NovArticles by Lyheng Chan
A fence helps you orient yourself; it does not prove the plot boundary
How to use a fence as a field reference during an initial land visit without treating it as cadastral proof of the property being acquired.
A second entrance can take away usable frontage
How to weigh a second vehicle entrance against display frontage, parking and site circulation instead of treating additional access as automatically better.
The first site visit should decide whether deeper due diligence is justified
How an initial field visit can test the buyer's use case, separate observation from seller claims and decide whether legal, survey and technical work is worth commissioning.
High-water marks are a question about the site’s history, not a diagnosis
How to treat visible water lines or stains as evidence to investigate without turning one site observation into a conclusion about flooding.
Late trading changes what a mixed-use shophouse asks from the household
How to test whether a shophouse can remain a workable home upstairs when the commercial floor stays active into the evening.
The same commercial address can behave differently by time of day
Why a commercial property should be observed across the hours that matter to its business model rather than judged from one traffic snapshot.
A cheap plot may have an expensive starting line
Compare land prices with the work and approvals needed before use, while keeping unknown preparation costs and ownership questions visible.
A corner plot gives you a second frontage and a second set of constraints
How to judge a corner plot through actual approaches, two frontages and the way the site will be used, without treating a field visit as legal or technical due diligence.
How much warehouse remains once the racks are in?
Storage competes with receiving, packing, returns and movement. Test the operating layout before comparing warehouse floor areas.
Build-ready land still needs the conditions behind the phrase
Why cleared land, visible access and nearby utilities do not by themselves establish that a buyer can begin the intended construction project.
An empty plot can carry informal everyday use by neighbours
Why an apparently vacant plot should be observed for routine crossing, parking or storage by neighbours, while those patterns remain questions for due diligence rather than proof of rights.
A meter at the gate is not an equipment specification
Prepare the equipment list and connection questions before treating electricity at a commercial property as sufficient for a new operation.
A rear service entrance can matter more than the front façade
A practical way to judge a commercial property's service entrance by following deliveries, staff and maintenance routes before paying for deeper due diligence.
A villa office needs room for the eleventh employee
Before treating a Phnom Penh villa as an office, place staff, meetings, visitors and storage on the plan and price the necessary changes.
A commercial sign is seen from a road, not from a map pin
Why commercial visibility should be tested from real approach directions, sightlines and operating times instead of being inferred from a prominent position on a map.
Phnom Penh Thmey is an area, not a business brief
A family home, appointment-based studio and walk-in shop need different things from an address, even within the same Phnom Penh area.
An occupied commercial property comes with the current use attached
How to read an occupied shop, shophouse, office or warehouse without confusing today's business activity with the lease, the building or the buyer's future use.
A shophouse staircase decides how independent the floors can be
Why vertical circulation can matter more than floor area when a Phnom Penh shophouse is meant to combine retail, office, residential or separate tenant uses.
After rain, follow the water rather than judging one puddle
A dated observation can inform a drainage assessment. A wet or dry photograph alone cannot establish year-round access to a Phnom Penh site.
Temporary road works should not be mistaken for permanent access conditions
A practical way to separate a construction detour from the normal and future access pattern of a commercial property or land plot.