Quiz taps into Buyers’ Psychology   

A “Houseonality Quiz” by a California real estate brokerage says there is more to choosing a home than the old adage “location, location, location”.

The quiz taps into the psychological and emotional triggers that influence people’s decisions in home buying, says Azevedo & Associates, a residential real estate brokerage in Granite Bay, Calif. “People time and time again will choose a home that they did not like, did not have the right number of bedrooms, location, or square footage. Why would someone choose a house they don’t like?” asks the company in a news release.

It has to do with priorities and relationships, it says. “The use of the Houseonality Quiz allows people to be in touch with their true needs for a home. This allows them to find houses that meet their priorities, relationships and values,” it says. “Prior to now, choosing a home was all about location, location, location. For the first time, the home people choose is about the person and their emotional and value driven needs and priorities. Priorities now take the lead in home selection.”

The company says the quiz is based on the Object Relations Theory as first pioneered by Sigmund Freud and Melanie Klein, which suggests that people have an innate need to form and maintain relationships. Within the theory, objects can be things that we form attachments to.

Jennifer Azevedo, broker/owner of Azevedo & Associates, says, “People are very attached to their homes. Their homes provide them with some very basic needs such as security, shelter, and comfort. People have memories, moments, events tied to their homes. It definitely is a relationship”.

By providing the Houseonality Quiz, “we are allowing people to really take a look at and identify what type of house they need in order to fulfill their lifestyle, their dreams, values, and priorities,” says Azevedo. She says most people begin their search with their search criteria, such as four bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 1,800 square feet, in a specific neighbourhood. The quiz allows house hunters to take a different approach, by acknowledging and addressing the psychological and emotional factors of a home purchase, she says.

It asks who should be included in the decision, as well as the buyer’s ambitions, priorities, and how they live on a day to day basis. “Typically, you have your list of must-have features. Houseonality taps into the tangibility of the emotional and psychological needs and allows you to add those needs to your must-have features,” says the company.

To take the quiz, click here.