How to take the stress and arguments out of home buying
Stress and arguments are causing many home buyers to compromise on their property dreams, it has been revealed, but it doesn’t have to be this way.
Almost half of Aussie home buyers are compromising on their property dreams and enduring arguments and tears due to the stress of house hunting, it has been revealed.
According to The Great Australian Home Search survey commissioned by home builder Shawood and conducted by YouGov Galaxy, buyers also spend an average of 14 or more working days solely searching online.
According to the survey, nine out of 10 respondents found the hunt frustrating, 45 per cent settle because the search was too tough, 54 per cent experience arguments, 43 per cent have broken down in tears and two-thirds would do things differently next time.
Mums and dads with their adult children living at home are also suffering – the study found more than two-thirds of parents fight with their own partners over their children’s search.
Scott Rudgley, executive sales director at Shawood said it showed what was once exciting is now overwhelming.
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“We have so much information at our fingertips that we can often get stuck into a never-ending cycle of searching. Instead of helping us, this actually leads to more frustration. Our research shows those who find the house hunt most frustrating spend almost double the time doing online research compared to those who don’t find the process frustrating,” Mr Rudgley said.
Cate Bakos, president of the Real Estate Buyers Agents Association of Australia said there is a “newly emerging sense of FOMO” as buyer confidence soars post-pandemic lockdowns.
“I’ve seen buyers behaving more frenetically these past few weeks than I have all year,” she said.
“They’re scrambling to understand and accept how various agents deal with competitive bidding, or offers, and many seem quite baffled by the variation in how buyer’s bids and offers are treated from agent to agent.
“I’m seeing a lot of stress and tension.”
Learning from experience
Danielle and James Wallace and their son William have moved into their second home, a new Shawood home in Gledswood Hills and have taken the time to pause and reflect on each house hunting experience.
“We previously built a house in a nearby suburb with a project home builder. It was a lot less stressful purchasing a ‘house and land package’ compared to a build where we had to make every decision,” Mrs Wallace said.
She said the pair did most of their house hunting online, which added up to a year of searching.
“We had a certain list of ‘must haves’ which included footpaths, green space, a manageable but nice yard, and a house with finishes that we liked the look and quality of,” she said.
“The most stressful part of the house hunting process for me was going to open homes and feeling like a competitor. When you find a house you like that can give you the lifestyle you want, it’s stressful to think you might miss out.”
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Keep the pressure down
To avoid stress, Mrs Wallace said buyers of new homes should examine the fine print and be sure of what is included in the price.
“This will give you a better idea of how much your total spend is going to be. With our current house we could move straight in, whereas in our previous build there were a lot of hidden costs which also took a lot of time to organise and complete,” she said.
Ms Bakos said in order to lessen the stress, buyers need a clear vision of location, a solid criteria, and a tried and tested brief.
“Back-testing means looking on the sold tab of a search engine and being confident they are looking in the right place for the product they want, within their budget. If the search doesn’t show anything in the current months within their desired budget, it’s a fair hint they’re barking up the wrong tree,” she said.
“There are levers buyers can pull to ensure their search is realistic and feasible – such as; smaller land, older or rougher property, searching in the next suburb out, or expanding the budget. The latter is not always an option, but the other three are,” Ms Bakos said.
“What is upsetting buyers is seeing properties they could have afforded in March or April, and now realising that ship has sailed. It is what it is, you can’t look back.”
Of the 1005 respondents in The Great Australian Home Search survey, 28 per cent said they would set a larger budget to avoid compromising, 24 per cent would opt for a more sustainable or environmentally friendly home, 23 per cent wished they’d used a trusted team and 22 per cent would be more disciplined next time about the time spent searching.
How to avoid house hunting stress – Cate Bakos
– Don’t assume the agent won’t shop their offer around to create competitive bidding. Remember the agent works for the vendor. Ask the agent how the process will go before submitting an offer.
– Don’t give the agent a verbal offer, only to find the property sells to someone else. It means nothing. To be ‘in the game’, a serious buyer should be prepared to sign a contract.
– Don’t buy in a rush and forgo the due diligence. Buyers need to find a good team and be prepped to move quickly.
– Don’t let an opportunity slip by because finance pre-approval is still underway. So don’t shop until you have finance.
– Don’t muck around with a conservative budget, only to repeatedly lose out to competition. Too many buyers miss opportunities for weeks or months, and then finally increase their budget
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