Here’s how to have a successful concurrent sale in our real estate market.
Lately, a lot of clients have been wondering about doing concurrent sales—in other words, buying a new home while simultaneously selling the old one. However, many people get lost in the logistics; it means juggling two huge sales, after all. On top of this, today’s market is making things especially tricky, so it’s important to be well-prepared before trying to do a concurrent sale. Here are the five steps we usually take when helping clients buy and sell simultaneously:
1. Getting pre-approved. We want to make sure the client is approved to buy a home without first selling their current property. If the pre-approval process goes through, this is the best situation you can be in—however, it’s rare that someone is able to do this. If you get pre-approved, though, you’ll be able to write offers before even having to list your property.
2. Bridge loan. If the client can’t get pre-approved in the previous situation, we can try doing a bridge loan. In this situation, you use the equity in your current home as a down payment on your new home. This can also be tricky, however, as you must be approved for both the bridge loan and also to buy a home without first selling. This is perfect for people who can take out a new loan but don’t have the cash for a down payment.
3. Finding somewhere to live in between. Another option to think about is living somewhere else temporarily if you sell before finding a new home. If you can, it will take a lot of pressure off of you when it comes to the timing situation. It’ll also remove the contingency that says your sale or purchase depends on you finding another home or selling your current one.
4. Short-term rental. If you can’t find a friend or family member to move in with temporarily, short-term rentals are always an option. This will allow you to sell your home and take your time when finding a new one.
5. Buy and sell traditionally. If no other options work for your situation, you may just have to do a contingent sale that says you won’t sell until you find a new home and vice versa. However, this can be a very difficult and stressful situation with today’s incredibly low inventory. It’s just hard to buy or sell a home with that contingency.
If you have any questions or are thinking about making a concurrent sale in the future, feel free to reach out to me. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
