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Properties · 28 Mar 2025 · 6 min read

How to read a floor plan before you buy

Carpet area, built-up area, wall thickness and light: the five things to check on any plan.

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A floor plan is the most honest document a builder gives you, if you know how to read it. Start with the area labels: carpet area is what you can lay a carpet on, built-up area adds the walls, and super built-up adds a share of common areas.

Then look at the doors and windows. Count how many rooms have windows on two walls, because cross-ventilation is the cheapest cooling you will ever get.

Trace the path from the front door to each room. If you cross the living room to reach a bedroom, or the kitchen opens straight onto the entrance, you will feel it every day.

Check where the plumbing lines run. Bathrooms and the kitchen stacked on the same wall are cheaper to maintain, and a plan with plumbing scattered across the flat is a sign of a design that will leak somewhere eventually.

Finally, imagine your furniture. A 12 x 10 ft bedroom sounds fine until a double bed, two wardrobes and a door swing take up all of it. On our listing pages you can tap a room on the plan and see its real dimensions.

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