35% of Buyers Regret Their Home Purchase. Here Is What They Missed
TEAM CASSELS | EAST VALLEY MORTGAGE
| BUYER EDUCATION | May 2026 | 5 min read |
An estimated 35% of American homebuyers regret their purchase, according to Finance Monthly's 2026 analysis of the US housing market. The most common reasons: unexpected maintenance costs they did not see coming and location choices that felt right during the showing but proved wrong over time. Neither of these regrets is inevitable. Both are preventable with the right due diligence before closing. For East Valley buyers in Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, Queen Creek, San Tan Valley, and Apache Junction, this is not a generic checklist. It is a region-specific guide to the issues that actually surface in this market.
What East Valley Buyers Miss Before Closing
Due diligence during a home walkthrough. A clipboard and the right questions before closing prevents the regret that follows 35% of American home purchases. |
The staging that made you fall in love with a home during the showing is designed to direct your attention toward features, not away from problems. Fresh paint covers water stains. New flooring conceals subfloor damage. A clean inspection during the showing becomes a 5,000 foundation repair after closing. A basic walkthrough is simply not enough for a decision of this magnitude. The Finance Monthly analysis identified four categories of costly mistakes that catch buyers off guard: foundation issues, title and record problems, unpermitted work, and zoning constraints. All four appear in East Valley transactions regularly. Each has specific local dimensions that a generalist checklist misses entirely. |
| THE EAST VALLEY PRE-CLOSING CHECKLIST, FOUR AREAS THAT COST BUYERS THE MOST | ||
| 01 |
Foundation and Soil Repair cost: ,000-5,000+ |
Arizona's expansive clay soils are among the most problematic in the country for residential foundations. Maricopa County, which covers Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, and much of the East Valley, has significant zones of expansive soil that shift with moisture changes. Warning signs include sticking doors and windows that won't close properly, hairline cracks running at 45-degree angles from door corners, and uneven flooring. Action: Hire a licensed structural engineer, not just a general home inspector, for any property showing foundation indicators. Require a soil report on older homes in known expansive zones. |
| 02 |
Title and Property Records Can delay or kill a closing |
Liens from unpaid contractors, back property taxes, and unresolved inheritance claims are the most common title problems in the Phoenix metro. HOA super-liens, which give homeowners associations priority claim on a property in some circumstances, are a specific East Valley complexity that generic title searches sometimes miss. A thorough title search, combined with an owner's title insurance policy, is the non-negotiable protection against historical legal mistakes that could threaten your ownership rights years after closing. Action: Review the preliminary title report carefully. Confirm all HOA obligations are current and that no special assessments are pending. Owner's title insurance is separate from lender's title insurance, both matter. |
| 03 |
Unpermitted Work Can require demolition or steep fines |
Unpermitted additions are extremely common in the East Valley. Converted garages, enclosed pool areas, added casitas, and finished rooms that were originally open-air patios frequently appear in older Mesa, Chandler, and Gilbert homes without the permits that would have required city inspection. If the city discovers unpermitted work, it can compel you to demolish the addition or pay to bring it up to current code standards, neither of which is cheap. Your lender also has a stake in this: FHA and VA loans require properties to meet minimum condition standards, and unpermitted work can create appraisal complications. Action: Pull the permit history from the city before closing. If the square footage in the listing doesn't match public records, investigate why. Ask the seller to disclose all work completed without permits. |
| 04 |
Zoning and HOA Constraints Can block your intended use |
East Valley buyers who intend to add a casita for multigenerational living, run a home-based business, or use the property as a short-term rental need to verify both city zoning and HOA CC&Rs before making an offer, not after. R-district residential zoning in many East Valley municipalities restricts ADU placement, size, and even whether one can be built at all. Separately, HOA governing documents frequently prohibit short-term rentals, commercial activity, and certain exterior modifications regardless of what the city zoning allows. Both layers apply simultaneously. Action: Obtain the HOA CC&Rs and read the key restriction sections before your inspection period ends. Contact the city planning department to confirm zoning for your intended use. Do not assume the listing agent's description of "ADU potential" has been verified. |
| Source: Finance Monthly, "Smart Property Investment: How to Avoid Costly Mistakes When Buying a Home," April 23, 2026. East Valley specifics added by Team Cassels. | ||
The Hidden Costs Beyond the Mortgage Payment
The Finance Monthly analysis points to maintenance costs as one of the two leading causes of buyer regret. This is the category that catches first-time buyers most off guard: the mortgage payment they qualified for and the total monthly cost of owning the home are different numbers, and the difference can be significant. In the East Valley, the specific line items that most buyers underestimate include HVAC replacement (Arizona's extreme heat accelerates system wear, with units often lasting 10 to 15 years rather than the national average of 15 to 20), pool maintenance and equipment (running 00 to 00 monthly depending on the property and service level), and property taxes in rapidly appreciated areas where assessed values have climbed steeply.
