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With Our Unique Buy Before You Sell Program You Will Move In To Your Next Home Up To 2 or 3 Months Sooner*

* this can vary based on the average number of days on market in your area

If you are selling only, with no need to buy, we can help you on our Selling Page.
And, if you are buying, you have the MLS at your fingertips.

The current real estate market is making the traditional method of buying your next home (with a home sale contingency) very difficult.

The traditional method of selling a home before buying has been working somewhat satisfactorily for decades.

So, why change?

There have been studies that show that buying, selling, and moving from one home to another have been major contributors to stress, anxiety, and unwelcome compromise.

Most people who are using the old traditional methods have unwittingly become "Contingent HomeBuyers".

First, let's define what is meant by "Contingent HomeBuyer" by examining this very common scenario:

  • Your current home has been on the market for a month or two, and you have diligently kept it clean for showings, and have even looked at some possible homes to purchase for your next home.
  • Finally, you receive an offer from a buyer to purchase your current home, and are now under contract with a specific closing date 35 to 45 days from now.
  • However, many of the homes that you looked at are no longer available, having been already sold while you were waiting for your current home to sell.
  • You now have a 35 to 45 day deadline to find another home to buy, get an offer accepted, get your mortgage loan approved, and try to move in before you need to vacate your current home.
  • If anything is delayed you will need to find temporary housing and move your furnishings into storage.
  • Contractual issues or 3rd party requirements can cause delays during this waiting period.
  • Inspections, inspection resolutions, due diligence items, Title issues, or lender delays can all impact the timeline.
  • So, if there is any possibility that you are not able to complete the closing on your next home until you have closed on your current home...
  • ...You have become a Contingent HomeBuyer.
  • Deals can completely fall apart under these circumstances.

I have good news for anyone who wants to sell their home and buy another, but doesn’t want to put up with showings, contingencies, constantly keeping the house clean, temporary living arrangements, storage unit fees, and the uncertainty of not knowing if their next home will be available when they are ready.

Like my old boss used to say, “don’t bring me problems, bring me solutions”.

 Buy Before You Sell is the solution.

  • Find your ideal next home first, on your schedule, without being rushed by an impending closing date on your current home.
  • Eliminate time-crunch induced pressure and stress.
  • Enjoy the convenience of not having to put up with showings, keeping the house clean and presentable all the time.
  • Forget about needing to declutter and rent a storage unit for all your extra furniture.
  • Only move once. You will not need to find temporary housing just because the closing date on your current home may not match with the closing date on your next home.
  • Decisions regarding what to move vs what to discard become easier.
  • Take care of the minor but necessary repairs after you have moved out, and do it on your schedule.
  • Offer your buyer a clean move-in ready home at a premium price.

 

Schedule a Brief 15 Minute Phone Consultation

 

So, why change?

The old way is not without a certain amount of stress and compromise.

In spite of the fact that it has been functional for so many years, there are many potential issues with the process.

I'll explain here by giving some actual situations that I have encountered while representing clients when I was a "traditional agent".

Which of these examples is similar to your situation?

"I want to move to a different home, but..."

  • Example 1)   I’m afraid that if I put my home up for sale and it gets sold, I won’t find another home in time and I might have to rent for a while.

The elapsed time between putting your home up for sale and actually receiving the proceeds so you can buy can sometimes be up to three months. During those 3 months your dream next home can very well be sold to someone else.

"Buy Before You Sell" gives you time to find that desirable home on your schedule without the pressure.

  • Example 2)   I can’t buy a different house until my current home closes escrow.

"Buy Before You Sell" provides the funds as a no-interest equity advance to make a guaranteed non-contingent offer on your next home before you have actually sold your current home.

  • Example 3)   I have an elderly parent (or someone with a disability) living with me, or kids and/or pets, and we can’t readily clean up and leave for every showing.

You will not need to put up with any of the "showing inconveniences" with "Buy Before You Sell".  You will have already moved out of your old home and into your new home on your timeline.  Once you have moved out we will start preparing your old home for sale so that any showings will take place in a clean unoccupied home, and the prospective buyers can better visualize furniture placement in a clean vacant home.

  • Example 4)   Each house that I want to buy gets sold before I can get my current home sold.

See example (1) above

  • Example 5)   I can’t see how I can keep my current home clean and “showing-ready” while it’s for sale.  I need to live my life, OR..

  • Example 6)   I work from home and can’t stop working to accommodate showings. My dining room table is my office. I would need to put all my papers and files away somewhere and leave the house while some potential buyer is looking through all my stuff and probably won’t buy anyway because the house is a mess.

You will not need to put up with any of the "showing inconveniences" with "Buy Before You Sell".  You will have already moved out of your current home and into your next home on your timeline.  Once you have moved out we will start preparing your old home for sale so that any showings will take place in a clean unoccupied home, and the prospective buyers can better visualize furniture placement in a clean vacant home.

  • Example 7)   My home needs some fixing-up before I can put it on the market, and I just don’t have the time or energy to do it.

