Are Expensive Decisions Impulsive? Young Adults Impulsive Housing and Real Estate Buying Behaviour in Pakistan

Abstract

In this study the factors determining young adults’ impulsive buying behaviour of housing and real estate in Rawalpindi and Islamabad are studied; the factors studied are website quality, social media impact and materialism. Top line research will utilise a quantitative approach with a structured questionnaire distributed to some 350 respondents aged between 18 and 35. Consequently, it was found that, real estate websites with high quality characteristics, for instance the ability to reduce navigation difficulty, provide interactive tools, and exhibit visually appealing layouts, significantly improve impulsive decision making by providing a seamless and interesting user experience. As a key driver, materialism is shown to be related to the extent to which individuals have stronger preferences for properties that are marketed with exclusivity, luxury, and with social prestige. Curated advertisements, influencer endorsements and aspirational content on Instagram and Facebook make impulsive behaviour manifest via social media platforms with psychological phenomena like fear of missing out (FOMO). Second, the paper fills a gap in previous studies, which have focused mainly on low cost consumer goods, by considering the transactions involving high value products. Practical implications highlight the need for real estate marketers to optimize digital platforms, target materialistic values in their campaigns, and leverage social media’s pervasive influence. The findings also emphasize ethical considerations in promoting impulsive decisions in high-stakes markets. Limitations include the study's demographic and geographic focus, suggesting the need for future research to adopt a cross-cultural and longitudinal approach. Overall, the study provides actionable insights for industry stakeholders and contributes to a nuanced understanding of consumer behaviour in the real estate sector.