Case Study - The Buy/Sell Dilemma
To buy first then sell, or sell first then buy… that is the question echoed around the world. Particularly for vendors/buyers transacting in hot markets!
It’s something we advise many of our clients on, the answer is often different for each person and is completely dependent on their individual situation. Largely related to financial circumstances, stress management, whether they have somewhere else they’re able to go should there be a crossover and suitable timing of a move.. Or two!
Given each set of circumstances can be so different from the next, we’re diving into a recent case study of a client who needed to sell their property and buy their next family home.
When we first met this family, they were already in the process of talking with agents to sell the family home they’d been in for the last 10 years. It had served them well, but with a recent addition to the family it was getting a bit tight on space and they were on the lookout to upsize.
The main concern for this client was the financial changeover. It was going to be a stretch on the next purchase and how much they could spend was in direct correlation to how much they sold their home for.
We could answer the question of how much their property was worth quite confidently as it wasn’t super unique and we knew it would be well received by the market (the value of buying A-grade read estate!). However, even though they’d already engaged multiple agents for pricing opinions and valuations to support what was a very likely figure. They still felt extremely uncomfortable going out into the market to purchase something without knowing exactly what they got for their home.
So in this case, it was clearly a sell before buy game plan!
Their early Autumn campaign ran as smoothly as expected, gaining momentum in the lead up to auction and ultimately selling at the top end of the best case scenario which was fantastic. We ensured it was sold on a long settlement which was going to give us ample time to find their next home and hopefully align settlements so they only needed to move once.
We had kept an eye on the market throughout the 4 week auction campaign and inspected a few properties together so we had our brief set solid and would be ready to pounce once they’d sold. In fact there were two we very seriously considered right off the bat, walking away from each once we ran due diligence. A third came and went as they also decided against it… and then came Winter and its low stock levels…
There wasn't a fresh option in sight, for weeks! Only stale listings that had been floating around since the beginning of the year that we’d already decided against. And unsuitable or overpriced off market property. That ‘long’ settlement was starting to creep closer, after many discussions we approached the purchasers to extend which they did happily and gave us some much needed breathing room.
As soon as that decision was made, (as is always the way!), we found the one… the dream house in their ideal location!! Perfectly renovated, ticking every accommodation need and nestled into a gloriously quiet tree lined street. The clincher? The vendors motivation to sell… they had the agent through months prior for an update with a pipeline goal of upsizing themselves at some stage…
The property stars aligned and within a couple of weeks of our initial inspection the vendors found a property they were prepared to bid on…. Only IF we agreed to sign contracts prior, subject to the purchase of that property. Which we did. They purchased the following week at auction and we secured our clients dream home and aligned settlements for their existing property to ensure they’re only moving once!!
Done deal!!!