"Buy Before You Sell" gives you the opportunity to make any necessary repairs or upgrades AFTER you have moved out of your old home.  Additionally, we have partnerships with contractors who can take on the work so that you don't need to do it on your own.  Some of the proceeds from the equity advance can be set aside for repairs, upgrades, or other preparations.

  • Example 8)   I’ve tried selling it before, but the seller of the house that I want will not accept an offer that is contingent on the sale of my current home, so I just gave up and stopped trying."

The "Buy Before You Sell" equity advance is not just a bridge loan to get to your next home. It is just one part of the overall package which also includes a guaranteed buyout of your current home.  Both aspects combined allow you to make a non-contingent offer for your next home, meaning that the purchase of your next home is not contingent on the sale of your current home.  This strengthens the offer in the Seller's eyes because the offer cannot be rescinded if the current home does not sell.

How does the Buy Before You Sell solution compare cost-wise?

The cost of our Buy Before You Sell is going to be roughly the same as doing it the traditional way, and could be quite a bit less when you factor out the extra costs that you will not need such as storage unit, temporary housing, and other extras that are eliminated by our system.

And, your current mortgage payment will not be included in the Debt to Income (DTI) calculation for your next home.

There are other intangibles to consider:

  • What is the value to you to be able to move in to your next home 3 months sooner than doing it the old way?
  • What is the value to you for using a system that is practically stress-free?

 

Schedule a no-obligation meeting, either in-person or by phone to discuss how this can help your situation.

Schedule a Brief 15 Minute Phone Consultation

 

Let's Compare The Typical Step-by-Step Process For Each Method:

Traditional Sell Before You Buy

(14 major steps)

Month 1 Day 1..

  • Rent a temporary storage unit for excess furniture and other “clutter” items.
  • Work with your Realtor to prepare your current home for sale including cleaning, repairs, paint, flooring, etc.
  • List the home for sale keeping it clean and “showing ready” at all times.
  • Leave the home for every showing and Open House.

Month 1 Day 1 until Month 3 Day 1

From Listing to Under Contract (8-9 weeks)

  • Each home had an open house every weekend for 8 or 9 weeks.
  • The owners had to keep it clean and presentable for showings, as well as leaving the house each time for those 8 or 9 weeks.
  • During those 8 or 9 weeks they may have received, accepted, dropped the price, and had the contract cancelled a few times.
  • Receive offers for current home
  • Accept offer and go under contract to sell current home

Month 3 Day 1

Current Home Under Contract. Now Must Find Next Home.

  • Start looking for next home with your Realtor
  • Find possible next home and make contingent offer for it
    • *** note that sellers do not like contingent offers and will probably demand that a) either contingency be removed, or b) backup offer from some other buyer could be moved into primary position ***
    • **** also note that sellers will have the advantage in any negotiation if offer has contingent sale clause. This would include Inspection Objection, Title Objection, and contract dates ****
  • Assuming that offer accepted for next home, work through Inspections and contract dates.

Month 3 Day 1

Under Contract on Current Home

The real work begins.

From this point onwards, it will take anywhere from 35 to 45 days (5-6+ weeks) until the actual Closing.

  • Seller’s Agent will open an Escrow account with a Title Company.
  • Seller will provide HOA documentation to Buyer.
  • Seller will provide Due Diligence documents to Buyer.
  • The Buyers will provide the contract details to their lender.
  • The Buyers will secure a property insurance binder.
  • The Buyer will arrange for multiple inspections which include property, roof, radon, sewer, mold, environmental, and any other inspection that may be appropriate.
  • The Buyer’s Agent will provide Inspection Objection reports to Seller’s Agent detailing any deficiencies that Buyers wish to have remediated.
  • Seller’s Agent will discuss reports with Sellers.
  • If Sellers agree to remediate anything, Seller’s Agent will provide Inspection Resolution to Buyers via Buyer’s Agent.
  • Seller’s Agent and Buyer’s Agent will negotiate Inspection Resolution items based on client instructions. This could encompass several iterations.
  • Buyer’s Lender will order Property Appraisal.
  • Title Company will provide Title Search results to Buyer.
  • Appraiser will provide appraisal results to Buyer.
  • Buyer may provide written objection if any of the following are not satisfactory:
    • HOA documents
    • Due Diligence documents
    • Title Search results
    • Appraisal
    • Inspection Resolution
  • Buyer’s Agent and Seller’s Agent will negotiate any objections that have been timely submitted at client direction.  Contract can be terminated if agreement by both Buyer and Seller is not reached.

Month 4 Day 15

Finally the Buyers received a “Clear to Close“ from their lender, and a closing date was scheduled.

But now you need to move out

  • This Closing Date, 4, 5, or 6 months after the home was initially listed for sale, is the date that the media interprets as a home sale.
  • It’s true, but it doesn’t reflect the processes that took place to get to that date.
  • We haven’t even discussed when or how you move into your next home.
  • Were you able to find a home, get it under contract, and get a reasonable closing date that would match the closing date on the home you’re selling?  If not, you will need to make some alternative short-term living arrangements.
  • Move out of current home. Might need to arrange for storage until next home closes escrow. You might be homeless for a while if Closing dates do not align, so be sure to have temporary housing arrangements in place.

