The survey found that nearly a third estimated they had spent between £500 and £2,000 more than they had planned, and one in seven said that they had spent around £20,000.
James Duffell, head of PR at Virgin One, said: "Any homeowner will agree that it is par for the course to have to fork out on extra costs on a new property. Setting a budget and sticking to it is a sensible plan, but it is usually an unrealistic one. It is understandable for house hunters in the excitement of finding somewhere they really like, to underestimate costly repairs, or tell themselves they can live with the orange wallpaper, but only two months later realise they cannot."
