Question:
I am thinking of selling my home to move to a new home in a better school district. I expect we will make a healthy profit off our existing home, but when we buy a new home, I don’t know if we will be able to buy a home for the same amount we will sell our current home for. Does it make sense to sell now?
Response:
Paddy Hirsch May 15, 2013 Senior Editor, Marketplace
Hi! The answer is, it depends! If the new house is in a better school district, the chances are that it will be more expensive per square foot than the home you live in now. So you probably won’t be able to buy the same amount of house with the money you make from the same of your current home. Either you’ll have to settle for a smaller house or you’ll have to take out a loan. But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t sell now.
If the market is rising both in your neighborhood and the neighborhood you want to buy into, the chances are that prices will rise faster in the better school district. Logically, then, you’d want to move now, in order to get into a new home as quickly and cheaply as possible. I’d say your best bet is to speak to a realtor, to get an idea of how much you could get for your house, how much a new place would be, and what you’ll need to borrow. Then get pre-approval for financing. Once you’ve jumped through all those hoops, then you’ll have a much better idea of what you can and should do.
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