The Burrow
Jan 30, 2026
Many homeowners might expect to feel relieved once they finally find a place to call their own, while the thought of dealing with expensive maintenance issues could cause some people anxiety. From faulty appliances and electrical problems to mould, damp, and condensation, there are plenty of factors that can affect your home unexpectedly.
The home and contents insurance comparison experts at Compare the Market Australia have researched 38 countries around the world to determine which experience the most anxiety when it comes to dealing with home maintenance issues. By analysing online search volume for various topics, we’ve assigned each country a score from 0 to 100 on our Home Anxiety Index to show which regions are most concerned about different factors that can impact their homes.
To find out which countries faced the most home anxieties, we researched how many queries were made for everyday household issues per 100k residents. For example, some of the search terms used were roof leak, electrical issues, mould, damp, pests, plumbing leaks and structural issues. The more the population searched for household maintenance problems, the higher they ranked on our list.
With a total score of 55.73 out of 100, the United Kingdom is officially the country with the most home anxiety searches. Condensation, electrical issues, and heating failure were the most searched issues in the country, with a maximum score of 100 for these topics. Surprisingly, the United Kingdom was also among the ten most likely countries to look up air conditioning issues, even though air conditioning is a rarity in British homes.
Closely trailing the United Kingdom in second place is the Netherlands, with a final index score of 51.78 out of 100. Search terms for pests and water pressure were the most common issues for Dutch homeowners, as both topics received a maximum score of 100 for search volume last year. In comparison, electrical issues are the least common maintenance problem, with a score of only 2.56 out of 100.
Australians seem to experience their fair share of home anxiety, with a final index score of 49.55 out of 100. Similar to the Netherlands, electrical issues had the fewest searches in Australia in the past year, with a score of only 11.27 out of 100. Searches for smoke alarm problems, roof leaks, and gas safety, all received the maximum score of 100 for search volume, leading to a three-way tie as the most commonly searched home maintenance issues.
Ireland’s final home anxiety score was 43.62 out of 100 and ranked fourth in our index. They had a relatively even spread of interest across all the maintenance issues explored. Electrical issues were the most significant source of concern, with a search volume score of 83.65 out of 100, followed by water pressure and heating maintenance search concerns. Meanwhile, draughts and noise searches received the least interest, with a score of only 13.94 out of 100, followed by gas issues with a score of 15.62 out of 100.
The US rounds out our top five with an overall score of 42.24 out of 100 in our index. The biggest concern in the country was air conditioning issues, with the maximum score of 100 for search volume in the last year. The number of searches per 100k residents that searched for this was more than triple the amount of search volume than any other country in our index. The US also had a high search volume for pests and appliance repairs, such as washing machine or dryer issues. In comparison, mould and damp didn’t seem to be as concerning to American homeowners, with a score of only 5.67 out of 100.
Now that we’ve listed the countries with the most home anxiety, which areas around the world are the least fussed about household issues? Here are the countries that earned the lowest scores on our index.
With low search rates across the board, Colombia ranks as the least concerned country in the world about home maintenance issues. Many common problems, such as air conditioning, condensation, damp and mould, failed to break a score of one out of 100 in the last year. The home maintenance issue with the most search traffic in Colombia was gas safety, which received a score of 21.68 out of 100. These low search volume results in Colombia scoring the lowest in our index with only 3.91 out of 100 overall.
Costa Rica was only one point behind Colombia on our index and was ranked second last, with a score of 4.05 out of 100. The biggest issue facing Costa Rican homes, according to search volume, is pest control, with a score of 12.94 out of 100 for the topic last year. On the other hand, there was low search volume for cold homes, mould or damp, and electrical problems.
Moving north to Mexico, we have the country with the third-lowest household anxiety score in our index. Searches for pests were the highest home maintenance issue there (scoring 17.47 out of 100), followed closely by plumbing problems (scoring 17.25 out of 100). Similar to Colombia and Costa Rica, which both have warm climates, Mexico shows very low search interest in issues like condensation, cold homes, and mould or damp. With an overall score of 4.89 out of 100, Mexico ranks among the countries least likely to experience home maintenance concerns.
In South Korea the highest searched volume was for plumbing issues (scoring 24.35 out of 100) and pest control (scoring 18.30 out of 100), it scored only 5.64 out of 100 overall in our index. Reflecting its low search volume for most other common maintenance worries, including a low search volume for home structural and household appliance issues.
Finally, Hungary finished in the bottom five countries for the Home Maintenance Anxiety Index, with an overall score of 5.88 out of 100. Searches for cold homes and insulation were the country’s highest concern, with a search volume score of 37.80 out of 100. In comparison, Hungarians had a very low search volume for smoke alarms and home structural issues.
It’s completely natural to worry about the condition of your home and want to avoid unexpected issues. Executive General Manager of General Insurance, Adrian Taylor, said:
“Home maintenance issues can be stressful and costly, no matter what the issues are, which is why having a great home and contents insurance policy can provide peace of mind. While insurance won’t prevent problems like leaks, electrical faults, or pest infestations, it can help cover unexpected damage and repairs caused by insured events, such as storms or fires. Comparing your policy regularly ensures you’re protected against the risks most relevant to your home and location.”
Before purchasing any policy, it’s important to first check the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) so that you fully understand your insurance, including any restrictions, limits or exclusions.
The Home Maintenance Anxiety Index measures levels of concern around common home maintenance and household safety issues by analysing Google search behaviour across OECD countries.
The campaign consists of two complementary outputs:
Topic-specific indexes, ranking countries for individual home anxiety issues.
A combined Most Anxious Countries Index, ranking countries based on overall search intensity across all home anxiety topics.
Data sources
Google search volume data was collected using DataForSEO, based on defined keyword sets for 15 home anxiety topics. Population data was sourced from World Population Review to allow per-capita comparisons.
Topic-specific indexes:
Most Anxious Countries Index (combined index)
To create a fair overall ranking across all topics:
This approach ensures no single topic disproportionately influences the overall ranking and allows meaningful comparison across countries with different concern profiles.
Indexing rules
Higher scores indicate higher relative levels of home-related anxiety. All topics are equally weighted. Topic-level and combined indexes are designed to be analysed independently or together.
Country selection
Countries included in the Home Maintenance Anxiety Index were selected from OECD member states, based on data availability, consistency of population statistics, and campaign relevance. The final selection reflects markets best suited for comparative analysis and PR storytelling.
All data is accurate as of 15/12/2025 and is based on publicly available sources. Search behaviour reflects consumer interest and concern but may not capture every real-world experience.