Nearly 6 in 10 recent U.S. home buyers said purchasing a house is more stressful than dating, according to a new report from Redfin.
“Getting ghosted by your date is stressful, but purchasing a home in today’s market comes with its own unique set of anxieties,” says Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather. “Buyers are increasingly ghosting sellers as housing costs climb, and high mortgage rates are prompting many homeowners to stay put instead of selling—meaning house hunters have a record low number of homes to swipe right on.”
In addition to dating, respondents indicated purchasing a house was also more stressful than purchasing a car, potty-training a child, getting into college, and planning a wedding. Of the life events respondents had to choose from, just two were identified as more stressful than buying a home: 57% of respondents said divorce is more stressful, and 56% of respondents said finding a new job is more stressful.
Among generations, millennials and Gen Xers were most likely to emphasize anxieties related to home buying, with nearly two-thirds of respondents from each age cohort saying it is more stressful than dating. Baby boomers—who recently became the largest home buying generation—and Gen Zers were most likely to say dating is more stressful than purchasing a home. Older generations, including baby boomers and Gen Xers, were more likely to emphasize the stressors of divorce over buying a home than millennials and Gen Z respondents.
Among the life events respondents were asked about, the largest share of Gen Z respondents said buying a home was more stressful than buying a car (57% vs. 43%), while planning a wedding, finding a job, and getting into college were identified as more stressful than purchasing a home for the age cohort.
The largest share of millennial respondents said buying a home was more stressful in direct comparison with buying a car and potty-training a child, while millennials said finding a job was the only life event more stressful than buying a home. For Gen X and baby boomer respondents, buying a home was most stressful in comparison with buying a car and getting into college, while getting a divorce and finding a new job were both identified as more stressful than purchasing a home by each age cohort.
The Redfin-commissioned survey was conducted by Qualtrics in May and June 2023. The survey was fielded to more than 5,000 U.S. residents and the Redfin report focuses specifically on the approximately 1,000 respondents who bought a home in the last year.
