How To Avoid Home Buyers Remorse In Real Estate

How To Avoid Home Buyers Remorse In Real Estate

Buying a home is a huge milestone in anyone’s life.  There are lots of different feelings, emotions, and thoughts that go through a home buyers mind throughout the home buying process, whether it’s a buyers first home they’re buying or they’re tenth home.

Since buying a home is such as huge milestone, it’s possible that a buyer may not be thinking about all of the things they should be.  This often can lead to what is called, “home buyers remorse.”  Buyers remorse is not only something that is limited to buying real estate, but can happen when buying a car, a TV, or when buying something even as small as groceries.

Since buying a home is normally the largest purchase one will make throughout their life, buyers remorse in real estate can be devastating to a buyer.  Home buyers who know what steps need to be taken to avoid home buyers remorse will in all likelihood avoid having buyers remorse.

Below are some of the most important things to consider when buying a home so that you can avoid having buyers remorse and can enjoy the excitement of buying a home!

Understand The Home Buying Process

Home buyers who have purchased several homes in their life usually have a pretty strong understanding of the home buying process.  Home buyers who are just getting started out in the pursuit of purchasing their first home, often have no clue about the home buying process or how to get started.

One great way to avoid buyers remorse is to make sure that you understand exactly how the home buying process works.  The best way to truly understand the home buying process is interview and ask a top buyers real estate agent about the home buying process.

A top buyers agent should be able to provide not only an overview of the home buying process and the time frame of purchasing a home, but also should be able to provide some great recommendations to other professionals who you will need throughout the home buying process.

Analyze The Numbers

Since buying a home is such a huge purchase, having a strong understanding of the money that will be needed to buy a home can be extremely helpful in avoiding home buyers remorse.  One of the first steps to buying a home is discussing your options with a top mortgage broker.  It’s extremely important to get pre-approved before you go out looking at homes, for many reasons.

The primary reason to get pre-approved before looking at homes is to ensure you’re able to obtain financing for a home.  There are specific requirements that mortgage brokers have of potential home buyers including credit scores and debt-to-income ratios, just to name a few.

When meeting with a mortgage broker, they will be able to help you analyze the numbers and costs associated with buying a home.  Top mortgage brokers will normally provide potential home buyers with a “closing cost estimate.”  Reviewing a closing cost estimate with a mortgage professional is a great way to analyze the numbers and avoid having buyers remorse in the future.  A closing cost estimate will not only provide a buyer with a general estimate of how much it will cost to purchase a home, but also provides a buyer with an estimate of their monthly mortgage payment.

The reality is that money and finances put a ton of pressure and stress on the majority of people.  Analyzing the numbers when buying a home is extremely important and should not be overlooked, otherwise the possibility of having home buyers remorse increases.

Patience Is A Must

Tips On Avoiding Home Buyers Remorse – Patience Is A Must!

One of the most common reasons a home buyer experiences buyers remorse is because they are not patient with their home search.  A frequently asked question from potential home buyers is, “how many homes should I look at before buying one?”  There is no concrete answer to this question, as it is possible to find a “dream home” after only looking at one or two homes.

Most home buyers will know when they find their “dream home.”  If there is any doubt when thinking about writing a purchase offer on a home, you need to remember to remain patient.  Any doubt or uncertainty can often lead to buyers remorse in the coming weeks and months.

Most people who have purchased a home in the past agree that when they found their “dream home” they had a special feeling about the home that they didn’t on other homes they viewed.

Determine What You NEED Versus What You WANT

One of the most important things to realize when buying a home is that it’s unlikely you will find a home with absolutely everything you want.  It is fairly likely though that you can find a home that has everything you need.  A great tip to use when buying a home is to create a list of all the NEEDS and all the WANTS that you’re looking for in a home.

What are some of the most common NEEDS that home buyers are looking for in a home?  

• Number of bedrooms
• Number of bathrooms
• Minimum amount of square footage
• Number of garage spaces
• Specific style of home (Ex; ranch, cape cod, colonial)

What are some of the most common WANTS and special home features that home buyers are looking for in a home?

• Floor plan – Open concept
• Updated kitchen (Ex; granite counters, tile floors, etc…)
• Updated baths
• Fully fenced yard
• New windows

A home buyer who determines what they NEED versus what they WANT before looking at homes significantly reduce the chance they will experience home buyers remorse.  By providing a list of the needs and a list of wants to a top buyers agent, they should be able to identify some excellent properties to look at.

