Nearly Half of Homeowners Have Some Regret About Purchasing Their Home

(Illustration courtesy of Bankrate)

Nearly half of current homeowners–45%–report having at least one regret about the purchase of their current home, according to a new survey from Bankrate, New York.

Among those homeowners who have regrets, 42% said maintenance and other hidden costs of homeownership were more expensive than expected. Buying too small of a house (21%) was the second most common regret. Other regrets include the mortgage payment being too high (16%), paying too much for the house (15%), buying a house in a bad location (14%), buying too big of a house (11%), not getting the best mortgage rate (10%) and not thinking it’s a good investment (6%).

“For most folks, buying a home is the most expensive transaction of their lifetime,” Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst Mark Hamrick said. “After the purchase is complete, we find that affordability issues rank high on the list of regrets. While homeownership is still associated with the proverbial American dream, it is prudent to consider and plan for many ongoing costs of ownership, not just getting over the threshold of the down payment and settlement.”

Bankrate found that regrets regarding homeownership vary by generation. “Older generations are more likely to regret high maintenance costs and younger generations are more likely to regret high mortgage payments/rates,” the report said.

On the other hand, more than half of current homeowners–55%–said they have no regrets about purchasing their current home. This tendency rises with age, with baby boomer homeowners (58%) the most likely to express no regrets, followed by slightly more than half of millennial homeowners (54%) and 52% of both Gen X and Gen Z homeowners.

Homeownership remains a goal for many in the United States, with 82% calling homeownership part of the American Dream and most homeowners say they would buy their current home again if they had to do it all over again. Just 17% said they would not buy their current home again, and 13% said they didn’t know, Bankrate found.

“While some homeowners have a regret about the purchase of some kind, it is telling that the vast majority would do it all over again if they had the chance,” Hamrick added. “For those who might yet purchase a replacement home in future years, whether buying larger or downsizing, some of these would-be lessons learned can prove useful.”