Property buyers rush to purchase ‘the one’ quickly, study warns

The survey of 1,000 property owners revealed that 58 per cent spent less than 60 minutes checking out their eventual purchase.

However, rushing into a purchase can present problems down the line for many home buyers, according to Universal Buyers Agents director Darren Piper.

“After spending weeks or months scrolling through listings and inspecting homes, it is common for home buyers to get complacent once they think they have found ‘the one’.

“Unfortunately, this often leads to some oversights, which the buyers are then left to deal with after the deal has already been done.”

The survey found that more than a quarter, 26 per cent, discovered issues with their property after they purchased.

In the group that identified problems, 36 per cent said that they fell in love with the property and overlooked the faults, while 32 per cent said that they lacked experience in inspecting the property.

Only 11 per cent were simply impatient and tired of looking.

Many of the top post-purchase problems included paintwork, construction issues, fittings and gardens.

Mr Piper said that emotions got in the way for many home buyers and it showed that repeat visits are needed to avoid these complications.

“Home buyers are often signing the paperwork to their dream home with rose-coloured glasses on.

“Once a buyer starts marking decisions with their hearts instead of their heads, that’s when they can pay too much for a property or overlook important issues.”

The survey found that 74 per cent spent money fixing, replacing or improving the identified issues, and 41 per cent would have paid less for the property if they had discovered the problems earlier.

Of the group, only 23 per cent experienced buyer’s regret following the purchase.

Mr Piper’s advice to home buyers is to let the agents help so they can avoid these issues.

“Enlisting the help of a buyer’s agent will help avoid any of these issues occurring and ensure a buyer makes the best decisions when it comes to purchasing a home,” the director said.

“Buyer’s agents are here to guide the buyer and keep a logical mindset and keep the emotion out of the transaction, therefore reducing the risk of anything going wrong.”