SELLING & BUYING

Looking for Something Different

A Complete Guide to Switching Homes.

Is It Time For a Change?

A NEW ADVENTURE AWAITS

Welcome to the most fun you can have in Real Estate; the juggling act of selling your old home and buying a new one simultaneously! 

If you recall from your previous purchase, real estate transactions aren't exactly simple. With your knowledge of how real estate works, you know things are about to become very tricky. But don't worry, with a little luck, utilizing the steps below, and using me as your agent, everything will be just fine. 

From Denver to Colorado Springs and everywhere in-between, I have extensive experience working with homeowners that need to change their current real estate situation.

*If you’re a member of the Armed Forces don’t forget to ask about my military rebate!

Don’t have a home to sell first? You’re just looking to buy? No problem, CLICK HERE for just the Buying Guide

GUIDE FOR SWITCHING HOMES

As you’re well aware, everyone’s situation is different so the following steps may not apply to you exactly. There are basically 3 ways to Sell a home to Buy a home. Each have their pros and cons.

    1. YOU ARE CONTINGENT - This means you are going to try to sell your home at the same time you are trying to buy a house. This by far can be the easiest on your pocketbook in the short-term but it might hinder your ability to make an offer on a new home. Many sellers are reluctant to accept offers from contingent buyers. If anything happens to the deal on the buyer’s current home, then it can negatively impact the deal on the new home. Sellers would like to avoid that if possible. But don’t worry, being contingent is very common and there are certainly ways to navigate around a seller’s objection! The following steps are for this scenario.

    2. YOU CAN SELL BEFORE YOU BUY - A slightly more ideal situation for purchasing a new home but it can be costly in the short-term and may be logistically impossible for some. First, after you sell your current home, where are you going to keep your stuff!? Storage for a lot of furniture can be costly especially if you can’t find a home you like in a timely manner. Furthermore, where will you stay? A hotel? With friends or family? The social strain can be high in this scenario. But if you find a home you like, you will likely have a very strong, non-contingent offer with flexibility when it comes to timing. This would be appealing to a lot of sellers.

    3. YOU CAN BUY BEFORE YOU SELL - The most ideal situation but can be costly in the short-term and even long-term depending on your finances. But if you have the funds to be able to accomplish this, you have the most flexibility when it comes to moving. There are no timing issues and you can put forth a strong, non-contingent offer.

SELLING STEP
Step 1.  What's Your Current Home Worth?

Ultimately, the best way to find out what your home is worth is to hire a Realtor® so they can perform a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) on your home (for the most definitive answer you can hire an appraiser but this can be costly). But what can you do as a consumer, as a preliminary step, to get a good sense of how much your home is worth?

  • A good place for you to begin is to utilize one of the many tools found on sites like Realtor.com and Zillow. But beware, these sites can be wildly inaccurate. I recommend looking at the results from several different sources and if the prices are relatively close to one another, then you can have some trust that the number is accurate. If there is a huge variation between prices then you have a little extra work to do. (No you shouldn't just pick the highest price)

    You may have heard the term "comp" before. This term simply means a comparable home (in size, rooms, etc.) to yours. A professionally prepared CMA is essentially a comparison of final sales prices of comps in your community. While very accurate sales information, only available to Real Estate Agents through proprietary reports, is used to generate a CMA, individual owners such as yourself can dig up sales data from public sites.

    Basic things to compare:

    • Size

    • Number of Rooms

    • Year Built

    • Year Sold (Keep it within the last year)

    While these sites aren't always accurate or up-to-date, it can give you a good general sense of what your home might be able to sell for

BUYING STEP
Step 2.  New Loan Pre-Approval

A common question is whether or not you should get a loan pre-approval before selling your current home. The short and easy answer is yes.

  • A pre-approval is perhaps one of the most important aspects to buying a new home. Along with the selling price of your current home, it gives you valuable information and will help you and your agent develop the best and most realistic list of homes within your budget.

    It also can save your bacon. Heaven forbid you sell your current home and for whatever reason are not able to qualify for a new loan on a new home. Without a pre-approval you could find yourself out of your current home without a new place to live.

    When speaking to a lending specialist explain your situation and they can easily give you a pre-approval that is contingent upon selling your current home.

    Click HERE for a list of potential lending specialists.

BUYING STEP
Step 3.  Research Neighborhoods

Make sure to learn all you can about the potential neighborhoods you would like to live in. Along with your Loan Pre-Approval this will be the foundation of searching for a new home!

Step 4.  Choose the Right Agent For Your Real Estate Needs; Me!

If you've made it to this step, this choice should be a no-brainer. I have built this site with your best interests in mind and I will not stop there. Choosing me as your exclusive buyer's agent will get you a hard worker sprinkled with some fun. Just check out the bow-tie! I tied it myself.

LEARN ABOUT ME HERE

BUYING STEP
Step 5. Finish Your Wishlist

Once you've decided to sell your home, it's important you discuss your needs and make sure your agent (that's me!) fully understands what type of new home will best suit you. But this step goes beyond that.

  • Chances are high you've already created a wishlist, afterall there's a reason you're searching for a new home in the first place. When we meet to discuss listing your current home, we will prioritize your checklist. But prepare yourself for compromises. In the meantime, please fill out this QUESTIONNAIRE to help me get a better sense of what you're looking for. As much as I will try to get you everything you want, there are many factors that will dictate whether you get everything you're looking for

    So what are the biggest areas of compromise? According to The National Association of Realtors ® it was on the price of the home. Other key items of compromise include:

    • size of the home

    • lot size

    • condition of home

    • commute to work, friends, or family

    • neighborhood

SELLING STEP
Step 6.  Listing Your Current Home

Selling your home is simple. Selling your home for the highest price possible in the most timely manner with the least amount of inconvenience is complex. It takes a good deal of teamwork between you and your agent (that's me!) to maximize your success. Luckily I have a great road map to the Selling Process.

