Housing and Community Development

Finance, Urban Transformation, and the Housing System: Residential Production in the Istanbul Financial Center

This session examines how finance-driven urban transformation reshapes housing production within the Istanbul Financial Center. Focusing on the Turkish housing system, the course analyzes the roles of state institutions, private developers, and households in a context marked by macroeconomic volatility and rapid metropolitan growth. Participants will explore how large-scale financial investment influences residential typologies, land values, infrastructure development, and affordability patterns. The webinar situates the Istanbul Financial Center as a case study to understand broader structural shifts in housing production in emerging market economies.

• Identify the major actors in the Turkish housing system, including the state, private developers, construction firms, and households, and explain their roles in shaping housing outcomes.
• Evaluate how macroeconomic conditions—such as inflation, currency volatility, and the mortgage system—affect housing production, affordability, and tenure patterns in Turkey.
• Analyze how large-scale flagship projects, such as the Istanbul Financial Center, catalyze residential development and reshape urban growth dynamics.
• Compare the Turkish housing model with selected international housing systems to assess transferable strategies and structural constraints.