Buyer’s remorse is rampant among pandemic purchasers

A large crop of unhappy homeowners is emerging after having time to settle with their hasty pandemic purchase in the last couple of years.

Buyers at the time were bidding up home prices to beat out fierce competition, and many waived the home inspection or appraisal to get the house they wanted.

But now they may regret the extremes they went to for a home: More than three-fourths of U.S. homeowners who purchased in the prior year expressed regret about their decision, according to an October survey from Hippo, a home insurance group.

The top reasons for their regret are:

-I spent too much: 30%

-I bought too quickly: 26%

-My home requires too much maintenance: 25%

-I bought a fixer-upper: 24%

-I was pressured to make an offer: 21%

-I bought sight-unseen: 17%

-I don't like my home's location: 15%

-I don't like my neighbors: 15%

-I don't like my home: 13%

This survey was conducted by Kickstand Communications on behalf of Hippo Insurance Services. Fielded between October 22-28, 2022, the results are based on 1,002 respondents.

5 offers per home sold

On average, there were nearly five offers for every home sold in February, higher than in recent months, according to the February 2022 REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey. Real estate professionals who were surveyed reported more than five offers, on average, in Massachusetts, Georgia, Texas, Colorado, Utah, Washington, and California.

Nationwide, 48% of buyers’ offers were above the list price, according to NAR’s data. On average, those offers were about 2.9% above the list price; on the median-priced home, that would be about $10,000 over the asking price. However, 13% of the offers were 10% above the list price.

Real estate pros report that in general their buyers typically lose two homes before succeeding on the third try, according to the study.

Homes are selling quickly under the intense competition. Eighty-four percent of listings were on the market for less than a month.

“Competition could intensify in 2022 before waning in 2023 as home buyers compete to lock in at the current rates,” Gay Cororaton, a research economist for NAR, writes on the association’s blog. “Mortgage rates may rise more steeply in 2023.”

Source: “February 2022 REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey: Buyer Competition Intensifies to 5 Offers Per Home Sold,” National Association of REALTORS® Economists’ Outlook blog (March 18, 2022)