The Risks of Relying on Off-Plan Conceptual Floorplans

A floorplan should describe the property that exists - not the property that was once intended to exist.

There is an understandable temptation when marketing a property to reach for the original off-plan floorplans.

They are readily available. They look professional. They contain measurements. And, on the face of it, they provide everything an estate agent needs to produce a floorplan and quote a size.

The problem is that an off-plan floorplan is exactly that: a plan for something that was intended to be built.

Once the building is finished, the property needs to be measured as it actually exists.

At Richardsons, we believe that distinction matters - not simply because accurate measurements are important, but because the size of a property can have a very real impact on how it is valued, marketed and ultimately perceived by buyers.

When 21% becomes a very expensive mistake

We recently came across a particularly striking example.

A property had been marketed and valued on the basis that it was significantly larger than it actually was. When the previous agent had struggled to sell the property, we were asked to provide our own appraisal.

Before taking the instruction, and without measuring the property ourselves - simply looking at what it physically was - we suggested that its realistic value was likely to be around 25% below the asking price.

When we subsequently came to prepare the property for marketing, we measured it properly.

The result was revealing: the property was approximately 21% smaller than it had previously been represented.

After some discussion, the vendor was encouraged to go back to the lease and check the stated area. The figure in the lease was almost exactly in line with our measurement.

Suddenly, the difficulty in selling the property became rather less mysterious.

If a buyer is comparing a property advertised at, say, 100 square metres with another advertised at 80 square metres, they will naturally make judgements about value based upon those figures.

If the first property isn't actually 100 square metres, the comparison is fundamentally flawed.

And no amount of clever marketing can permanently overcome a discrepancy between what a property is advertised as being and what a buyer discovers when they actually walk through the door.

Buildings don't always follow the original drawing

The second example was different, but perhaps even more revealing.

We encountered a property that had previously been marketed using measurements taken directly from the original off-plan floorplans.

The problem?

The development had undergone three significant changes during construction.

By the time the building was completed, the finished property was markedly different from the original concept.

Walls had moved. Spaces had changed. The finished configuration was not the same as the one shown on the original plans.

Yet the original measurements had apparently followed the property into its finished life.

This is where relying on conceptual plans becomes particularly problematic.

An architect's or developer's drawing can tell you what was designed. It cannot necessarily tell you what was ultimately built.

And once a property has been completed, what was designed becomes considerably less relevant than what actually exists.

The buyer doesn't purchase the floorplan

This is perhaps the most important point.

A buyer doesn't purchase a conceptual floorplan.

They purchase a property.

They will walk through the front door. They will stand in the living room. They will look at the bedrooms. They will consider whether their furniture will fit. They will assess the terrace, the storage and the usable space.

And they will form their own impression of size.

That makes accurate marketing particularly important.

You don't want a buyer walking into a property thinking:

“It feels smaller than I thought it would.”

You want them thinking:

“Actually, it's only 85 square metres - but it feels a lot more spacious.”

The second reaction is far more useful.

The buyer has been given an accurate expectation before they arrive, and the property can then be judged on its actual qualities — layout, light, views, outdoor space, condition, location, storage, parking and how effectively the available space has been used.

That is where good property marketing should begin.

The size matters - but accuracy matters more

Floor area has become an increasingly important part of how buyers assess property.

Price per square metre is often used as a benchmark. Buyers compare similar properties. Agents use comparable evidence when preparing valuations. Lenders, surveyors and other professionals may also need accurate information.

So when an agent quotes an internal or external area, there should be a reasonable basis for that figure.

An old developer's plan may be useful as a reference.

It shouldn't automatically be treated as the definitive measurement of a completed property.

At Richardsons, when we are going to quote dimensions or floor area, we believe the property should be measured.

It takes more time.

But that is rather the point.

The problem with getting it wrong

An inaccurate measurement doesn't just create a technical discrepancy.

It can affect the entire selling process.

An inflated floor area can lead to an inflated perception of value. That can result in an asking price that the market simply won't support.

The property then sits on the market.

Buyers compare it with competing properties.

Viewings happen, but offers don't.

The vendor becomes frustrated.

The agent may receive feedback that the property is “too expensive” or “not quite right”.

And eventually, the price is reduced - sometimes substantially.

All the while, the underlying problem may have been there from the beginning: the property was being presented as something it wasn't.

Once it is built, it has to compete with what is actually available

This is particularly important in a relatively compact market such as Gibraltar.

Once a property is completed, it doesn't compete against the developer's original brochure.

It competes against every other suitable property available to a buyer at that moment.

A buyer looking for a two-bedroom apartment isn't necessarily interested in what the original off-plan specification said the apartment would be.

They are comparing the finished property in front of them with other finished properties.

If one is genuinely 90 square metres and another is actually 72 square metres, describing both using optimistic or historic measurements doesn't change the physical reality.

The market eventually establishes that reality for itself.

Accuracy builds trust

There is also a broader point here about the relationship between an estate agent and the public.

Property is an expensive purchase. Buyers need to trust the information they are being given, while vendors need to trust that their agent is giving them realistic advice rather than simply telling them what they want to hear.

That means being prepared to measure.

It means checking the lease where appropriate.

It means questioning discrepancies.

And sometimes it means telling a vendor something they would rather not hear.

A property doesn't become more valuable because its floorplan says it is larger.

And it doesn't become easier to sell because an old conceptual drawing happens to produce a more attractive number.

The job of an estate agent is to market the property that exists — accurately, honestly and in the strongest possible way.

The floorplan is part of the evidence

A good floorplan is much more than a marketing graphic.

It helps a buyer understand the proportions and flow of a property before they view it. It allows them to consider furniture placement and functionality. It provides useful context alongside photographs and video.

But for that to work, it needs to represent the property accurately.

At Richardsons, we don't see measuring a property as an unnecessary extra step. We see it as part of the job.

Because ultimately, good estate agency isn't about making a property look bigger on paper. It's about making the reality of the property as compelling as possible.

And when the reality is genuinely good, there is no reason to exaggerate it.

The numbers should stand up to scrutiny.

The floorplan should reflect what has actually been built.

And when a buyer walks through the door, the property they see should match the property they were promised.

That is a much better foundation for a sale.