When viewing the potential properties it’s important to remember what your needs are as this can help eliminate properties fairly quickly and can also help identify homes that maybe a great fit!

Make Sure You Consider The Homes Location

“Location, Location, Location,” is a very common saying in real estate. It’s critical when buying a home that a buyer always considers that homes location in order to avoid buyers remorse.

Some home buyers have specific neighborhoods or school districts they want to buy a home in and others do not.  If your a home buyer who doesn’t have specific neighborhoods or school districts you’re looking in, there are several considerations that should be made when choosing a neighborhood to live in.

A couple things to keep in mind when considering a homes location include proximity to highways, parks, schools, and railroad tracks.  Also, make sure you analyze the homes around the neighborhood.  Buying a home in a neighborhood that is declining can be a huge mistake and can lead to buyers remorse.

Stick To Your Budget

How To Avoid Home Buyers Remorse – Stick To Your Budget!

One of the common reasons that a home buyer experiences buyers remorse is they do not stick to their budget.  When getting pre-approved for a mortgage, it’s possible you can afford a home for $300,000 according to a mortgage broker, however, your comfortable monthly mortgage payment calls for a $250,000 home purchase.

Remember when buying a home, there are additional expenses to owning a home.  It’s critical to consider all the expenses involved in owning a home before signing on the dotted line.  Some of the most common additional expenses can include;

• Internet
• Refuse
• Cable
• Water
• Electric
• Gas

Just because a mortgage broker pre-approves a buyer for a specific amount does not mean they should buy a home for that amount.  Setting a budget that includes the additional expenses and monthly mortgage will help reduce the chance of buyers remorse.

Make Sure The Purchase Offer Protects You

When you choose a buyers agent to represent your best interests while buying a home, you should expect that the buyers agent is indeed looking out for your best interests.  When you have found the perfect home and decide to write a purchase offer, make sure it protects you and that you understand the entire purchase offer and the terms set forth in it.

Your buyers agent should explain in detail what exactly you are signing when submitting a purchase offer.  There are several contract contingencies that are available to protect a home buyer.  Contingencies such as attorney approvals, mortgages, and acceptable home inspections are just a few of the most common contract contingencies to look out for when buying a home.

Ask Questions

Many home buyers, especially first time home buyers, fail to ask questions.  Failing to ask questions when buying a home is a great way to experience buyers remorse.  When buying a home there is no such thing as a “dumb question.”

If you’re unsure about who should be answering a specific question throughout the home buying process, ask your real estate agent and if they aren’t able to answer the question, they should be able to point you in the direction of the person who can answer the question.

Final Thoughts

Home buyers remorse is way too common in real estate.  Many of the reasons why home buyers experience buyers remorse can be avoided if the proper steps are taken.

The biggest tip on how to help avoid buyers remorse is to make sure you choose a top buyers agent to help you with your home search.  A top buyers agent knows how to identify if a buyer is possibly experiencing buyers remorse and knows how to help address the problem because of their past experiences.

Other Home Buying Resources

• Don’t Miss Out On How To Handle Common Home Buying Pitfalls via Imagine Your House
• 6 Tips For Avoiding Home Buyers Remorse via Ferris Property Group
• Tips To Help Determine How Much To Offer For A Home via Rochester’s Real Estate Blog
• How To Avoid Home Buyer’s Remorse When Buying Your Home via The Las Vegas Luxury Home Pro
• Financial Mistakes Of First Time Home Buyers via Maximum Real Estate Exposure
• How To Buy A Home | Top Real Estate Resources For Home Buyers via Bundlr

Are you a Rochester, NY home buyer?  Are you scared of the possibility of having buyers remorse when buying a Rochester, NY home?  The above guide on avoiding buyers remorse in real estate can be a great way to help reduce the chance you’ll experience buyers remorse after closing on your Rochester, NY home.  If you’re uncertain about the home buying process, contact me as I’d love to opportunity to interview for the chance to represent you as your buyers agent.

About the authors:  The above article “How To Avoid Home Buyers Remorse In Real Estate” was provided by the Keith Hiscock Sold Team (Keith & Kyle Hiscock).  With over 30 years combined experience, if you’re thinking of selling or buying, we’d love to share our knowledge and expertise.

We service the following Greater Rochester NY areas: Irondequoit, Webster, Penfield, Pittsford, Fairport, Brighton, Greece, Gates, Hilton, Brockport, Mendon, Henrietta, Perinton, Churchville, Scottsville, East Rochester, Rush, Honeoye Falls, Chili, and Victor NY.

Visit our website at www.HiscockHomes.com.