How To Avoid Buyers’ Remorse When Buying A House
Imagine it now: you find the house of your dreams. You’ve been searching for it for so long, and suddenly, you’re at the end of your search. It’s perfect in every way. It has everything you’ve ever wanted in a home, and you’re so excited about it. What’s more, though, is that the seller is motivated to move on with the deal. They’re ready to sell it to you as quickly as possible. You put in an offer that seems reasonable to you, they accept your offer, and after the conveyancing process, you get the keys to your dream home and walk through the front door. The removal team arrives the next day, and suddenly, it feels real. You’re finally in the house you’ve spent weeks wanting. Then the problems begin. One after another, they hit you hard, and suddenly, the house of your dreams becomes the house of your nightmares. You have a serious case of buyer’s remorse, and now you’re stuck with a mortgage payment and debt that will take years to pay off. Can you even sell a house that’s like this one? It’s a frustrating cycle, but you can prevent buyer’s remorse. Let’s start by better understanding exactly what it is and why it’s such a problem.
What Is The Term Buyer’s Remorse Meaning?
What does remorseful mean when it comes to buying a home? In most cases, people say “buyer’s remorse”, which helps describe the feeling of regret you have after you make any kind of purchase, particularly a big one like a house. What is the buyer’s remorse timeline? Whilst some people get buyer’s remorse before they ever even buy the house, for most people, it doesn’t set in until after they’ve made the purchase. Sometimes it doesn’t even set in until after they’ve made the first house payment. There are many different reasons for buyer’s remorse. It could be that you just realised the size of your commitment. It could also be that you just suddenly don’t love your new house. Some people regret buying a bungalow, as those are quite trendy but quite small too. Others regret buying a house that needs work to make it exactly what they want. Maybe you’re worried about the financial side of things. Perhaps you feel trapped with your partner and just signed the papers on your new house together. Whatever the reason, buying remorse is a scary feeling, and it can be nothing short of crippling at times, especially for brand-new homeowners.
How To Prevent Buyer Remorse
If you’re worried about buyer’s remorse before you make a purchase of a home, there are several things to do when buying a house to help prevent the problem from happening initially. First, be sure that you don’t make any rash decisions in the property-buying process. Nothing about this process should be done “on a whim.” Instead, you’ll want to do as much research and preparation as possible before you make any kind of commitment. That way, you can collect plenty of evidence to show yourself later on in case you do feel like you have buyer’s remorse on the house you just bought.
Second, if you are buying a house now before you shop for any property, be sure you make a checklist of exactly what you want in your dream home. Think about how many bedrooms work for you, how many bathrooms are perfect, the right number of living and dining spaces, how accessible various spaces of the home are, how old it is, whether it’s right for the future of your family, the outdoor spaces both in the front and the back, any outbuildings, the potential for a home office, the proximity to simple things like transport, your job, and the shops, the schools, and how the neighbourhood feels. Make sure you carefully think about what on this list is not negotiable and which ones you could leave out and still be happy.
Don’t begin to shop for properties until you have this list in hand, then look at several both on and offline. Once you’ve done that, you should be able to create a shortlist of about three to five properties. Visit each one at least twice, but maybe three or four times. Ask the estate agent as many questions as you’d like – that’s literally what they’re there for.
Once you decide you like a particular property, think things through carefully. Have a loved one tour the home with you to see if they can spot any potential issues you might have. Digest the decision to buy. Does it hit all of your must-haves? Does it fit within your budget? Are you certain you like everything about the property? If so, make your bid on that property, but have lots of independent surveys done before you exchange final contracts. You’ll want to rule out any structural problems in the house as well as asbestos. That step will help prevent buyer’s remorse.
What To Do If You Have The Buyer’s Remorse Feeling
If it’s too late, and you are already experiencing buyer’s remorse, meaning you no longer want the home, you’re probably experiencing a sense of regret that is completely overshadowing what should be an incredibly exciting time in your life. As a result, it’s key that you work out how you’re dealing with remorse and move forward.
Start by explaining what you’re feeling to another person if you are feeling regret. Whether that’s the person with whom you signed the contract or it’s simply someone important to you in your life, they may be able to listen, help you see the positive side of this equation, and help you move forward. It may also help to sit down and make a list of all the benefits you get from owning this property alone. That will help you focus on the positive sides.
If there are serious problems that were undisclosed to you at the time of purchase, you can have a chat with your solicitor to learn about your legal options that come next if you are suddenly feeling remorse.
If there are no serious problems, you may want to do some research on what you can do to improve your property and how you can add value to it as you move forward. Perhaps you’d like to plan to sell it down the line. That may help you plan and feel better about the property.
Finally, work to put things in perspective. Almost everyone will own a property that has aspects they don’t love at some point in their lives, and given that the property market always experiences hot points, you may be able to put the house on the market shortly and recoup your losses and soothe your sense of hurt over this property. In other words, you won’t have to regret buying a house forever. Instead, eventually, you’ll be able to relist it, make some money off of it, and move forward.
It’s Up To You To Figure Out If This Is The Right House For You!
Buyer’s remorse can be a frustrating, scary feeling, but there are ways to prevent it. If you’re house shopping, be sure you do your research carefully from the beginning. Know the kind of house you want now and well into the future, and you’ll find yourself in a better spot after you’ve made that home purchase.
