What To Do If You Regret Buying a House?
:quality(80))
Content Written By: Jessica Buckley - Last Updated: 01/10/2025
Buying a house often comes with an array of emotions, with most of them revolving around excitement. However, some buyers can be hit with the unexpected feelings of buyer’s remorse, which can be quite straining on one’s mental health and financial stability.
Recent data from the HomeOwners Alliance showed that a whopping 6.5 million buyers in the UK had regrets about the home they bought:
Luckily, there are ways to combat buyer’s remorse and avenues available for help if you need it.
In this article, we cover what buyer’s remorse is, how you can avoid it if it’s not too late and how to deal with and move on from it if you’ve already gone through with the purchase.
Table of Contents
We’re honoured to have been featured in the media by several leading outlets and major publications
:format(webp):quality(100)){kind=logo}
:format(webp):quality(100))
:format(webp):quality(100))
:format(webp):quality(100))
:format(webp):quality(100))
:format(webp):quality(100))
:format(webp):quality(100))
What is buyer’s remorse?
Buyer’s remorse is when someone experiences regret, anxiety, depression or guilt after they make a significant purchase or investment, like a car or house. The feelings associated with buyer’s remorse usually come from a feeling of financial insecurity and can cause friction between partners in a relationship.
Home buyer’s remorse doesn’t always come when a property has been bought—it can also appear before you make a purchase, which can mean that reluctant buyers pull out of a sale. If you are feeling buyer’s remorse before you have exchanged contracts, it's essential that you have completed as much due diligence on a property as possible.
What is the fear of buyer’s remorse?
The fear of buyer’s remorse is the fear or anxiety of having buyer’s remorse, which can create negative emotions like anxiety.
Property sales are a massive investment and the amount of funds needed to purchase a property outright or with a mortgage is substantial, often leading many prospective buyers to pull out before completion.
Why do I regret buying a house?
It’s completely normal to feel some form of regret when spending significant amounts of money on anything, especially a house. Regretting buying a house often comes in two different forms: based on the outcome of a purchase, and based on the process of the purchase.
Some people regret buying a house when their situation changes after the initial purchase, such as when someone faces redundancy after buying a property and is unable to keep up with their mortgage payments.
Alternatively, other people face buyer’s remorse during the property purchase, usually due to over- or under-consideration of the investment. For example, if they put in an offer for the property over their agreed budget, they could face buyer’s remorse and cancel the process altogether.
What is the most common cause of buyer’s remorse?
The most common cause of buyer’s remorse is the realisation that you overspent on the property and will be recovering from the financial loss for years to come. Spending over your predetermined budget can create a sense of regret for anyone, no matter the size of the investment.
This table from the HomeOwners Alliance report breaks down the most common regrets survey respondents said they have:
| Housing Regrets | Total Homeowners | Age 18-34 | Age 35-54 | Age 55+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Have regrets about property bought | 37% | 63% | 48% | 22% |
| Budgeting issues | 13% | 29% | 19% | 5% |
| No budgeting for renovations | 9% | 16% | 14% | 4% |
| Not budgeting for other buying costs/fees | 4% | 16% | 5% | 1% |
| Not budgeting for stamp duty | 2% | 4% | 3% | 0% |
| Location issues | 12% | 27% | 15% | 6% |
| Not enough shops/local services | 4% | 9% | 5% | 2% |
| Poor transport links | 3% | 7% | 4% | 2% |
| No sense of community | 3% | 8% | 4% | 1% |
| Too rural/feel isolated | 2% | 5% | 3% | 0% |
| Lack of good schools | 2% | 4% | 3% | 0% |
| Crime rate/do not feel safe | 2% | 4% | 2% | 1% |
| Compromising on property features (e.g size, number of bedrooms, outside space) | 8% | 17% | 11% | 4% |
| Not checking neighbours (anti-social/noise) | 4% | 7% | 5% | 3% |
| Buying a leasehold property | 4% | 5% | 5% | 3% |
| Buying a new build | 4% | 10% | 5% | 1% |
| Not getting a survey (problems after moving in) | 4% | 7% | 5% | 3% |
| Other | 4% | 0% | 5% | 5% |
| Sample size | 1238 | 147 | 430 | 661 |
Source: HomeOwners Alliance
Other causes of buyer’s remorse include:
The realisation that you have invested in a home that you like but don’t love, and that your dream home may be elsewhere.
