Selling + Buying

The approach you take when it comes to selling your current home + buying a new one during the same time frame comes down to your flexibility in regards to finances + convenience, knowing the options for your specific situation, and deciding which approach makes sense for you. Here are some common options:

𝗕𝗨𝗬 𝗕𝗘𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗟 | If you’re able to carry the mortgage on your current home + qualify for a new mortgage, and have funds available for the down payment on your new home without needing to utilize proceeds from your sale, this option offers the most convenience. You can shop without being on a time frame, then list your current home as soon as you get UC so you don’t have an overlap in mortgage payments or later after you move into your new place.

𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗟, 𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗡 𝗕𝗨𝗬 | If you want to use proceeds from your sale towards the down payment on your new home or want to maximize purchasing power by qualifying for one mortgage, this option offers the most financial flexibility, but puts pressure on you to find a new home. You could request a post-occupancy agreement to give yourself an extra couple months to house-hunt, or have a short-term plan to stay somewhere else while you’re in between homes.

𝗠𝗔𝗞𝗘 𝗔𝗡 𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗘𝗥 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗢𝗡 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗘 𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚 | This sounds like a great idea, but it’s very difficult to get a contingent offer accepted in the current market if the house you want is a new competitive first-weekend listing. There are various degrees of this contingency:
•Your house isn’t even on the market and still needs to be listed
•Your house is listed but not UC
•Your house is UC but isn’t past inspection
•Your house is UC and closer to closing.
The further you are in this sequence, the stronger your contingent offer will be…however a contingency is sometimes a deal-breaker for sellers looking for a quick close or a high degree of certainty, and most sellers will likely want a significantly higher offer price and/or aggressive contract terms to take on the risk of a contingency due to the domino effect it creates in everything going right in the multiple transactions.