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How to Buy and Sell a Home at the Same Time (Without Losing Your Mind)

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Buying or selling a home is a big adventure; some thrill seekers may choose to take on both tasks at the same time. If you're finding yourself in the position of needing to buy and sell at the same time, here are some tips to help you navigate the possibly challenging course ahead of you. Evaluate Your Local Market For most buyers and sellers, selling their current home before putting an offer on another property is their best real estate option. But for others, it really depends on the local real estate market. If you're thinking of selling and buying at the same time, research the market in your target area. This can help you gauge whether it's a buyer or seller market. If many properties are available, it might be a good time to list. If inventory is low, you may need to wait until the market picks up again. The general rule of thumb is to sell first in a buyer's market and buy first in a seller's market; but this isn't always the case since eve
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Avoid Taxes by Keeping Track of Improvements

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Keeping track of capital improvements to your home can help you avoid taxes later down the road when you sell it. Some homeowners don't even consider such a thing because they are aware of the capital gain exclusion of up to $500,000 for married homeowners and $250,000 for single filers.   Possibly, the gain in a past sale didn't exhaust the limit that has remained the same since 1997. Today, homes are much more expensive and appreciation in the past few years has been exceptionally high.   It is now possible and maybe more likely, based on the price of the home, for a homeowner to have gains more than these limits. A $250,000 home in 1997 based on an annual appreciation of 4% would be worth almost $700,000 today.   Capital improvements made to a home raise the basis, or cost, of the home which will affect the gain on the sale. Improvements must add value to your home, prolong its useful life or adapt it to new uses.   Repairs, not considered improvements, are r
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What every homeowner should know about their property insurance

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Insurance is required on a home by the mortgage company, but homeowners rely on it for peace of mind also.   Unfortunately, people may not take the time to investigate their policy and what it covers until they need to file a claim, which could be too late. While it may not seem like the best use of your time, an in-depth visit with your property insurance agent once a year could be valuable to you if you have losses and could increase your peace of mind. The following are some questions you can ask your insurance agent: What is the insured value of the policy and the replacement cost of your home?   Insured value is the amount that would be paid for a total loss but replacing the home could cost more than that amount. What is the deductible?   Higher deductibles on the first amount of the loss are one way to lower the cost of the premium.   It may sound good when you're having to pay for the policy but feel very different at the time you file a claim. What
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