Buy First or Sell First?

Sell First, Then Buy? Or Buy First Then Sell?

Over the course of my many years of selling real estate, I have had to deal with this question from many clients. Today, I would like to address this question in detail.

Let’s say you own a home and want to buy a new property, but find you need the money from the sale of your current house to finance the purchase of this new property. Ideally, you would list your property first and your selling agent would then inform potential buyers via the MLS, that the home is for sale, BUT that it is “subject to” the seller (you) finding suitable housing. In a nutshell, this means that if the seller (you) has placed your property under contract (pending sale), but have not found a new property to buy within an allotted time, this “subject to” clause will provide the seller (you) with some insurance from having no place to go, or worse – moving in with the in-laws!!!

Now, let’s examine another scenario. What happens if you list your property for sale but have not sold it, and meanwhile, you have found the “perfect” new house to move into? Can you buy it? The answer is both yes and no. You can make an offer “subject to” your selling your own home first. Again, there would be some time constraint, say 30-60 days in which you would have to sell your property. If you do not sell your property or have it under contract (pending sale), the offer on your new “perfect” house would expire.

While these types of contingent offers are possible, I have found that sellers (and their listing agents) are not impressed with any offer contingent upon the buyer selling their property first. If the seller does accept the offer, their listing agent will probably continue to show the property in hopes of receiving another offer. No listing agent wants to tie up a seller’s property for a period of time only to have the deal fall through because the buyer could not sell his or her property. I would strongly advise you to work with a capable, experienced Realtor who can assist in expediting the sale of your property prior to you purchasing…