Buying a home is complicated enough as it is without the need to sell one at the same time. The process of selling and buying a house can be a tricky one, as the property chain can trip you up when it comes to finding your dream home. Mastering the art of buying a home while selling a home involves a lot of plate-spinning and high-quality planning. Strapped for time and looking for the secrets to success? Check out our guide below!

Is it best to sell my house before buying another?

Selling your home can put you in a much better position when it comes to buying your new home. Why? Because you know you have the money in the bank to finance a new home, and your seller won’t have to wait for you to sell before you can buy. This results in a much quicker, more confident process!

At the same time, selling your home before buying does have an element of risk. If you don’t have a home ready to buy after you sell, you could be forced to spend money renting in the meantime. So if you are going to sell, make sure your mortgage is pre-approved, and you have a solid idea about the property you want to buy. In other words, you should be confident that your new home is as good as yours!

Checklist for buying and selling a house

• Get your home valued
• Sort out your finances
• Use a mortgage broker
• Put your home up for sale while looking for a new one
• Be patient!
• Get a completion date
• Make a plan for moving your belongings

1. Get your home valued

Unless you want your home to sell for peanuts, you can’t start selling until you know how much it’s worth! You can go online for a free property valuation, but your best bet is to get in touch with a handful of property valuators.

A property agent is armed with specialist knowledge about how different elements of your home impact the price, so be honest and be sure to mention any recent improvements that have been done. By getting a few different estimates of the money you should be getting for your house, you can arrive at the most accurate figure.

2. Sort out your finances

This is arguably the biggest part of the process - working out the cost of buying and selling a house! Knowing how you will pay for your home makes the process much smoother. With the knowledge of how much your home will sell for, how much can you afford to spend on your next property? You should aim to exchange with the buyer of your property shortly before you put down the deposit on your new home - this way you can immediately use the cash for your new property!

3. Use a mortgage broker

If you find yourself getting lost trying to calculate the costs of your home, bring in a professional to help you crunch the numbers. Don’t know how a mortgage works when buying and selling a house? Your mortgage broker will be able to advise you on how to transfer your existing mortgage to your new property. Usually, this will involve using the sale of your house to repay the old mortgage loan, and taking out a fresh loan on your new home!

4. Put your home for sale while looking for a new one

Are finances in order? Now you can put your home on the market! Get in touch with an estate agent who can put your home up for sale in no time. In the meantime, start looking for your new dream home. Think about cost, location, and the needs of your family. Go to plenty of property viewings to get a good idea of what’s out there, and make an offer when you visit a property that feels right!

Your new home awaits if you plan your sale and purchase correctly.

5. Be patient!

In a dream world, you’d be able to go to a shop with your money and instantly buy the home you wanted. But in reality, buying a home can take weeks or even months - especially if you are buying in a property chain. A property chain occurs when a home-buyer needs to wait for the seller to buy their new home before they can move in. If something falls through in a property chain, it could lead to some painful delays!

Whatever happens, stay cool and don’t rush into a decision that doesn’t make financial sense. Itching to get started with a new home? You can find out how long it takes to buy a home using our home-buying timeline!

6. Get a completion date

One of the best ways to ensure you keep on top of everything is to agree on a completion date. Wondering what a completion date is? This is the agreed date when payments are transferred, and the seller leaves the property and keys with the new owner. Reaching this agreed date will take quite a bit of compromise and negotiation, as you have to arrive at a solution that works for everyone in the property chain!

7. Make a plan for moving day

If the process of selling your home and buying a new one doesn’t occupy you enough, you also have to plan for the day of your move! This can be quite a stressful task that you won’t want to leave to the last minute. You might want to get a removals company to help you with the move - if not, you can recruit the help of a trusty friend or family member. You will also need to decide how you are going to switch over your electricity, gas, water and internet services. Check out our moving day checklist for more help on how to go about it!

Looking for your next home? Peabody’s high-quality new build homes are the perfect next step in your housing journey. If you are a first-time buyer, they are also entirely chain-free - meaning you won’t have to wait for someone to sell their home before you can move in!