So you’re tired of where you live, or your family is growing, or maybe the kids have all moved out and you need to downsize… whatever the case may be you’ve decided that you want to sell your home and buy a new one. You may have thought “well, if I sell my home first where would I live while I’m looking to buy? I’ll be displaced!” or “what if I find my dream home but I haven’t even put my house on the market yet? I don’t want to miss out on the chance to own my dream home!” If this is you, read on because YES you can simultaneously sell and buy a new home and I am going to tell you how!
Step 1. Interview Realtors. Find one who specializes in both selling and buying! You want to make sure your Realtor has a top notch marketing plan in place (compare each agents plan), will take professional photos (iPhone photos are NOT professional), inquire how they plan to sell your home (again compare), will hold open houses for you and works for a Real Estate Company with a good reputation. After the interview process is over- pick your favorite and get to work!
Step 2. Interview local lenders (ask your Realtor for referrals). Find out what type of mortgage (loan) you may be eligible for and what price point you will be comfortable with once your home sells and go ahead and get pre-approved.
Step 3. Once your home has been successfully put on the market, begin your home search. Have your Realtor e-mail you homes that match your criteria (# of bedrooms, bathrooms, square feet, acreage, 1 or 2 stories, and any other requirements important to you). Pick out 3-7 that you really like and have your Realtor schedule showings. Showings are now complete and you have found “the one!” Now what?
Step 4. Have your agent make an offer with a contingency of your home selling. Keep in mind, not every seller is going to agree to an offer like this. Sellers prefer a quick, clean and easy close and sometimes do not want to take the risk of accepting an offer with a “sale contingency.” Some markets won’t even allow for those type of contingencies! But, you don’t know unless you ask.
Now, ideally you’d want the home you are selling under contract before making an offer. Homes come on the market all the time, and I only recommend making an offer with a sale contingency only if you are in love with a house and HIGHLY motivated to sell your own home (in other words, you’re willing to sell it for less than true market value).
Step 5. The home you are selling is under contract and so is the one you are buying. Now what? Pretty much everything can be done simultaneously so that you can sell your home and move right in to your new one in a matter of a couple days. Of course this would be a perfect world scenario and is VERY possible so long as there aren’t any title issues or lender hiccups on both your buyer and seller side! Your other option is to do a pre-closing occupancy agreement. Where you move into the home and pay “rent” to the seller before closing. Not every seller will agree to this type of setup, but it is an option to present if closings get delayed for any reason.
I hope this has helped those of you interested in selling and buying simultaneously.