This is one of the most asked question by property enthusiasts. It is an important one to answer for your perfect planning and implementation. Before proceeding forward you need to answer few questions.
- Do you have your finances ready?
- Are you going to take a home loan or are self financed?
- Do you have a buyer ready for your apartment?
- How long do you think it will take to sell your flat?
- Are you ok to buy a flat if your existing flat does not sell?
Now imagine a scenario where you have finalized your dream home without selling your existing flat. Will you be able to fulfill your commitment within the required time frame?
I personally hold a strong opinion in this matter. The first and foremost thing should always be to sell your apartment. Primary reason is so that you can plan your finances. Real estate market is in a slump. You could be the selected few owners who will get the expected price but majority of the time an owner’s price expectations are not fulfilled.
“You need to know how much will you get for your property!”
The only way you get to know that is by putting your property in the market. Once you start getting offers, you will get an idea as to what you will actually get for your property. Accordingly, you can set your next home purchase expectations or even if purchasing it is possible.
It is imperative to get the proceeds from your existing home sale. Once you have the monies in your hand, you are secured. From the time you get the token/earnest money till the transaction is registered and funds transferred is a time consuming process. There are multiple things that could go wrong at every stage of the process. It is therefore, very important to finish your sale transaction first, get the money in your account and handover the property to the buyer. Now you have a better bargaining chip with the prospective seller.
“A lot of time I come across clients who start looking for apartments without understanding their own home sale contingencies.”
Imagine sorting and visiting 100s of properties and finally liking just a handful. You negotiate the price and come to a conclusion. The first question the seller will ask you if your funds ready followed by your payment timeline. Your answer most likely will be
“Umm, I will have to sell my house and then I will pay you!
An answer like this is so vague and open ended, that you will lose all credibility as a buyer. You will no longer be considered a genuine buyer. You need to have clarity on the payment timeline. Your payment should be ready. The seller will not wait for you to sell his house. He will jump on to the next buyer who has his money ready. Not only will you lose the house that you dreamt of but now you will have to start the painstaking process of house hunting again. Every time you see a new apartment, you will always land up comparing it to the one you lost.
“On the other hand”
There are many scenarios where the buying and selling transactions go hand in hand. They are not easy to do. You need to have a buyer ready for your existing flat. Your buyer should be firm and have all his funds ready. After all you will be relying on his monies to pay for your own purchase. The variables involved in such scenarios are multiple. Yet they happen successfully as the buyers and sellers are genuine and well planned.
It is imperative that you set expectations well in advance for all parties involved. And one important thing to have an able and capable real estate agent involved. It is then and only then can such transactions complete successfully.