Awaiting Its Fate

Many old wooden Istanbul houses remain standing, neglected, awaiting their fate. Often because of the succession laws which have what is termed a "reserved portion", some properties have developed multiple owners through the generations, and these owners all have to agree on a particular action. ("Reserved portions" allow children to have 75% of a statutory share, mother and father 50%, brother and sister 25%, and surviving spouse with no children 50%). You can imagine the complications after a few generations of succession, if all the owners can indeed be found. Further complicating matters, a building deemed "historic" to one degree or another can only be renovated according to historical accuracy, a bureaucratic nightmare and financial behemoth.

So buildings fall into disrepair, awaiting their end as sticks on the ground; only then the property can then be sold, the successors get their lucre, and a new modern building can be built.