Don't let abject fear immobilize your home-buying efforts

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Published Date 12/4/2018

It’s understandable. But it can make you freeze in your tracks when it comes to buying real estate: fear.

Questions plague the indecisive, making it both painful and sometimes impossible to move forward: fear that it’s the wrong time to buy; fear that it’s the wrong house, fear that the deal is not the best you could have gotten. Many homeowners will tell you that they had a few regrets at the beginning of a home purchase, but most will go on to say that those fears abated shortly after settling into their homes — homes that now serve as part of their financial and personal foundation and within which they are now making memories with the ones they love.

Fear of buying the wrong house can be tied to location, appreciation potential, or being the wrong size. But most of us who have been-there-done-that can tell you that there is no perfect home, no perfect decision, and that fear can be a real enemy as well as a protective instinct when selecting a home. RealtyTimes writer PJ Wade dives deeper into the topic. “Manifestations of fear that can immobilize us when faced with big decisions and haunt us long after we make or defer the decision that created them.” She continues, saying that failure to act may lead to regrets — regrets about consequences of the delay, the resulting inertia, or the missed opportunity.

Realtors are not only property experts but also hand-holders through this process. Many pride themselves in being the calm sounding boards buyers need when confronted with making the largest investment they will ever make. The details of a home purchase are just as intimidating: down payments, mortgages, real estate law, contracts, inspections, and disclosures. Professionals aim to minimize or eliminate regrets through all this. So how do you take control of these very real fears? Ask a LOT of questions while you do a lot of research on your own.

If you’re watching a rising real estate market from the sidelines, but hoping prices will fall, you may be making a sucker’s bet, losing out over and over again. Don’t think of home buying as you would dating in this case. You may never find your house soul mate, but you might find a gem nonetheless. But people, as well as houses, can learn to love one another with patience, goodwill, a great attitude, and a happy heart. Yes. Sometimes it’s a matter of loving the one you’re with.

Have you gone about this with a must-have list in hand? Was it formulated after seeing what friends bought or by paying attention to trends? Make sure your must-have list is a thoughtful analysis of your specific needs and how exactly a home would enhance your life. Wade brings up the example of buying a home in a less expensive outlying area because it sounds like a wise financial move. However, what impact would it have on your commute to work, your involvement in recreation, the time you’d be able to spend with friends and family, accessing entertainment, or your love of walking to a coffee shop for a latte every morning? Not doing the research and failing to think through issues like these, even if it means buying a house that isn’t the ideal size or price, can make being far from your ideal location a life of ongoing regret.

Just because you’re trying to get over your fears doesn’t mean you should “rip off the band-aid” and make an impromptu decision, however. Wade warns, “Impatient buyers who jump into a purchase, pressured by multiple offers, egged on by deceptively clever staging, or who skip a home inspection can run into unwelcome expensive surprises.” She, as well as any reputable real estate professional, would urge you to Investigate the property condition to get the facts before diving in.

Real estate professionals understand how buyers can get caught in the frenzy of making a decision that may or may not be right for them. They do their best to offer their clients a Ben Franklin style list of pluses and minuses, even though a buyer’s emotion often takes over. “Long-term financial gains coupled with future lifestyle benefits are not always easy for buyers to visualize,” says Wade, “especially when the property is not in the best condition or staged in a style that is not their own. Professionals see beyond the current presentation of the property to anticipate what it may become for specific buyers.”

The lesson from all this is to use and emphasize foresight when buying real estate so that regrets can be lessened, fear can become a memory, and life can indeed go on.

Source: TBWS

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