Real Estate Industry Secrets to Buying & Selling Your Home Quickly

Thinking about buying and selling a home at the same time can feel like a tall order. You already know how much work goes into handling one real estate transaction, and you wonder about whether or not you could handle multiple deals at the same time. While it does take more work and extra attention to detail, it’s not an impossible task. Here are some tips to help you move forward quickly and with greater success.

This doesn’t mean that everything will play out exactly as you hope, but it’s impossible to reach your goals if you don’t know what they are. Think about when you would like to have both deals completed and which transaction you should attempt to complete first. There are benefits and drawbacks to either option. If you choose to buy a new home before you sell your current home, you won’t experience any sort of gap in your living situation. However, there’s a chance that you have to carry two mortgages at one time. You’ll eliminate this possibility if you sell first, but you may have to find a temporary living situation if you can’t immediately move from your current home into a new home.

If you’re able to break the process of buying and selling a home at the same time down into smaller and more manageable components, your goals will feel more attainable. If you decide to sell first, the first step is to prepare your home to sell. This includes time spent staging your home, performing any necessary upgrades, and thinking about your asking price. Once your home is ready to go on the market, you can begin shopping for new properties while your agent helps you market your current home.

After your current home goes under contract, you can feel greater confidence about your ability to make an offer on the new house. You can also express your desire to close quickly when you make an offer on a home that you like. The process will look differently if you choose to buy a new home first, but the idea of creating benchmarks or goals along the way to keep you on track is helpful regardless of what transaction you choose to handle first.

It’s never too early to reach out to a lender to discuss how the process of buying and selling a home at the same time will impact you financially. If you choose to purchase a new home before you sell your current home, your lender will want to determine how long you can carry both mortgage payments before it becomes a significant financial burden for you. The goal is to sell quickly, but you can’t guarantee that a buyer will come along immediately after you put your home on the market. As with any home purchase, your lender will give you a preapproval letter detailing the type and amount of loan you can qualify for.

You’ll also need to have enough cash on hand to fund your down payment and your closing costs. The amount of each expense can vary based on the nuances of your transaction. Most people find that their down payment costs at least three percent of the total value of the home, with closing costs ranging from 2-6% of the home’s final sales price. You’ll be responsible for closing costs as a seller as well, but you don’t have to pay out of pocket. The seller’s closing costs are taken out of the proceeds that you make from selling your home. If you’re concerned about having enough cash on hand as you wait for your current home to sell, there are additional financing options (including Bridge loans) that you can pursue.

You can’t control how quickly your current home sells as easily as you can control the speed at which you buy a new home. Two of the elements that will help your home sell more quickly are an effective marketing plan and intentional attention to superior home staging. Your real estate agent can give insight into both of these topics. A strong marketing plan requires using a variety of digital elements while also not neglecting traditional marketing methods like putting up a “for sale” sign in your yard. Some people will hire a professional home stager to help them prepare their home to sell, but there are also several home staging tips you can put into practice on your own. At a bare minimum, you’ll want to make sure you depersonalize your home. It’s also important to fully clean and sanitize each space inside.

Ideally, you’ll work with the same Hilton Head real estate agent on both transactions. This will save you time, energy, and stress throughout the process since your agent will understand the unique situation that you’re in. They will be able to advise you on how to best proceed while taking both deals into account. You always want to take time to research different real estate agents, but it’s especially important when you’re thinking about handling multiple transactions simultaneously. Make sure you ask the agent about their experience with managing multiple deals at the same time.

Thomas Kersey has experience handling several transactions at the same time. He’s been in the real estate industry for seven years, and he’s accomplished more during a short time than many agents will in their entire careers. He’s built a reputation for himself based on outstanding customer service, persistence, and determination. He would love to help you move forward with your upcoming sale and/or purchase. Reach out to Thomas when you’re ready to get the process started.