Month 4 Day 21

Close on Current Home

  • Close of Escrow of what was once your current home.
  • At this point the Buyers are the new owners.
  • You have moved out, hopefully your next home is ready.
    • But if not you should have arranged for temporary living space.
    • Your furniture and furnishings are in storage somewhere.
  • Were you able to find a home, get it under contract, and get a reasonable closing date that would match the closing date on the home you’re selling?  If not, you will need to make some alternative short-term living arrangements.

Read between the lines. What else was happening?

  • Even though you listed your home for sale in back in Month 1, what led up to it?
  • Did you paint, fix things, look at Zillow a few times, go out looking for your next home?  What did you do?
  • What did you do during open houses and showings?  Did you frantically clean, put things away, rented a storage unit for excess furnishings, go out looking for your next home (because that first one got sold in the meantime)?
  • How many times did you go into panic mode because things weren’t happening fast enough?
  • Did your real estate agent keep you fully informed?
  • Is the final closing date aligned with the closing date on your next home?  Or will you need to make some temporary living arrangements and move twice?
  • Unfortunately, when people initially find their potential dream home they don’t realize that it may not be available by the time that they are able to sell their current home.
    • And when their home finally sells, they have a relatively short timeframe in which to find something comparable.
    • So they just settle for whatever’s available at that point in time.
  •  

Next time

If this sounds complex or stressful or terribly inconvenient, may I make a suggestion that could be very helpful?

The Buy Before You Sell process, as described in that column on the right, makes it so much easier and stress-free.

Take a good careful look at it. It’s really the new wave of buying and selling real estate.

Buy Before You Sell  →→→

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Our Buy Before Sell System

(10 major steps but you are in your next home up to 3 months sooner)

Month 1 Day 1

  • Submit an application with our “Buy Before You Sell” partner to qualify your current home, and receive a guaranteed offer certificate.
  • The guaranteed offer certificate will be the proof that you are a non-contingent homebuyer, that is, you do not need to sell your current home before buying your next home.
  • The certification will also show your next home lender that your current mortgage payment will be excluded from the Debt To Income ratio.

Month 1 Day 7

  • Get pre-approved for the financing of your next home.

Month 1 Day 10

  • Work with us as your Realtor to find your next home on your schedule.
  • This could take anywhere from 1 day to 2 weeks, but to keep it simple let’s assume 1 week.

Month 1 Day 17

  • Submit a non-contingent offer to purchase your ideal next home.
  • A non-contingent offer generally makes your offer more attractive than the others in a multiple offer situation.

Month 1 Day 20

  • Offer is accepted by the seller of your next home.
  • Copy of fully executed sales contract for next property is delivered to “Buy Before You Sell” partner
  • Due Diligence starts.  Details available at https://sellsmartusa.com/best-time-of-the-year-to-bbys-your-home
  • Typically takes anywhere from 35 to 45 days until Closing.

Month 3 Day 1 – Close Escrow and Move Into Your Next Home

Congratulations…

You have moved into your next home

  • You only have one monthly mortgage payment because the “Buy Before You Sell” partner is covering the payment on your previous home.
  • You and your Realtor (me) will now work to get your old home ready for sale 
  • First “Happy Dance”, completely optional, but normal.

Month 3 Day 5 – Get Your Old Home Ready For Sale

  • Work with my team to prepare your old home for sale including cleaning, repairs, paint, flooring, and staging.
  • We will list your old home for sale as vacant and “move-in ready” with professional photography and videography.
  • You will not need to re-arrange your schedule for showings because you have already moved into your new home.

Month 3 Day 15 – Showtime

  • We will present your home to the market with Open Houses, Showings, YouTube, and professional presentations not only of the home but also of all neighborhood assets and amenities.
  • We will emphasize that the home is freshly updated, vacant, and move-in ready.

Month 4 Day 15 – Start Receiving and Qualifying Offers

  • Your old home could start generating offers within 2 weeks of being listed for sale not only because of the preparation that we had done prior to listing, but also because it is immediately available.
  • We will receive purchase offers on your old home and together we will qualify the offers and choose the best ones for further negotiation and consideration.
  • We will then work through the due diligence and inspection period which could take anywhere from 35 to 45 days.

Month 6 Day 1 – Close Escrow on Old Home

You have already been in your new home for 3 months.

  • You will close escrow on your old home.
  • You will receive the funds from the sale of your old home, less the funds advanced by the “Buy Before You Sell” partner, which was advanced to you with NO INTEREST.
  • Smile. You did it.
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Schedule a no-obligation meeting, either in-person or by phone to discuss how this can help your situation.

Schedule a Brief 15 Minute Phone Consultation

 

Or fill out this short contact form if you have any general questions or requests about the service.

We will try our best to respond back to you within 24 hours, but usually much sooner.

Phone (call or text)

720.277.9001

Jerry Downer