Buyer Dissonance
Buyer Dissonance, It’s Real
Buyer dissonance is really real, that sinking feeling. Is the home really right for you?
Searching, researching, learning all that you can about real estate. When you are coming out of a divorce or separation, going it alone, all the decisions are in your hands, it’s scary, it can be overwhelming, it’s exhilarating, emotions are riding high when you are buying a home by yourself.
Self doubt, are you doing the right thing? Is the location right for you? Will people visit you? Will you make new friends? Where is the best take away pizza, do they deliver wine?
You have come to the tail end of the stress and difficulty, your home is sold, finances etc worked out, balance is being restored to your universe (kind of). You have been looking online, viewing a few opens, meeting too many real estate agents, and appalled at how much over the price guide some of the homes have sold.
You find THE ONE, your research is done, your max price decided, your hand goes up, your voice rings out, again, and again, $500 on repeat, you wear out the other bidders, the auctioneer wants to go home, and SUCCESS, the home is yours. It’s your photo putting the SOLD sticker on. WOW!
Watching other homes that were high on the list to pursue, happy because you were successful at auction and don’t need to worry about the nervous tension of being the winning bid (because you achieved THAT goal), and interested to see what the other homes sold for.
Did they sell higher or lower than your expectation?
A moment or two of “What if I bought that one”?
Buyer dissonance is real, it strikes even through your delight that your home search is over.
When does it strike? It varies for everyone. If you buy through private sale then Cooling Off can be a trap for your dissonance to take over your happiness, changing to fear of “what have I done”. Depending on the strength of your dissonance, Cooling Off allows you to change your mind, get out of the Contract, and begin your home search anew with only a minor cost.
There is no cooling off with auction. It’s done. No place for regret. You can only move forward, to change your mind post auction is very expensive.
Researching homes is more than how they look – the latest furniture, a fresh coat of paint, an updated kitchen, or bathroom, or maybe both. Too often home buyers get hung up on looks, they may ignore their wish list because a home looks fresh and inviting. The sellers will be happy, their goal would be achieved, their hard work with presentation has paid off.
Auction Day arrives and you walk through the home again. It still appeals however you have had time to think. The floorplan is wrong, the location is wrong, the position is wrong, the renovations were poorly done. Do you still bid? Do you walk away? You have committed to the home – the conveyancer has checked out the Contract and Section 32, building and pest inspections have been done, you have organised someone to bid on your behalf. Money, time and energy spent. Do you proceed or do you lower your walk away price?
Your pricing research works out at the lower end of the price guide (this is rare in Melbourne currently with underquoting the prevailing norm). You know that you are unlikely to be successful at the Auction and internally you breathe a huge sigh of relief. You may even make a bid so that you can say that you tried and were unsuccessful. But what if everyone else has reached the same conclusion and they back away and you become the highest bid?
Fears such as the above – winning the home that you don’t really want, or winning the home that you want but overpaid, or winning the home but there is another home that is new to the market that ticks more of your boxes.
Avoiding Buyer Dissonance
Confidence in your purchase comes from exploring what you really want, need, and must have in your new home, being firm in your maximum, walk away price, and knowing why you were buying a home in the very first place.
You are ecstatic, the home you love is yours. Your new home, the location, size, garaging, all that you wanted, AND, it met most of your MUST HAVES too.
It’s why I spend so much time on the beginnings with my clients – so they get that confidence, that winning feeling at the end. No buyer dissonance here.
Buyer dissonance, also known as buyer’s remorse, is a psychological state where a consumer experiences regret, doubt, or anxiety after making a purchase. This discomfort arises from cognitive dissonance, a conflict between the decision to buy and the buyer’s beliefs or expectations. Essentially, the buyer questions whether they made the right choice, leading to feelings of unease or dissatisfaction
