Trading Up in West Michigan
Buy first or sell first, decided with your numbers. Two transactions, one plan, one person holding both clocks.
One Decision Sits Above All the Others
Everything else in a move like this is detail. The decision that sets the whole shape of it is whether you buy first or sell first.
Most people arrive having already half-decided, usually on a rule of thumb somebody gave them at a barbecue. Then the plan gets built around the half-decision instead of around their actual numbers, and that is where it goes wrong.
So we do it the other way around. Your equity, what your current place would realistically sell for, what your lender says you can carry, and how much disruption you can genuinely tolerate. Then the sequence, chosen deliberately.
Where would you like to start?
The Four Sequences, and What Each One Actually Costs
Sell first, then buy. The strongest position to make an offer from, because you are not asking a seller to wait for anything. The cost is that you may need somewhere to be in between, and a rental or a stay with somebody is a real expense and a real inconvenience rather than a footnote.
Buy first, then sell. The easiest one to live through and the most exposed one financially, because for a while you own two properties and pay for both. Whether that is available to you at all is a lender question, and it is the first call to make rather than the last.
Sell with a longer closing, or with occupancy after closing negotiated. Buys you time to find the next one while the sale is already agreed. It is negotiated on the contract like everything else, which means it depends on what your buyer will accept.
Buy with your sale as a contingency. Clean on paper and the weakest one in competition, because your offer now depends on something that has not happened yet.
In their words
What working with me is like
Tamara was so patient and kind with our house search. From looking at disasters to beautiful homes, we had a lot of laughs. I would not want anyone else as my realtor. I'm happy to be able to invite her to our remodeled home so she can see the difference in our house to home.
Going with Tamara as our realtor was a fantastic decision! She is honest, calm, professional, and a fantastic listener. I would most definitely recommend her to anyone!
Why the Order Matters More Here
On good water and on well-priced land around here, the right property is gone in days. A seller looking at two offers close in price sets the contingent one aside, and they are not being difficult. They are removing the one that might not happen.
Which means the further up the water you are trying to move, the more the sequencing decides whether you get the house at all. This is not a market where you can be casual about the order and make it up with a higher number later.
Inland the pressure is lower and there is usually more room to think. Part of what I do at the start is tell you which of those two situations you are actually in, because the honest answer changes the plan.
What the Selling Side Buys You
This is where the two halves connect. The Lakeshore Demand Method means the marketing starts before your home reaches the MLS, in front of a paid and targeted audience, so there are buyers already waiting rather than buyers still to be found.
For somebody selling one property and buying another, that is not a marketing detail. It is the thing that shortens the gap you have to survive. A home with demand built before it listed gives you a sale you can time, and a sale you can time is what makes the sequencing work.
You also get a written report every week: showings, feedback and how the campaign is actually doing. Not a call when there is news. And you can cancel at any time if you are not satisfied with the work.
Start with what your current home is worth, because every other number in this decision depends on that one. The selling side is set out on selling your home.
Two Transactions, One Plan
The failure in a move like this is almost never one bad decision. It is two sets of dates held by two different people who each assume the other is watching.
I hold both. Your sale's deadlines and your purchase's deadlines on the same calendar, and you hear from me before each one rather than on the day it expires. Both transactions run on the Michigan deadlines set out on how buying works here, and they are counted in calendar days.
More than $4 million in closed sales over my last twelve months, up from under a million the year before, on both sides of the table.
Tell me where you are now and where you are trying to get to. The first useful thing I can give you is an honest number on the place you already own.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I buy first or sell first?
It depends on your equity, what your lender says you can carry, and how much disruption you can live with. Selling first gives you the strongest offer and may leave you somewhere in between. Buying first is the easiest to live through and the most exposed, because you own two properties for a while. Anybody who answers that question before seeing your numbers is guessing.
Will a contingent offer get accepted around here?
Sometimes, and it is the weakest version of your offer. On good water, where the right property goes in days, a seller with two similar offers sets the contingent one aside. Further inland there is more room. Which situation you are in depends on the specific property, and it is worth knowing before you write rather than after you lose one.
Can I get a bridge loan?
That is a lender question and the answer is specific to you. Make it one of the first calls rather than one of the last, because whether it is available changes which of the four sequences is actually open to you, and therefore the whole plan.
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Ready to make your move with Tamara Hekkema?