The concern that you have a lot of things going on in your life and you don’t want to have to think about a house and mortgage payments as well.
The sense of being trapped, especially if you have a joint mortgage with your partner and don’t see the relationship lasting.
If you purchased a property with concerns over structural issues, you may face buyer’s remorse when the property needs to be repaired causing you financial loss.
What properties cause the most buyer’s remorse?
The most common types of property to cause buyer’s remorse are older mid-century or post-war properties. This is mainly because they tend to have hidden structural issues, which can become costly to repair for new homeowners.
Read more: Selling Your Non-Standard Construction House
Secondly, many homeowners regret buying bungalows as they don’t offer the room for a growing family and don’t usually have space for home extensions.
“This data shows us that buyer’s remorse is sadly more common than we thought. In all the excitement, people can rush into property purchases and, if you haven’t got the right estate agent on your side, important things can get missed and that horrible feeling of regret and dread can start creeping in.”
How do you avoid buyer’s remorse?
If you are looking to avoid buyer’s remorse, there are a few things you should consider before purchasing a property.
1. Seek expert advice
We would recommend that you speak to estate agents, financial advisors, mortgage brokers and get independent house surveys to get the best possible overview of your potential property.
Seeking advice from multiple property experts will also help you ensure you spend the right amount of money on a property in accordance with your own financial limits.
2. Create a property checklist
Before you commit to buying a property, you should ensure that the property meets your expectations. Here are some questions you should ask yourself:
Does it have enough bedrooms and bathrooms for the time you want to live there?
Does the property have good accessibility? Is the property suitable for any health conditions you have?
Does it have the potential to be child-proofed?
Does the age of the property concern you?
Does it have enough outdoor space to accommodate children, gardening or space to unwind?
Does it have the potential for extensions to increase its value?
Does the location of the property allow you reasonable travel times to work, schools or shops?
What is the local crime rate of the area? Use the police’s crime map to search based on postcodes.
3. Take your time
When you start looking at properties on the open market, you should take your time and allow yourself to evaluate potential properties. There is no point rushing into a transaction or contract if it’s going to cause you stress later down the road—only make the purchase when you are 100% sure about it.
How do you deal with buyer’s regret?
If you feel like you have buyer’s remorse, the first thing you should do is open up and communicate with a loved one, financial advisor or therapist—someone who doesn't have a stake in the property ownership. Feeling trapped due to financial insecurity is not something anyone should do alone.
This Reddit user experienced severe buyer’s remorse and reached out to the community to see if anyone else had felt the same way:
“Now that the house is mine I just regret it. It doesn’t feel like home and the issues bother me more than I thought. With all the furniture removed it suddenly looks worse and I dread moving in there. All the hard work and time spent suddenly doesn’t feel like it was worth it.”
Create a SWOT analysis
If you currently have buyer’s remorse, you may benefit from creating a SWOT analysis on the property you have bought. This is where you write down the strengths (pros), weaknesses (cons), opportunities and threats to owning the property and how you can overcome any of the downfalls.
Using a SWOT analysis allows you to get a wider perspective on owning the property and gives you an actionable plan. The analysis can also help switch your perspectives on the negative aspects of the property and turn them into positives.
From the SWOT analysis, it could come to your attention that the property has potential for a single-storey extension to add more value to the property.
Alternatively, you may realise that the property’s value is less than comparable properties in the neighbourhood, in which case, there may be potential for a property renovation to increase the value.
Even if this property isn’t your forever home, you should always consider getting planning permission, as this could make the property more attractive to potential buyers in the future.
:quality(80))
Sell up and move on
If you have buyer’s remorse and, after your SWOT analysis, you realise that there are more weaknesses and threats than strengths and opportunities, it may be worth cutting your losses short and selling.
We are a leading UK cash buyer and can help you sell your house in as little as seven days. You can sell your house quickly and move on with your life, shaking off that feeling of buyer’s remorse, and moving you toward your dream property.
Throughout the selling process, you won’t be faced with any more financial strain as we cover all the fees associated with selling your house, including all legal fees. Simply enter your postcode below to get started.
Edit Log
01/10/2025 - Content rewritten by Jessica Buckley expert insight provided by Raphael Kaye
01/10/2025 - Content updated in line with Editorial Guidelines (Reviewed by Mathew McCorry)
:quality(50))