Deciding which comes first, the purchase or the sale, is the greatest dilemma facing home owners planning to move. If you choose to buy first, make sure the offer to purchase is conditional on selling your current home. That way, if you sell your house, both transactions proceed and if you don't sell it, you're not stuck with two houses. Selling first does have several advantages, though. You'll know exactly how much money you'll be netting out of the sale of your home, you'll have a closing date to work with and you'll have extra leverage when making an offer to purchase your next home. Remember, selling first allows you to negotiate the purchase more aggressively, since unconditional offers carry a lot more weight with sellers. And there's always a chance that you'll be "bumped" on a conditional offer which means a second buyer could come along with a firm offer and force you to firm up or let the property go. |
