Read This, Or You'll Regret Buying First Home

Most people don't regret buying a house immediately.

Regret creeps in over the years of daily friction, and paying for unused spaces.

I've opened the doors to hundreds of houses as a real estate negotiator and personally came across a fair share of people regretting their property purchase.

Often, it doesn't take long for people to share some feelings of buyer's remorse.

Top 4 Reasons People Regret Buying Their First Home

1. Bought a House Too Big For Their Lifestyle

   
   

*Tariq bought a 3 storey superlink house as a newlywed, thinking he has secured his family's future. Four years later, he and his wife had a child.

All this while, they haven't fully utilized the 3rd floor. It became a storage space for unused furniture and items.

With one child, they think the house is high maintenance. They lament paying for a house they don't fully utilize and wished they had bought something smaller.

Key takeaway: Buy for the life you actually live. A larger home often brings larger responsibilities, higher upkeep, and unnecessary strain if the space goes unused.

2. Bought a house too far from work

*Ali and Hana works in KL and has been staying in a condo within 20 minutes commuting time to work. They plan to move to a landed house to raise their growing family of four.

They went on several property viewings and decided to settle on an affordable two story terrace house in Nilai.

They underestimated the traffic and traveling time to KL on a daily basis. After almost one year of returning home at 8pm, they decided to move closer to work and leave their Nilai home empty.

Shortly after, they decided to let go of the Nilai home. Unfortunately, the house has not been sold even after one year and rental only covers 50% of the loan installment.

Key takeaway: Affordability should never come at the expense of daily livability.

3. Underestimate Cost of House Ownership

*Anne has always wanted to be a houseowner ever since she graduated. With encouragement from her parents, she bought a serviced residence with RM2500 loan installment, almost half her salary.

In the beginning, it felt like an accomplishment to own a house.

Then the bills started coming in. On top of her monthly loan installment and maintenance fee, her electricity bills were RM200 a month. She also had to pay for annual fire insurance and assessment fees.

Three years after buying the property, the management increased the maintenance fee by RM50.

To save money, she had to cut her entertainment budget and cook at home.

Her savings are also low.

Key takeaway: Just because you can afford the monthly installment does not mean you can comfortably afford the home.

4. Buying At Future Price

When *Alex just graduated from university, his parents encouraged him to buy property. He started a four-figure job in Kuala Lumpur.

Within the same year, he went to a few developer show houses and really liked one project in Kepong. He placed a booking on a RM500K one bedroom residence that was slated for completion in 4 years.

When the residence is finally ready for handover 4 years later, *Alex is working in Ara Damansara. The commute from Kepong to Ara Damansara was too long for him.

So, he decided to sell the property upon vacant possession.

To his surprise, real estate agents gave valuations below the price he bought from the developer. Feeling utterly misled, he decided to rent out the place to help cover the monthly loan installment.

Key takeaway: When buying a new launch, remember that you are often paying a future price. Capital appreciation is never guaranteed. Always assess resale demand, surrounding supply, and location fundamentals before committing to a home.