When we look at a property, we naturally focus on the things we already understand.
We notice the condition of the building, the size of the rooms, the location, the views and whether the property feels right. Previous experience also teaches us what to examine more closely. Once you have dealt with damp, shared access, old wiring or an unclear boundary, you are unlikely to overlook it the next time.
The difficulty lies with the things we have never encountered before.
It is hard to ask a question when you do not yet know there is a question to ask.
I discovered this after buying property in Spain.
The estate agent’s particulars described the swimming pool as measuring six metres by twelve metres. I had no particular reason to doubt that, so when I began trying to manage the pool, I based my calculations on those dimensions.
I calculated the volume of water, bought the chemicals and followed the instructions. Yet I struggled to get the balance right. I went around in circles and spent days researching what I could be doing wrong, what other chemicals I could use, trouble shooting, contacting other people who might have a better clue.
Eventually, I measured the pool myself.
It was not six metres by twelve metres. It was closer to six metres by ten.
It was a rookie mistake, and I still kick myself for it.
The difference would not have stopped me buying the property. I would still have gone ahead, because its size was never a deciding factor.
What bothered me was that I had accepted the information without checking it.
I had bought property before and had carefully investigated the things I already knew could matter. But I had never owned a swimming pool. The only question that occurred to me was whether it worked.
It did not cross my mind to verify its dimensions, because I did not yet understand how those dimensions would affect its day-to-day management.
Perhaps the measurements were copied from an earlier listing. Perhaps they were simply estimated. I cannot know. What I do know is that the experience changed the way I read estate agents’ particulars. I now see them as useful sales information, but not necessarily as verified fact.
Looking back, the real lesson was not about swimming pools.
It was about blind spots.
We tend to investigate what is familiar to us. Previous experience gives us a bank of questions, but only about the things we have already experienced or learnt about.
A buyer who has previously dealt with a septic tank may ask detailed questions about emptying, access and maintenance. Someone who has always lived on mains drainage may not think to ask anything beyond whether the toilets flush.
A buyer familiar with rural property may immediately ask about water supplies, access rights and land boundaries. Someone moving from a city apartment may never have needed to consider those things before.
Neither person is careless. They are simply drawing on different experience.
This is one reason property research cannot always be reduced to a single universal checklist. The questions that matter depend on the property, its location, how it will be used and what the buyer has—or has not—encountered before.
Not every unanswered question reveals a problem. Often there is a straightforward explanation. The value lies in recognising that something may need to be clarified before it becomes an unexpected lesson afterwards.
Buying property overseas should still be exciting. Looking more closely does not remove that excitement. It simply helps you understand what you are buying rather than relying entirely on what you first see or are told.
Something to Think About
When considering a property, it is worth asking yourself not only:
What do I need to check?
But also:
What might I not be thinking about because I have never dealt with it before?
You may not be able to identify every blind spot yourself. That is precisely what makes it a blind spot. But recognising that there may be things you do not yet know to ask is a useful place to begin.
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FirstLook provides independent property research and practical observations to help you understand what may require closer attention before you travel or commit.
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