The Biggest Mistake People Make When Choosing a Location

When people visit a property, they naturally judge what they see in front of them. A quiet street.

An open view from the windows. Low-rise buildings nearby. Easy access by car. A green plot
next door. Shops within walking distance. The town centre only a few minutes away.

It feels as though you already understand the place.

Yet while the apartment itself may remain almost unchanged over the next ten years, everything
around it can be transformed.

The empty plot in front of your windows may become a multi-storey residential building. A
quiet local road could turn into a major traffic artery. The green space nearby might eventually
accommodate a commercial development. A school, a park and a sports centre could appear—or
a warehouse, a car repair facility and a busy retail complex.

That is why evaluating a property based only on what exists today is rarely enough. The more
important question is what this place will become in the years ahead.

People naturally trust what they can see.

If there is an empty plot in front of a building, it feels like open space. If the surrounding
neighbourhood consists of two-storey houses, we assume it will remain low-rise. If traffic is light
today, we expect the area to stay quiet.

But none of these assumptions comes with any guarantee.

Vacant land almost always has a designated purpose. It may already be zoned for residential
development, commercial use, tourism, industrial facilities or future transport infrastructure.
Planning regulations define not only what may be built, but also its height, density and position
within the site.

This means that a plot which appears harmless today can dramatically change the living
conditions of neighbouring homes a few years from now.

One of the most common mistakes buyers make is treating something they do not own as if it
were part of their property.

Sea views, natural sunlight, a green hillside or the peace of an undeveloped neighbouring plot
often feel like permanent features of the home. Legally, however, they may have no protection at
all.

When you buy an apartment, you acquire the property itself and a share of the building.
You do not acquire the space beyond your windows.

Property marketing tends to present new infrastructure as an unquestionable advantage. New
roads, residential districts and commercial projects are expected to make an area more
convenient while increasing property values.

Sometimes that is exactly what happens.

New pavements are built. Public transport improves. Schools, healthcare facilities, shops and
public spaces make everyday life easier. The neighbourhood becomes more self-sufficient, and
daily journeys become shorter.

But every form of development comes with trade-offs.

A new road may reduce commuting times while bringing significantly more traffic, noise and air
pollution. A high-rise development can make an area more vibrant while blocking daylight and
views for neighbouring buildings. Higher density often means more cafés and local services, but
it also brings congestion, parking shortages and a constant flow of unfamiliar people.
Even positive infrastructure depends entirely on context.

A school within walking distance is a valuable benefit for many families. A school playground
directly beneath your windows means children's voices, bells and heavy traffic twice a day.
A small neighbourhood grocery store makes everyday life more convenient.

A regional shopping centre changes the traffic patterns of an entire district.

The question is therefore not whether an area will develop.

Almost every city evolves over time.

The real question is what kind of development is planned—and whether it matches your
own idea of a comfortable place to live.

Most property buyers never look at a city's master plan.

Yet it is one of the few documents that reveals not only what a neighbourhood looks like today,
but how it is expected to evolve over the coming years.

A master plan can show where future roads, public spaces, residential districts, tourist areas,
industrial zones or major infrastructure projects are likely to appear.

At the same time, it is important to understand that a master plan alone is rarely enough.

Whenever possible, it is worth looking deeper. Zoning regulations, permitted land uses,
maximum building heights and any planning permissions already granted for neighbouring sites
often provide a much clearer picture of what may happen around your future home.

An attractive open field outside your windows should never be mistaken for a permanent feature
of the landscape.

Rather than analysing the entire city, start with the area immediately surrounding the property.

In reality, the changes that occur within a few hundred metres of your home will have a far
greater impact on your daily life than developments elsewhere in the city.

Find out how the neighbouring plots are zoned and what type of development is permitted there.
Check the maximum building heights allowed for future projects.

Look into plans for new roads or the expansion of existing ones. Transport infrastructure often
changes the character of a neighbourhood more dramatically than any residential development.
See whether large commercial projects, hotels, warehouses, industrial buildings or other long-
term sources of traffic and noise are planned nearby.

If an open view, natural daylight or peace and quiet are especially important to you, try to
establish whether these qualities are likely to survive future development.

The more expensive the property—and the longer you expect to live there—the more worthwhile
it becomes to spend a few hours studying planning documents.

It may save you from a disappointment that no renovation, however expensive, will ever be able
to fix.

Cities are meant to evolve.

Trying to freeze a neighbourhood in time is neither realistic nor desirable. Without new
infrastructure, services and public amenities, even attractive districts gradually lose convenience
and appeal.

A good location grows while maintaining balance.

It welcomes new opportunities without sacrificing the qualities that make everyday life
enjoyable: peace and quiet, natural light, clean air, a human scale and the simple pleasure of
feeling at home.

That is why the goal is not to find a place that will remain exactly as it is forever.

The goal is to understand how it is likely to change—and whether those changes align with
the way you want to live.

When selecting the site for Zen Gardens, we looked far beyond what the Tomba neighbourhood
looks like today.

We wanted to understand what could be built nearby in the future, whether the area's low-rise
character would be preserved, how the local road network and urban infrastructure were
expected to evolve, and whether any future developments might conflict with the concept of a
calm residential environment.

For a project built around wellbeing, restoration and healthy everyday living, it is not enough to
create a comfortable building.

You can design excellent sound insulation, advanced ventilation systems and beautifully
landscaped outdoor spaces. But a major road outside your windows or a high-rise building
directly in front of the façade can fundamentally change the experience of living there.

That is why evaluating a location begins with far more than measuring the distance to the sea or
counting the number of nearby cafés and supermarkets.

The true quality of a place depends on three questions:

What surrounds it today?

What is allowed to be built there tomorrow?

And will it still be a place you enjoy living in ten or twenty years from now?