Why Do We Trust Gossip Over Data (Especially in Real Estate)?
For most of human history, survival meant acting fast not sitting with spreadsheets.
If someone said, “Don’t eat those berries my cousin died after eating them,” you didn’t ask for research papers. You just stopped eating the berries.
That instinct is still driving decisions today, especially in real estate.
It’s easier to believe: “Gurgaon real estate is a house of cards.” than to process: “Gurgaon residential prices rose 84% last year, verified by actual registry data.”
One is dramatic. The other is data.
Our brains pick the dramatic version because it’s simpler. This is called Cognitive Ease.
Then comes Confirmation Bias. Once you believe a narrative like “the market will crash” you start noticing only the things that support that view. Every WhatsApp forward, every LinkedIn post, every dinner table conversation starts to sound like proof.
But look back over the last 20–30 years. Has Gurgaon ever really “crashed”? Or has it gone through growth, corrections, and more growth?
Most people get stuck between two traps:
FOMO – “If I don’t buy now, I’ll miss out.” Regret Aversion – “If I buy now and it falls, I’ll look like a fool.”
So they choose to do nothing. It feels safer.
But here’s the truth:
People aren’t angry because the market is irrational. They’re angry because it moved without their permission.
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Data may not trend as fast as opinions but in real estate, it usually wins the long game.
