Stress and Emotions Drive 66% of Home Buyers Into Regret

Two-thirds of recent home buyers (66%) — and 76% of first-time buyers — have regrets, with the most common being paying too much (21%) and not negotiating more (20%).

ST. LOUIS, March 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Emotions, outside pressures, and economic uncertainty are shaping home-buying decisions more than many buyers would like, according to a new report from Best Interest Financial and Clever Real Estate.

Although nearly half of recent home buyers (45%) believe home buying should be a logical process, 44% say they followed their heart over their head.

In hindsight, 41% of recent home buyers wish they had been more rational in their decision-making, and over a third (36%) say their emotions caused them to act against their better judgment.

Three-quarters (76%) even admit to overlooking or downplaying red flags, most often necessary repairs (21%) and the price of the home (20%). But 42% say they convinced themselves that ignoring red flags was worth it.

Nearly half of recent buyers (45%) had doubts about their decision at some point, with 36% saying that they made an offer on a home they weren't sure about just to avoid losing it.

Additionally, 34% of recent buyers, including 44% of first-time buyers, made an offer on a home that exceeded their budget because they liked it so much.

More than half of first-time home buyers (53%) considered their decisions risky during the process, 21 percentage points higher than repeat buyers (32%).

About 41% of buyers, including 56% of first-timers, felt pressured to purchase sooner due to fears of an impending economic downturn.

Nearly two-thirds of first-time buyers (61%) feel that the economy dictated their timeline more than their personal or emotional readiness.

A staggering 78% of recent buyers say external factors influenced their decisions. A quarter of repeat buyers (25%) cited pressure from limited inventory of homes, compared to 17% of first-timers.

Nearly half of recent buyers (42%) acted faster than they were comfortable with, and 40% say there were moments when they moved forward mainly because they wanted the stress to be over.

Nearly 9 in 10 buyers (86%) say their gut feeling about a home was an important factor in their decision, with a majority of first-time buyers (54%) saying the belief that their home was better than others' was important.

Still, 44% of first-time buyers say the process made them feel like a failure at some point, and 41% were embarrassed by their home-buying budget. Just 17% and 21% of repeat buyers, respectively, felt this way.

About 89% of buyers report feeling emotionally attached to their home at some point in the process.More than a third (36%) say they felt attached to a home before viewing the property in person.

Among those who felt attached, 82% believe it influenced their buying strategy. One-fifth (20%) avoided negotiating out of fear of losing the home to someone else, and 21% made their strongest possible offer right away.

More than a third of recent buyers (37%) were less excited than they expected when they closed, with 32% saying they still check new real estate listings.

Unsurprisingly, almost three-quarters of real estate agents surveyed (71%) say emotions play a bigger role than logic for most buyers at some point in the home-buying process.

Read the full report at: https://bestinterest.com/research/stress-of-buying-a-house

About Best Interest Financial
At Best Interest Financial, borrowers come first, with personalized guidance and tailored mortgage options. Since 2024, hundreds of families have trusted Best Interest Financial to achieve their dream of homeownership. Now an affiliate of Clever Real Estate, a free agent-matching service that's saved consumers $210 million on Realtor fees since 2017, Best Interest shares a mission to connect people with the best solutions for every step of their real estate journey.

About Clever
Clever Real Estate's content reaches over 10 million readers annually, and its nationwide agent matching service has a 5.0-star Trustpilot rating across 3,900+ customer reviews. Since launching in 2017, Clever has reached $15.2 billion in real estate sold, matched 200,000+ customers with realtors, and saved consumers over $220 million on commission fees. Clever's network spans 18,000 agents across all 50 states. 

CONTACT:
Nicole Lehman
Clever Real Estate
[email protected]
724-719-0406

SOURCE Best Interest Financial