Should You Buy First, or Sell First?


Atlanta Real Estate Agent Melida Potts reviews the pros and cons for both buying before selling, and vice versa.

There are many great Atlanta area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (678) 488-8927 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Atlanta Real Estate Agent
Recently, a lot of buyers have entered our market. It seems that they are all asking the same question, "Should I buy before I sell, or should I sell before I buy?" Well, let's go through the options, spelling out the advantages and disadvantages of each, and you can decide for yourself which to do. Let's get to it!

If you choose to buy before you sell, you have the advantage of getting to choose your home very deliberately. There's no pressure for you to buy, because you still own your current home. The disadvantage of this route, of course, is that you may end up owning 2 homes at once for a period of time. However, if you aren't married to your price, and prepare your home correctly, you shouldn't have any problem selling.

Now, if you choose to sell before you buy, the huge advantage here is never having to worry about paying for 2 homes at once, because you can make an offer on a home that is contingent on the sale of your current one. The disadvantage here is that the pool of homes you are choosing from may not be as large. You may also feel a little pressure to buy, especially if you have to be out of your home by a certain date. However, you should still see plenty of options to choose from in our market, especially this spring.

So, which one should you do? It depends on your own tastes. If you would like my thoughts as to what you personally should do, please give me a call or send me a quick email. After helping people buy and sell homes for 30 years, I have done everything and I have a lot to share with you.