One of the most straightforward approaches to buying and selling a home is selling your home before you buy, as you essentially have two transactions, one positive and one negative, in the balance. All in all, this method is more financially practical, as you’ll be able to know exactly what your budget is for your new home, including all of the repairs, fees, and preparations.
Unless you are comfortable owning multiple properties at once, it’s highly recommended that you do not put yourself in a position where you have to pay two mortgages at once. To make sure you don’t own two homes at once during the process, here are a few steps that you can follow.
Use a Top Real Estate Agent
You’ll want to make sure that you use a top real estate agent to successfully market your home and sell it if you are going the traditional route. A top agent can sell a home much faster than the average Joe could. You’ll be on your way to the next chapter of your life much faster with someone experienced on your team.
Use a Program Like HelloPad
If you go through a program like the one at HelloPad, you’ll be able to get a guaranteed offer on your home, which will allow you to make a much stronger offer on the home that you are looking at. Plus, you’ll be able to move on your own schedule without waiting around for the closing process.
Draw Up a Contingency Portion of Your Contract
If you are working with a real estate agent, you might want to consider having your real estate agent write into your buying contract that the offer you are making is contingent on you selling your home. This means that you won’t purchase another property until the home you currently own sells. In doing so, you’ll have protection from worrying about multiple mortgage payments at once, though it will weaken your buying offer.
Pros of Selling Your Home Before Buying
Buy With a Budget
When you sell your home before you buy another, you have a budget to buy with.
Simple Financing
Financing becomes a lot simple when you buy after selling, as you’ll be able to use the cash from you recent sale as a hefty down payment on your new home. Then, you can borrow any other money that you need, same as you likely did for your first mortgage.
Not As Much Pressure
You can take the time when selling your home, as you won’t have to deal with the pressure of time. if you buy a home first, you’ll have the pressure of paying multiple mortgages at one time, which can be stressful for many.
Market Shift Benefits
If you wait too long to sell your home, you might have to deal with dropping prices. If you time it right, however, you can strike while the market is on fire.
Overall, it’s a smart decision to sell your home before you buy. Make sure that you and your family have somewhere temporary to stay during this time in limbo, otherwise it could be even more stressful.