In an earlier blog, we looked at the dilemma that most homeowners encounter when they decide to move: Should you Buy or Sell First?

Today I want to take it one step further and talk about some of the important questions you need to ask yourself when deciding whether to buy or sell first.


Article By: Neil O’Donnell

 

In an earlier blog, we looked at the dilemma that most homeowners encounter when they decide to move: Should you Buy or Sell First?

Today I want to take it one step further and talk about some of the important questions you need to ask yourself when deciding whether to buy or sell first:

  1. Where will you live?  If you sell your house or condo first and can’t find your new dream house? Get a short-term rental? Move back in with mom and dad? Stay in a hotel?
  2. What will you do with your stuff if you don’t close on your sale and your new purchase on the same day? There are lots of storage options out there, but they cost time and money. Make sure to factor it into your budget.
  3. Where will you put your money? If you close on the sale of your house or condo before the purchase of your new home, all the equity you have in your existing home will need to find a home too. Don’t make the mistake of gambling it for a quick buck – a nice, safe place where you’re guaranteed NOT to lose money is much better than buying Facebook stock.
  4. Will you encounter any mortgage penalties? Check the current terms of your mortgage–most mortgages can be ported, meaning that the outstanding balance can be brought with you to your new property and any additional mortgage funds needed can be added to it at the current interest rate. But be aware of any time limits to port your mortgage. Many mortgages are only portable for 90 days, so if you don’t close on your new property within 90 days of selling your old home, you may encounter some stiff penalties.
  5. What is your worst case scenario? If you buy a home first and your current house or condo doesn’t sell, what will happen? Can you afford to carry both properties? To lose the deposit on your new place and possibly get sued if you can’t close? How much flexibility do you have with the price of your current property (everything sells for the right price)? Will your lender let you rent out your current home and still close on the new one if you really can’t sell it? Worst case scenarios are never any fun to deal with, but it’s better to be prepared than not.
  6. How much uncertainty can you emotionally handle?  Long before I started working in real estate, I bought before selling. I would have traded the stress and uncertainty of those 30 days for just about anything.
  7. What is happening in the markets you are buying and selling in? There are different real estate micro-markets happening in every community: the condo market is acting differently than the house market which is acting differently than the new construction market, and these factors vary greatly depending on the neighbourhood. If you’re moving from a less hot market to a hotter real estate market, you probably want to sell first. If you’re moving from a red-hot market to a more stagnant market, then buying first might make more sense. Of course, real estate markets change over time and it’s impossible to predict what will happen. In an ideal world, we’d all sell in a hot market and buy in a lower market, but rarely does it ever play out that way.

If you’re thinking of buying and selling, we’d be happy to talk through your options and help you decide if you should buy or sell first! Contact us at [email protected] We’ll buy the beer (or coffee!)

 


For a more in-depth discussion on these topics, go to: Request a FREE Copy of our latest book, “The Value-Driven Approach to Sell Real Estate: How to protect yourself from Real Estate Greed and bank extra profit by thinking like the great Warren Buffett.”

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