| East Valley Hidden Cost | Typical Range | What Most Buyers Miss |
| HVAC Replacement | ,000-5,000+ | Arizona heat shortens system life. Ask the age of every unit before closing and budget accordingly. |
| Pool Maintenance | 00-00/mo | A pool is an asset in the East Valley, but its ongoing cost is real. Service, chemicals, equipment, and eventual resurfacing add up fast. |
| HOA Fees | 0-00+/mo | HOA fees affect your debt-to-income ratio and must be included in your pre-approval calculation. Special assessments can appear unexpectedly. |
| Foundation Repairs | ,000-5,000+ | Arizona expansive soils create problems invisible to the untrained eye. If not caught before closing, this becomes your problem entirely. |
The mortgage payment is the largest line item in your housing budget. But it is not the only one. A pre-approval conversation that accounts for your full housing cost, including HOA fees, estimated maintenance reserves, and the specific property characteristics of the home you are targeting, gives you a realistic picture of what ownership actually costs in the East Valley before you are committed to it.
FOR EAST VALLEY REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONALS
One in three buyers regrets their purchase. The ones who work with a mortgage advisor who talks about the full cost before closing are not in that statistic.
Real estate agents and financial advisors across Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, Queen Creek, San Tan Valley, Eastmark, and Apache Junction: the Finance Monthly data on buyer regret is a referral opportunity. Buyers who feel informed and prepared before closing become the clients who refer everyone they know. Team Cassels takes the time to walk East Valley buyers through the full cost picture, including HOA fees in the DTI calculation, the HVAC age question, the permit history check, and the zoning conversation that most mortgage conversations skip. That thoroughness before closing is what produces confident buyers instead of regretful ones. Call us before your next buyer consultation.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
5 Questions East Valley Buyers Are Asking About Due Diligence
| 1 | The home inspection came back clean. Is there anything else I need to check before closing on a Mesa or Chandler home? |
A clean general home inspection is necessary but not sufficient. The inspection tells you about visible conditions at a moment in time. It does not tell you whether the structural engineer has reviewed the foundation for soil movement specific to Arizona's expansive clay. It does not tell you whether there are unpermitted additions that the county assessor's records would reveal if you compared them to the listing square footage. It does not tell you whether the title is free of contractor liens or HOA super-liens. And it does not tell you what the city zoning will allow you to do with the property if you have plans for an ADU or home business. A comprehensive due diligence process addresses all of these, not just the condition of the mechanical systems.
| 2 | How do unpermitted additions affect my mortgage if I discover them after making an offer? |
They can affect your loan in two ways. First, FHA and VA loans require properties to meet minimum condition standards, and unpermitted work can create appraisal issues if the appraiser notes the discrepancy. Second, the appraised value may not include unpermitted square footage in the comparable analysis, which could affect how the property is valued for loan purposes. If you discover unpermitted work during your inspection period, you have several options: request the seller pull a permit and bring the work to code before closing, negotiate a price reduction to account for the remediation cost, or walk away. Team Cassels can help you understand the loan implications of each path so you can make an informed decision rather than a panicked one.
| 3 | I want to buy a home in Gilbert with a casita and use it as a short-term rental. How do I confirm that's actually allowed? |
Two checks, in sequence. First, contact the City of Gilbert's planning department and confirm the property's zoning classification allows short-term rental use and ADU operation under current ordinances. Arizona state law generally preempts cities from banning short-term rentals outright, but each municipality has permit and operational requirements. Second, obtain and read the HOA CC&Rs, specifically the sections governing rental restrictions, commercial activity, and property use. Some East Valley HOAs prohibit short-term rentals even where the city allows them. Both layers need to be clear before you make an offer, not after you own the property.
| 4 | Should I get a structural engineer's report even if a general inspector found no foundation concerns? |
On older East Valley homes, yes. General home inspectors are trained to identify visible symptoms, not to analyze soil conditions or perform engineering assessments. Arizona's expansive clay soils create movement patterns that can be developing underground without obvious surface symptoms at the time of inspection. A licensed structural engineer assessing the foundation and soil conditions is a different scope of work than a general home inspection, and for homes in established Mesa or Chandler neighborhoods built before 2000, it is frequently worth the additional cost. The worst outcome is discovering foundation movement after closing with no recourse against a seller who may have genuinely not known. The structural engineer's report before closing gives you leverage and options.
| 5 | How should I factor repair and maintenance costs into my pre-approval so I am not stretched thin after closing? |
Start by including all known recurring costs in your budget before you determine how much home you want to buy. HOA fees must be included in your debt-to-income ratio calculation for mortgage qualification, so your lender will capture those. What most buyers do not account for is a monthly maintenance reserve: financial planners generally recommend setting aside 1% to 2% of the home's value annually for maintenance and repairs. On a 50,000 East Valley home, that is ,500 to ,000 per year, or 75 to 50 per month, that belongs in your housing budget before you decide how much mortgage you can afford. A pre-approval conversation with Team Cassels accounts for your full budget, not just the maximum loan the underwriting model will approve.
YOUR NEXT STEP
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