A recent consumer survey by Trulia, real estate listing website, reveals top regrets individuals have about their homes or the homebuying process.
The findings show that 75 percent of Americans feel this season is better for buying a home than next year, while 32 percent perceive it is better to sell homes this year than next year. The biggest challenge that homebuyers face is the lack of inventory this spring season, the survey reveals.
The top complaint from homeowners is wishing they had chosen a bigger home (34 percent), followed by 27 percent who wish they had done more remodeling when they purchased their new homes.
Besides homeowners, Trulia questioned renters, who are more likely to have regrets about their real estate transactions than homeowners (56 percent and 50 percent, respectively).
Of those renters, 42 percent of them wish they had bought a house instead of renting. Thirty-nine percent wish they had chosen a larger house, while 21 percent wanted to know more about their homes before moving in. More than a quarter (27 percent) regret not being financially secure before choosing the apartment.
Trulia also examined generational differences. Millennial homeowners (age 18 to 34) were more likely to harbor regrets about their home purchase (75 percent) than those age 55 or older (36 percent). However, Millennials did not make different mistakes than homeowners overall — they express similar regrets as other age groups.
With the market recovering, homebuyers who purchased their homes between 2010 and 2013 have fewer regrets compared to those who purchased homes from 2003 to 2009. Affordable prices, low mortgage rates and conservative bank lending have helped recent buyers make housing decisions with fewer regrets. Harris Interactive conducted the survey for Trulia in March 2013 among 2,130 adults.
— Christina Andrews
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