A white modernist villa sits on the tip of a pine-clad peninsula, with uninterrupted views of turquoise sea and a trail of Mediterranean islands. In stark contrast to the stone-clad, turreted and red-roofed houses surrounding it, the five-bedroom house is a beacon of contemporary architecture. Below a large infinity pool, steps hewn from the hillside lead to a private bathing platform by the sea.

In the south of France, perhaps, or one of the more exclusive parts of Mallorca, the house’s £1m price tag would not elicit a gasp. But Villa Ay Isigi (pronounced Ayishi, it means “moonlight”) is in Turkey, better known for budget homes. Along its western Mediterranean coast, and on to Bodrum, one can find two-bed flats for £30,000 or villas for £50,000.

In the ancient port of Kas, and on its four-mile peninsula, a few minutes’ drive away, property prices are hitting the big time. A two-hour drive from Dalaman airport, it is one of the most exclusive spots on the Lycian coast, and is setting new design and construction standards. “Turkey has a reputation for poor quality,” says Maggie Haddon, Ay Isigi’s English owner. “But there’s nothing wrong with Turkish workmanship. It’s like any country – if you buy cheap, you get cheap. So we’ve really tried to raise the bar here.”

The villa, built over two floors, was designed by Oguz and Ozlem Erturk, of Naturel Estate, a local firm. “We wanted to imprint it with our modern style, and our architects, who project-managed the whole thing, were keen to do that,” says Haddon. It has Italian kitchen units in grey, glass and chrome, a £4,000 B&W home theatre system (Maggie’s husband, Paul, is a self-confessed tech junkie), underfloor heating (the temperature drops to 6C in winter), white marble floors, granite bathrooms and endless terrace space for entertaining.

Paul, 54, a retired logistician in the cargo industry, originally from London, and Maggie, 53, a Midlands-born scientist, had already built and renovated a house in the New Forest when they came on holiday here in 2000. “We’d been looking for a long time to find somewhere to start the next chapter of our lives,” she says. “And we love to sail and swim.”

They first bought a three-bedroom villa on the peninsula, set back from the waterfront, for £150,000 in 2004. It is now for sale for £250,000. “Once we found this plot, we decided to build around the view,” she says of Villa Ay Isigi. The 300-square-metre plot and the villa’s construction cost about £500,000. They moved in during spring, but already want to build again on the peninsula.

Abdullah Alici, who runs Paradise Property, the local estate agency marketing the villa, sees their decision to build such a lavish home as proof of the area’s attractions. “To spend that much money on a house here shows how special the peninsula is,” he says. “You’re not going to get those views anywhere in Spain.”

The view is not the only reason to visit: pristine Kaputas beach is a short drive away, and there are Lycian rock tombs and a Hellenic amphitheatre. A 420-berth marina at the end of the peninsula is due to be completed next year.

“Prices in Kas went up by 25%-30% between 2000 and 2005, but are levelling out,” says Hakan Akalin, owner of My Turkish Property, another local agency. Plots on the peninsula for villas, many with views of the Greek island of Kastellorizo, are running out fast, due to strict development laws, but there is still a wide range of property. Akalin’s firm, for example, has five two-bed flats in a hotel conversion, with a shared pool and access to a sea bathing platform, for £148,000. A fourbed villa with pool costs £500,000.

Half an hour’s drive to the west, standards – and prices – are also rising. Kalkan, a fishing port at the foot of the Taurus Mountains, also accessible from Dalaman airport, is renowned for its tiny streets and rooftop terraces, and has long been popular with British tourists and buyers. Like Kas, it retains a traditional feel: the prayer call from the waterfront mosque mingles with dance music in the night air. The Lycian ruins and 11-mile beach of Patara are a 30-minute drive away and, a few miles inland, in Islamlar, famous for its freshwater trout, one sees the goatskin tents of nomads pitched amid the dramatic hills.

“Kalkan is definitely one of the more expensive areas,” says Clair Walker, director of Turkish Homes, an estate agency based in London and Turkey. “But because there are so many British people here [about 1,000 own homes], there is a great market for resale.” The town has both new-build and resale properties. Prices for two-bedroom flats range from £65,000 to £145,000; three- and four-bedroom villas with private pools cost between £240,000 and £600,000.

At Pinara Villas, in the Kiziltas area, in the middle of Kalkan Bay and just a short walk from the town centre, four houses sit high on a slope, affording views of the bay and a sprinkle of Turkish islands. With kidney-shaped blue-mosaic overflow swimming pools and large entertaining spaces, they have an organic feel.

“We wanted them to be quirky,” says Bridget Karaaslan, the British owner of Black Lion, a Kalkan-based estate agency and developer. “They have only three bedrooms, as I wanted the focus to be on the huge entertaining space.” They are also high-spec, with handcrafted kitchens, solid-wood doors and apple-stone floors, and cost £375,000 each. “Remember that if the asking price is more than £300,000, you’re likely to get 10% off if you ask for it,” she advises.

Turquoise waters and travertine aside, Turkey, with its terrorist scares, dubious human-rights record and still distant prospect of joining the EU, can seem an uncertain proposition for many Brits. In last week’s general elections, however, the Justice and Development party, which has its roots in Islam, was returned to office. The prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, says his party will not seek to compromise Turkey’s secular system; economic growth has been strong and inflation has fallen since his party came to power in 2002, and he has vowed to push through more of the reforms needed to join the EU. So, all in all, prospective buyers should feel confident.

There are other pluses. “Facilities and services have improved tremendously recently,” says Bill Blevins, director of Blevins Franks International, which provides financial advice to expatriates throughout Europe, “and the cost of living is cheap. There are also plenty of flights into the area. As long as you get advice from an independent lawyer, you can still be part of the first wave of investors. Prices aren’t doubling or tripling, as they have done, but as long as you’re prepared to hang on to your property for a few years, I’d say it’s a very good prospect.”

To minimise risk, there are some important steps to take – especially making sure that your title deeds are valid. Property Search Turkey, an advisory service launched two weeks ago, aims to keep things simple for British buyers. It will help you find a suitable property in Kas or Kalkan, ensure that it has clean title, negotiate the price and sort out tax registration and connection to utilities. The initial search fee is £250.

“Like anywhere else, investing in property in Turkey is quite safe, providing you take some sensible precautions,” says Robin Tassell, an English chartered surveyor based in Turkey, who set up the scheme. “All too often, we hear of people falling in love with a particular property, only to find out when it’s too late that they can’t legally own it.”

Uluc Bilgutay, director of Korsan Ltd, a Kalkan construction and property consul-tancy, thinks buyers often have only themselves to blame if things go wrong. “Some people have terrible experiences,” he says. “They pay for a property with no title deeds, then say, ‘Don’t buy in Turkey, you’ll be conned.’ ” Land registry searches will confirm whether you are entitled to buy the property (see buyer’s guide, left).

Karaaslan has some less practical – but no less valuable – advice. “Don’t come to Turkey because it might join the EU,” she says. “Come because of the air, the water, the light and the culture. Come and buy here because you love it.”