  • HERE ARE THE KEY STEPS:

    1. I will sit down with you and discuss the Selling Process in depth.

    2. Based off of the professional CMA I completed, YOU will determine your home's listed price.

      • This price will be included in a contract you will sign making me your exclusive agent.

    3. Together, we will determine the best Marketing Strategy for Your Home. Please fill out this brief QUESTIONNAIRE which will enable me to better market your home.

    4. Prep your home for sale.

      • Remember what your impressions were when you first viewed your current home? Ask yourself what a potential buyer might expect when seeing your home. I may be able to offer some useful suggestions.

    5. Go live with your Listing!

      • Implement Marketing Strategy

    6. Facilitate showings of your home and gather valuable feedback collected from the prospective buyers.

      • Make it easy as possible to show your home to potential buyers, even on short notice.

      • Be prepared and stay positive. Negative feedback is common. Take it in stride and realize the Marketing Strategy may need to change to address the feedback.

    7. Once an offer is made on your home, your agent (that's me!) will present it to you as soon as possible.

      • You have three options when you receive an offer: Accept it, Reject it, or Submit a Counter-Proposal to it.

      • There are several factors to consider. I will discuss them with you and assist in making the best decision for you.

    8. You've accepted an offer! You are now Under Contract and your home is almost sold. Just a few final details and you'll be done:

      • Earnest Money check received from the Buyer.

      • Title Search ordered for your property.

      • Inspection of your home by an Inspector of the Buyer's choice.

      • An appraisal of the home if the Buyer is getting financing.

      • Final Buyer walk-through

        • It's dependant on how the contract is written, but it's typical to be packed up and moved out prior to the final walk-through.

    9. Closing Day!

      • Congratulations, you successfully sold your home!

    THINGS TO NOTE:

    • This process will be taking place simultaneously with Step 7. Search For a New Home & Step 8. Ready to Buy

    • Are you worried that you'll be homeless for a while because your current house sold before you found a new one? Well, a clause can be written into the sales contract making the transaction contingent on the seller (that's you!) finding a replacement home. Be warned, not all buyers will agree to this so it's best to have a back-up plan.

BUYING STEP
Step 7.  Search for a New Home

Finally the search bar! Now that your home is listed both you and your agent should actively be seeking new homes that fit your criteria. Use the search function below and keep me in the loop of what you find!

CLICK HERE

BUYING STEP
Step 8.  Ready to Buy!

OK! We found you the right house... now what? Well, first off, let's take a deep breath. Ok, now let's prepare for the whirlwind of activity that's about to ensue. Don't worry we'll get through this. Here's what to expect during the Buying Process.

  • HERE ARE THE KEY STEPS:

    1. Make an offer by having your agent (that’s me!) submit a contract to the Seller for review.

    2. Identical to what you will do when you receive an offer on your current home, the Seller will do 1 of 3 things: Accept your offer, Reject your offer, or Submit a Counter-Proposal to your offer.

      • If the Seller submits a counter-proposal, I will contact you to discuss what it means.

    3. When your offer is accepted an earnest money check will be delivered in a way chosen by the Seller.

      • A lot of times, this will look like me, your agent, taking a check for 1% of the purchase price to the Title Company chosen by the Seller. The amount can be negotiated.

    4. Inspection of the home by a trusted Inspector of your choice.

      • Click HERE for a List of potential Inspectors.

    5. Finalize your mortgage commitment.

    6. Make preliminary moving plans.

      • Check out the next step; Step 9. Time to Move!

    7. Final buyer walk-through.

    8. Closing.

    WHAT YOUR AGENT (THAT'S ME!) WILL DO:

    • Submit all contracts and paperwork on your behalf.

    • Communicate with you on a continuous basis.

    • Present to you, in a timely manner, all paperwork needed for your review and signature.

    • Be available to chat at any hour if you have any questions or need clarification on any Real Estate topic.

    WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO DO:

    • Be patient.

    • Keep your phone on you as much as possible. Weird things can happen at any time during the deal and you may receive a phone call at any time. If there are specific times where you can't or don't want to receive any phone calls, please tell me and I will do my best to respect your wishes. That segues perfectly to the next item.

    • Communicate with your agent (this holds true for the entire process). I am here for you so if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call.

    • Choose a Mortgage Specialist.

    • Choose a Home Inspector.

    • Do a final walk-through of your new home!

    • Come to the closing table excited with a smile on your face!

    CONGRATULATIONS, YOU’RE A NEW HOME OWNER!

Step 9.  Time to Move!

Ok, last step. You're almost home! Planning a move can be as stressful as selling your old home and finding a new one. Luckily there are many resources available to help.

    • A good place to always start a move is with the United States Postal Service (USPS). Besides taking the integral step of forwarding your mail from your old address to your new, using USPS's Change of Address site will give you valuable coupons (up to $750) for products and services in your area that can help with the move.

    • If you liked this Selling & Buying Process Checklist, Moving.com has an extensive 10-week checklist (8 weeks pre-move and 2 weeks post-move) that will make sure you have all your bases covered!

    • Click HERE for a list of Trusted Vendors for all of your home services need.

Was this guide helpful? Still Need More Info?

Contact Me.

christopher@reagentdenver.com
720.907.7674

445 Union Blvd. Suite 106
Lakewood, CO 80228