{"id":6893,"date":"2016-11-24T11:52:23","date_gmt":"2016-11-24T03:52:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/?p=6893"},"modified":"2023-09-08T09:57:28","modified_gmt":"2023-09-08T01:57:28","slug":"brain-influence-rent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/brain-influence-rent\/","title":{"rendered":"The Brain’s Influence On Your Renting Choices"},"content":{"rendered":"

The new year is coming up, and you might be thinking about making some significant life changes: finding a new job, for example, or living someplace new. Maybe you\u2019re a first-time condo renter<\/a>, maybe this is the third time you\u2019re looking for new residence. Whatever the case may be, choosing a condo for rent<\/a> is an emotional decision, which is why it\u2019s too easy to have irrational considerations if you\u2019re not careful.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s certainly tempting to go for resort-style living accommodations, but there\u2019s ultimately a trade off; you\u2019ve got to rationally consider if it\u2019s worth the cost. On the other hand, you mustn\u2019t let fear keep you from seeking growth and a better life. To help you find that balance between hopefulness and prudence, you should know about the most commonly overlooked cognitive biases when renting.<\/p>\n

Framing Effect<\/h4>\n

This is probably the easiest mistake to make, especially if you\u2019re the impulsive type. Have you ever gone to a mall with a certain amount of cash in your wallet, deciding that you\u2019ll spend only 70% of it, and wasting it all upon seeing the items on discount? That\u2019s the framing effect at work: the amount of money didn\u2019t change, but your perception of how much you\u2019re comfortable spending changed because you decided you can\u2019t afford to miss out. This is the same trap renters fall for when they determine how much of their monthly income they can afford to spend on rent, then squeeze out a bit more for a condo in a premium location that\u2019s slightly cheaper than other similar units.<\/p>\n

Sunk Cost Fallacy<\/h4>\n
\"sunk<\/a>

Photo courtesy of BookBabe<\/a> via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

Some condo renters find it hard to move because they\u2019ve already invested so much in renovating the bedroom, the kitchen, or some other part of the unit. This tendency is especially strong when you spend more on a renovation than you can actually afford\u2014a disappointing situation that reality home makeover shows may be setting people up for. This is the sunk-cost fallacy, which makes you more likely to hold on to a commitment or property that you previously made an investment in. When you\u2019re put in a position where you\u2019re forced to move, for example, if you\u2019ve found a possible new job with much better pay, but much farther from your current residence then you have to avoid letting this bias affect your decision.<\/p>\n

Confirmation Bias<\/h4>\n
\"Photo<\/a>

Photo courtesy of RyanMcGuire<\/a> via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

Think about the enjoyable apartment or condo amenities you could miss out on because of a negative preconception you can\u2019t let go of. For example, let\u2019s say you think most of a particular property or development\u2019s residents are from a much older generation, which makes you uncomfortable, but you check it out anyway. The agent takes you to see the unit, and mentions that the previous owners were seniors. Right away, alarm bells sound in your head, and you\u2019re already primed to say \u201cI want to look somewhere else, thanks.\u201d You\u2019ll probably block out all other information: all the other tenants are actually much younger, the community is designed for active millennials, and so on. It\u2019s best to determine any preconceptions you have about a certain place, and be open to information that could change those notions.<\/p>\n

Current Moment Bias<\/h4>\n
\"current<\/a>

Photo courtesy of Antranias<\/a> via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

Be careful to avoid letting your present mood overly influence your decisions. For example, the prospect of having ready access to a swimming pool can be really attractive when you\u2019re looking for a new condo in the summer. But if you like to spend most of your free time indoors reading lifestyle blogs, you should definitely take that into account. This is especially important if the place you\u2019re tempted to move into is a little bit outside your budget: thoughts like \u201cI\u2019m sure in two years, I\u2019ll have enough income to comfortably pay for it\u201d are usually just rationalizations you make in the moment, so give yourself a serious self-check.<\/p>\n

