As you reach this point in this guide book I can almost hear you saying “thank goodness for that, finally we're getting to the fun bit!” and, hopefully you will indeed find this part of the guide and the process of discovering your perfect property to be just that; Fun! There is however a good reason that I have put this section towards the end of the guide rather than right towards the beginning. Many (many) years ago when I was in the army cadets I remember being taught the 7p’s - I never joined the forces, but I understand that it’s a common saying in the British Army:

Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents P*ss Poor Performance. 

It’s a rule that has stuck with me ever since, probably because as a teenager I thought it was funny to hear an adult officer, who was also a teacher, saying “p*ss”. I think it is especially pertinent here. Over the years that I have been involved with the Spanish property industry I have seen literally thousands of people come to Spain and search for property and almost all of them were woefully unprepared for what they were about to undertake- as I’ve mentioned before, most hadn’t even found a lawyer to represent them. Unfortunately, in many cases it is the lack of preparation that led buyers into the kinds of situations that ruin the dream and cost tens, even hundreds of thousands of pounds. 

When you find the property that you want to buy, you will know because you will feel it.

I sold many properties to people who had already decided they loved the property when they walked up the drive; before the front door had even been opened. Practical details that may have put them off of other properties wouldn’t even register with them. If their heart told them that that was the property they wanted, logic and reasoning would take a back seat.

To some degree this happens to all of us, home afterall is where the heart is, but it can be very dangerous. If you leave the logical, analytical part of the planning until after the heart is already sold, not only are you likely to fall foul of that very common part of human nature - to hear what you want to hear and ignore what you don’t - but you are also vulnerable to unscrupulous people who are willing to take advantage of you.

Over the next few chapters I’m going to pull together all of the preparation that you will have made by following the earlier chapters in this guide, to help you create a clear picture of the property you are looking for and understand the steps to take when viewing and proceeding towards an offer.

If and when your heart does take over from your mind (and the sales representative goes in for the close) hopefully, your preparation will have already ensured that the property is well suited to your needs. You will also be able to take a pragmatic approach and balance the pros and cons of each property objectively against the criteria that you set for yourself.