Your thought the search was over. Your looked at hundreds of listings, toured dozens of homes with your real estate agent, and spent hours packing, negotiating prices, and meeting with inspectors. Once the closing date has come and gone, many buyers feel a sense of buyer's remorse: they feel the new home is a mistake, and they wish they had kept looking or stayed put. These feelings are not uncommon. There are some things you can do to curb buyer's remorse after buying and moving into your new home.
Make a sensible to-do list.
One of the reasons why buyer's feel remorse after the purchase of a new house is they suddenly feel overwhelmed by the amount of work they need to do. Buyers often meet inspectors and approach walk-throughs with a "can-do" attitude. They think, "Oh replacing those windows won't be much of an issue," or "Those worn out floors are easily replaced." But once the dotted line is signed, the busyness of life and the mounting list of items to address seems daunting. You can help make sense of your to-do list and reduce the pressure by doing the following:
Prioritizing the items by necessity and cost. You may not have the money to replace all the dated tile in the bathroom right away, so move that item to the bottom and instead focus on patching the missing shingles on the roof or installing weather stripping around the doors. Make a book of things to do, and just tear out the pages of the things you have finished.
Reducing your expectations. Shows on HGTV provide skewed reality for homeowners. In a 50-minute episode, a home goes from drab to fab on a low budget. It's just not realistic, and homeowners can sometimes expect immediate and positive results. Most of the time, work life and family obligations means that the fixes for your house become weekend and evening projects to tackle when you have moment or two. By putting less pressure on yourself and your timeline, you'll breathe easier.
Stop looking at listings.
Some homeowners make remorse worse by "torturing" themselves with "might-have-beens." After you've moved in, don't look at other listing possibilities and stop asking friends and relatives for information on their homes, what they pay, and how their neighborhood is. You'll inevitably see something you think is better, and the case against your own house will start to seem worse and worse. Sometimes, homeowners really do find the house they purchased is a poor investment, but looking at what you could have done will not make a bad situation better.
Make a list of the good things your home offers.
There was a reason you chose the home you did. Make a list of those things and review your reasons often. Maybe the house is closer to your job, reducing your commute. Maybe it has more room for your growing family. Maybe the yard is big and the closets offer plenty of storage.
Do some things to make it home.
Sometimes, buyer's remorse can pass with time. You can help it pass by doing things to make the home valuable to you. Paint some walls in a color you like. Purchase some different furniture to fit the living room better. Hang some pictures on the wall and place your decor on shelves.
Contact your realtor.
If the home still gives you grief even after you have tried to remain positive and make it your own, you might contact your realtor about what you can do to sell it or rent it out so you can find a home that better meets your needs.
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