping the same flat size may require an extra payment by the owner. Calculating this at the start prevents disputes later.

We explain construction cost components in our 2026 construction cost guide.

Merter: buildings with shops and mixed use

Many Merter buildings have commercial use on the ground and lower floors. In these buildings, shop owners with large land shares carry great weight in the decision, and the position, frontage and area of the commercial units in the new project must be settled in the contract. See our guide to buildings with shops.

Support

Under Istanbul's Yarısı Bizden campaign, owners of risky buildings can receive a TL 875,000 grant, a TL 875,000 loan and TL 125,000 moving support per home, and a TL 437,500 grant and TL 437,500 loan for the first workplace. The campaign has been extended to 31 December 2027. See our Yarısı Bizden guide and rent assistance guide.

The right process in Güngören

1. Have a licensed institution carry out a risky building assessment (guide).
2. Get the current zoning status from the municipality and ask about acquired rights and merger conditions.
3. Find out whether your building is inside a risky area or implementation area.
4. Compare the feasibility of different scenarios, including mergers.
5. Take the simple majority decision by shares and sign a notarised flat-for-land contract (flat-for-land guide).

ÇET Yapı in Merter

ÇET Yapı completed Merter İnsaya Residences in 2015–2016 in 15 months: 40 homes and 2 shops on a 2,332 m² plot, with 10,494 m² of total construction area and a social facility with a pool, sauna, steam room, hammam and fitness area. In neighbouring Bahçelievler, İnsaya Bahçelievler is under construction.

For your building in Güngören, estimate your new flat with our urban transformation calculator and contact us through our pre-application form.

Figures are those announced on the dates cited. For your parcel, the current zoning status applies.