Expert: Connie Wildasinn-Broker,GRI,Realtor® - 1/25/2009

Question
My fiancé and I currently live in her condo and are getting married in May. We have started to look at houses to buy and are unsure what to do as far as selling the condo. To be honest we haven’t really seen any yet in the area that we are really interested in.

My question is: Obviously we need to sell the condo before we can move into a house. Do you think its better to put the condo on the market with a contingency stating that we need to find housing before we move out and the new owners can move in or do you think its best if we find a house and put in an offer with a contingency that we must sell the condo in order to buy the house?

Any thoughts/experience on this matter would be appreciated.

Thanks!


Answer
Lucas,

Congratulations on you up and coming engagement and marriage!  Buying a house as you know can be a wonderful investment, you must look at the property for the long term and not the short end of the investment.

On the contingency of the condo, I don't know what market place you reside in, but here in Southern California, contingency is not advisable... with the flood on the market of available properties, buyers do not want obstacles in their path of ownership nor do they need to wait it out with a seller who may or may not be able to find something suitable.  

Keep in mind in the end 10 years from now how you handle the sale and purchase will be blimp on the radar... if the market is trending down still in your area, selling the condo now and renting till the right property shows up on the market would be wise... as you are renting the market continues to travel down on pricing you make out better with each passing month on the purchase price side of the equation... keep the interest rates in mind as you are deciding what to do and the type of loan you are qualified to receive.  If in fact the style of loan is anything out side the 20-25% down, fully doc'd and verified, you may want to buy sooner than later, as banks are going out of business so are certain types of loan products!

Get yourself a loan broker you trust, and an agent you are comfortable with to help you out... if the property you are buying is more than say 25-35 miles from your current residence, you may want to work with a buyers agent closer to the new location you are looking into. They will know all the little things about a neighborhood you will want to know before you buy!

One other option you may try, and you will not (usually) get as good a price for you condo to do this option, is sell to an investor and rent the unit back... this way you don't have to move and the purchase is not contingent to you sale... if you think it may take 6 mos to a year to find something, this may be a better option thank moving twice... something to think about...

Good luck!