We get that for most people, buying a home is one of the largest and most significant financial moves in your lifetime. And especially at a time when inventory is low, decisions need to be made swiftly, and most of the time we end up punching out of our comfort zone to get what we want.
All of this is a perfect recipe for buyers remorse.
Here are some of the most common triggers for buyers remorse, and how we can combat these by getting ahead of the triggers.
1. Feeling rushed/pressure
Buying a home in todays market can be extremely competitive. Its rare for desirable homes to come up in your desired price range, and when they do they almost always end up going for more than what you expect to pay. To be competitive, we end up over bidding, writing extremely aggressive terms, and the transaction almost always ends up being in the favor of the seller. This can lead to a bad taste in our mouths when we feel as if we are getting the shorter end of the stick, or when we feel like we have little or negotiation power. That, combined with homes selling in less than a week, means we dont get as much time to “sleep on it”, get input from loved ones, and all the other things that we would normally do when we make big decisions.
Solve: Unfortunately, the laws of supply and demand cause this disadvantage for the buyer, and the fact remains that we have to apply our strongest foot forward to get the deal. However, the best way to combat this feeling is to make sure we are as prepared mentally and emotionally ahead of time. What that means is finding strong agents who can prepare you for the roller coaster so you can get in the right mindspace and consider scenarios before you’re ever presented with them. At the beginning of our home buying journey with our clients we will roleplay multiple scenarios and outcomes to gauge emotional responses and “test the water” on certain topics beforehand as a dress rehearsal for when real decisions need to be made. This gives us a soft landing into the multitude of high stakes decision making and mentally and emotionally prepares our clients to understand their rationale before there is actual pressure involved. Also by keeping them informed with strategies and scenarios ahead of time, our clients feel as empowered and knowledgeable as possible so when they’re in the thick of it, it doesn’t feel like their first time round the rodeo.
2. Market shifts / Price drops / Rate drops
Seemlingly the worst thing that can happen right after you close on a home is a shift occurring in the market. Whether that could be a downward trend in pricing (the neighbor sold for what?!?) to a shift in the interest rates, our fear for over paying or losing out on potential savings keeps us in a state of trying to time the market. No one wants to know that they could have gotten their house for $X amount less or that their monthly payment could be lower had they only waited.
Solve: For those of you who are looking to purchase as your primary residence, keep in mind that the house is not just a financial asset, but is also a home. Unlike other investments, a house serves another purpose: a roof over your head, a sanctuary, a homestead to create memories in. If the value of the home drops tomorrow, the roof doesn’t automatically stop protecting you from the elements. To protect against volatility in the market, plan ahead and go into the purchase being aware of: How long do you plan on staying in the home? If the price drops, will it be a realized loss because you have to sell immediately at a loss or are you planning on staying in the home 5+ years? Based on historical data, if you’re going to stay in the home 5-10+, the amount of equity you will build will significantly larger than any temporary market fluctuations. If you do need to sell in 2-3 years, definitely take that into consideration as you make offers on homes. Remember, rates and home values are out of your control, if you spend forever waiting to double dutch your way in, you may end up pricing yourself out of a home that would otherwise make you happy and fulfill your living needs.
3. Hearing / Listening to others buying experiences
Everyone has an uncle, cousin, coworker who bought a home in 1998 for $40k, or got a magical deal and essentially found gold at the end of the rainbow. Its easy to listen in to the highlight reel of other peoples experiences and not feeling great when our experience doesn’t match up.
Solve: The reality is, the market is in a constant state of fluctuation and varies based on time, location, economic, socio-economic factors. One persons experience can be completely different two weeks later, and also people tend to forget the pain points of their journey and only remember the positives as time goes on. Keep in mind that just like everything else in life, your journey is your own, and you never really know what someone elses path to home buying or selling was unless you were there. We advise on the most up to date trends and strategies, and people constantly underestimate the volatility of gameplans and market trends. Trust in your advisors who are looking out for you and are working day to day full time in your market to give you the most up to date recommendations that are bespoke to you, your budget, your motivation, your timeline, and your resources, not your cousins, uncles, roomates.
4. Property experience not as expected
This issue probably has the ability to have the largest impact on your satisfaction as a homeowner. One of the biggest fears is that we purchased a “lemon” of a home, and that we have to deal with unexpected repairs or problem solving after the fact. After pushing ourselves to the limit to afford a home that checks as many boxes as possible, it can feel devastating to uncover an expensive home repair.
Solve: This is where our due diligence comes into play (along with a small amount of realistic expectations.) First of all, we want to make sure we have trustworthy comprehensive inspections done during escrow; general inspections and any other specialists based on what can be expensive fixes or safety issues. Its one thing to win the bidding war, its another to make sure we are getting a comprehensive picture of the health of the property. While we are seeing a lot of “property sold in as-is condition” on a lot of multiple counters these days, keep in mind that we still have the right to ask for repairs or credits as we uncover adverse information about the homes condition. Even if you’ve signed an agreement that home is sold as is, you still have the right to ask for a repair. At the very least, we want to minimize any opportunity for surprises after escrow closes so we want to go through the due diligence/inspection period with eyes wide open. Sellers do have to disclose anything material about the property (under penalty of perjury if they don’t) but it is difficult to enforce that after the fact as we have to provide proof that the seller knew about it and withheld that information intentionally. Bottom line, while it may seem like additional spending up front for an already serious financial endeavor, it is worth it to splurge on inspections to mitigate chances of surprises or larger costs after the fact. Finally, it is important to set our expectations as well. The majority of home purchases are resale homes and are not new construction, which means the home is lived in, or occupied or previously rented out. Sellers are not under any obligtation to provide a house in any particular condition, and if they were occupying the home, chances are they will approach it with a “it was good enough for my family it should be good enough for yours” approach. And in this market, because of the low inventory, they end up getting their way. So keep in mind that even after your purchase a home, there are opportunities for repairs and updates to be made.
