Can I buy a house while selling my current one in Wisconsin?
Rob Miller explains the simultaneous buy-sell strategies Wisconsin homeowners use — bridge loans, contingent offers, and how we structure the financing.
Rob Miller, Branch Manager at MadCity Home Loans, explains the buy-sell timing puzzle that move-up buyers in Wisconsin face every day.
Can I buy a house while selling my current one in Wisconsin?
Yes — and this is one of the most common situations we work through with move-up buyers. There are a few different approaches, and the right one depends on your equity position, cash reserves, and risk tolerance:
Option 1: Contingent Offer
You make an offer on the new home contingent on the sale of your current home. This protects you from owning two homes at once, but sellers in competitive markets may not accept it — especially if they have non-contingent offers.
Option 2: Sell First, Buy Second
The safest strategy. You sell your current home, use the proceeds for the down payment, and either negotiate a rent-back period from the buyer or find temporary housing. Eliminates all financing overlap risk.
Option 3: Bridge Loan
A bridge loan lets you borrow against your current home's equity to fund the down payment on the new home — before you sell. You close on the new home, move in, then sell the old one and pay off the bridge loan. This strategy lets you make clean, non-contingent offers but carries short-term carrying costs.
Option 4: Convert Current Home to Rental
If you have enough equity and income, we may be able to qualify you for the new home while counting projected rental income from the current property. This requires 25–30% equity in the departure residence and specific documentation.
Want to run the numbers? Call us — we'll model out each scenario based on your specific equity position and income. Start with our Pre-Approval Guide to understand what's needed.