The Need for Site Visit before buying an apartment

Buying an apartment is perhaps one of the biggest events and milestones in an individual’s life. It is as such extremely important that the property in question is carefully evaluated before making the purchase.

In this digital age where most realtors boast about offering virtual tours of the properties and facilitating digital transactions from the start to end, it is important to understand that nothing can replace a traditional site visit. While I was living in Delhi, I had made this mistake of buying a studio apartment in South Kolkata based on a virtual tour, just to avoid coming all the way here and am still struggling to get possession of the same. Having made this blunder myself, now that I live in Kolkata I always try to ensure that my friends and family do not repeat the same mistake. Now that we are planning to buy a residential Apartment in South Kolkata, we didn’t take any risk and visited the site physically. It was a residential project near Batanagar, well-connected to the prominent hotspots of the city through various modes of public transport and equipped with a host of modern amenities. We were thoroughly guided by a representative to every nook and corner of the property to make an informed decision.
And, based on what I have realized from my mistakes, here are the reasons why site visits are so important.

Verifying the property:

Whether you intend to invest in a residential Project near Batanagar or somewhere else in South Kolkata, you must visit the site to verify the property. You should ensure that it actually meets your expectations. Make sure the location, neighborhood, accessibility etc. are just as they were portrayed in the sales pitch.

Checking the Size and layout:

When you see a property virtually, you can only assume how big or small it is based on the dimensions mentioned. However, you get the actual picture only after visiting the site physically. During a site visit, you actually get to see how big the apartment is and whether the layout is as per your expectations. Even seeing the sample flat will give you a fair idea of what the ready apartment will look like and will help you get a good idea of what you can expect once your apartment is ready.

Assessing the Amenities and Features:

Nowadays most people prefer to buy apartments in residential complexes so they can avail the plethora of lifestyle amenities that these projects have. By visiting the project physically you can evaluate the amenities to ensure that they will add value to the property and are worth the price too.

Evaluating the construction Quality:

When people visit the project site physically, they can closely assess the construction quality. Also, since it is not possible for everyone to understand the various nuances of construction, it is always good to take along someone who is knowledgeable in these matters. A friend who is an architect or is even a property broker can be quite helpful in this regard.

Along with the above mentioned aspects that you get to assess, when you visit a project physically, you also get to meet the developer or the sales representative who may have been guiding you with the selection process. On meeting the people in-charge, you can always ask for relevant documents like the building plan, NOCs from electricity and water departments, encumbrance certificate, the RERA registration details etc.

Having checked the property physically and evaluated all the documents carefully you can always go ahead with the property purchase and rest assured that you have made the right purchase decision.