For generations, home ownership has been a big part of the American dream. But new research shows the boost of happiness that comes with a home purchase doesn’t last as long as people expect.

Whether it’s a bigger yard, more space or just a place to call your own, the goal of home ownership is often the same: an investment in happiness. Now, a group of researchers in Switzerland has found that happiness can be fleeting.

To establish that, they asked more than 800 future homeowners in Germany to rate their current and expected happiness in five years on a 10-point scale. The results showed home ownership does, in fact, increase happiness — but not as much as the future owners expected.

Happiness with home ownership was also influenced by personality type. Those who are more status oriented, particularly about money and success, overestimated the added life satisfaction that comes with home ownership. On the other hand, people who put more emphasis on family and friends experienced no such disconnect.

So why are some people not very good at predicting what makes them happy? The researchers say it’s a combination of not listening to ourselves as well as the influence of outside forces. People don’t always follow their own true preferences when making decisions. Instead, they can be affected by distorted beliefs about their preferences. That, the researchers noted, can make people more susceptible to influences such as advertising or opinionated relatives.

To combat that, the researchers suggest thinking harder about what truly makes you happy. If you’re looking at home ownership as a symbol of status and success, you’re more likely to end up underwhelmed.