Bandwagon Effect<\/h4>\n
\"bandwagon<\/a>


Photo courtesy of Pixabay<\/a> via Pexels<\/p><\/div>\n

Being part of a group is healthy because of the emotional support it can provide, but it can also make you tend toward an established idea of normal behavior<\/a>. This can be good assuming all your friends know what they\u2019re doing and the decisions they make are good for you too. However, if you\u2019re considering moving to someplace that\u2019s a little pricey just because two or three of your friends are living there, and you can just as easily rent a condo unit nearby that\u2019s more affordable and has amenities that you\u2019re personally fine with, then you should probably make the decision that\u2019s best for you. You could save the difference, or actually use it to fund more fun gatherings with your barkada.<\/p>\n

Stereotyping<\/h4>\n
\"stereotyping\"<\/a>

Photo courtesy of eak_kkk<\/a> via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

This one is similar to confirmation bias, but it\u2019s a little bit worse. That\u2019s because in this case, you don\u2019t actually know anything about a place, and you\u2019re just making assumptions based on what you know (or think) about the group it\u2019s a part of. For example, you may think that a particular district is dangerous, and you assume that living there would not be a good idea. But maybe a specific condo property in that district has decent enough security to protect its residents, and the specific area the condo is located in is much safer. Just like you don\u2019t want to assume things about someone based on their ethnic background, it\u2019s a good idea to not assume things about a place you\u2019ve never visited.<\/p>\n

Illusory Correlations<\/h4>\n
\"illusory<\/a>

Photo courtesy of TheAndrasBarta<\/a> via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

People\u2019s brains are wired to make connections, which makes them tend to assign correlations between events and variables that are totally unrelated. This can make them reluctant to move for the most arbitrary reasons. Someone may believe that their current residence is \u201clucky\u201d because they were living there when they were hired by their awesome boss, when in truth it was their own work experience and skills that got them the job. Just as you don\u2019t want to place too much importance on previous investments you made in your current residence, you don\u2019t want to build attachments based on connections that don\u2019t exist. When it\u2019s time to decide whether to stay or to go, you should evaluate different condo properties<\/a> based on their own features.<\/p>\n

Anchoring Effect<\/h4>\n
\"anchoring<\/a>

Photo courtesy of WolfBlur<\/a> via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

The anchoring effect happens when people assign too much importance on the first value they hear when making comparisons. For example, the rent for the first property that you visit may be 30% more expensive than the rent for the second, but that doesn\u2019t mean the second property is cheap; maybe the first property was just overpriced. That\u2019s why it\u2019s a good idea to evaluate more than two options when you make a financial decision. The more alternatives you examine, the better grasp you\u2019ll have of what the fair price on the market actually is.<\/p>\n

Buyer\u2019s Stockholm Syndrome<\/h4>\n
\"buyer<\/a>

Photo courtesy of Gratisography<\/a> via Pexels<\/p><\/div>\n

A lot of people are familiar with buyer\u2019s remorse, which is when you realize you made a purchasing mistake and regret it. This is the opposite: you make an incorrect financial decision, then you tell yourself it\u2019s okay because of some rationalizations. You may discover that the commute to and from work is longer than you thought, but then look at the \u201cbright side\u201d of your having more time to check your social media accounts on the road, or having a handy excuse whenever you\u2019re late for work. This tendency makes people settle for less-than-ideal living accommodations, and may make them stay even after their lease is over. Life\u2019s too short to avoid acknowledging and correcting your mistakes.<\/p>\n

When you decide to change residences and rent a condo<\/a>, you face a life-changing decision. It can be daunting, especially considering the serious financial, emotional, and social consequences of an incorrect choice, a wrong \u201cyes\u201d or a wrong \u201cno.\u201d That\u2019s why you\u2019ve got to hone your decision-making skills. Once you\u2019ve learned how to avoid cognitive biases, you\u2019ll be better prepared to seize opportunities and avoid risky bets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The new year is coming up, and you might be thinking about making some significant life changes: finding a new job, for example, or living someplace new. Maybe you\u2019re a first-time condo renter, maybe this is the third time you\u2019re looking for new residence. Whatever the case may be, choosing a condo for rent is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[855,227,234,515,54,798,800],"class_list":["post-6893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-renting","tag-cognitive-biases","tag-condo-amenities","tag-condo-for-rent","tag-kitchen","tag-renting","tag-resort-style-living","tag-swimming-pool"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6893","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6893"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6893\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15757,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6893\/revisions\/15757"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leasing.dmcihomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}