What a Property Viewing Cannot Tell You

A bright kitchen and a quiet balcony can make a home feel right in minutes. The expensive risks, however, usually sit outside the frame: the building reserve, planned works, title restrictions, insurance history, and the gap between asking prices and completed sales.

Start with the building, not the finishes

Request recent service-charge statements, meeting minutes, major-works notices, and a clear record of repairs. In a house, look beyond fresh paint to the roof, drainage, electrical system, windows, and signs of persistent moisture.

Test the location at different hours

Visit once during the morning commute and again after dark. Listen for traffic, check street lighting, walk to daily services, and test the actual journey to work. A map pin cannot show delivery noise, school traffic, or how a street feels on foot.

Verify the numbers independently

Compare completed transactions, realistic rent, vacancy, taxes, insurance, management, and maintenance. Keep a repair reserve and model a slower sale. A good decision should still make sense after conservative assumptions replace the sales pitch.