How do I sell my house and buy another in Texas? The 5 options, explained

• Sell first puts your money in hand before you make an offer, but you need a place to live in between, or a written agreement to stay in the house for a while after closing.
• Buy first lets you move once, but your lender has to approve you while you carry both homes for a while, or see a plan that covers it.
• Same-day closing lines up the sale and the purchase on one date. The money from your sale moves into your purchase through the title company. It's the cleanest option and the one that needs the most coordination.
• A home sale contingency puts in writing that your purchase depends on your current home selling. Texas has an official addendum for it, and the seller can keep taking offers.
• A bridge loan or a line of credit uses the equity in your current home to buy the next one before you sell. Not everyone qualifies, and the lender confirms whether it applies to you.

1. Sell first. You list, you close, and you use what you walk away with to buy the next home. The upside: you know your real number instead of guessing. The hard part: the day you hand over the keys, you need somewhere to be. A lot of families handle that by negotiating a short stay after closing. In Texas that goes in writing on a temporary residential lease, one of the forms published by the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC). The standard contract warns that staying without a written lease can expose both sides to losses.

2. Buy first. You find the home, close on it, move in without rushing, and then sell the one you left. An empty, clean house is easier to show and easier to prepare. The hard part: for a while, you pay for both. Your lender has to see that your income and savings can carry that, or that there's a plan that covers it.

3. Same day. Your sale closes in the morning and your purchase in the afternoon, often at the same title company. The money from your sale pays off your current loan, and what's left goes into your purchase. One move, no carrying two homes. For it to work, both contracts need matching closing dates, and your buyer and your seller both have to perform on time.

4. Home sale contingency. You make an offer on the new home with an addendum saying your purchase depends on receiving the proceeds from your sale by a certain date. If that doesn't happen by then, the contract ends and your earnest money comes back to you. The catch: under that same addendum, the seller can accept another offer, notify you, and give you a short window to drop your contingency or let the house go.

5. Bridge loan or line of credit. You use part of the equity you already have, meaning what your home is worth today minus what you owe, to cover the down payment on the next one before you sell. Not every lender offers this, each one has its own rules, and the lender confirms whether you qualify.

1. Talk to the lender first. Before the sign goes up. Your lender tells you whether you can buy before you sell, whether you need to sell first, and what documents they'll ask for. That answer takes some options off the table right away.
2. Get your real number. What your home is worth, minus what you owe, minus the costs of selling, including the commission, which we agree on in writing before we start. That tells you what you carry into the next home.
3. Pick the option. With your number and the lender's answer, you can see which of the five fits. Sometimes two fit, and you choose the one that lets you sleep at night, not only the one that saves the most.
4. The sale contract. Texas uses the TREC contract. It sets the closing date, the option period and, if you need it, the temporary lease that lets you stay after closing. The option period is the window when the buyer can walk away for any reason, in exchange for an option fee that isn't refunded.
5. The purchase contract. If you use a sale contingency, the official TREC addendum for sale of other property by buyer is attached. Its dates have to line up with your sale.
6. The title company. It handles the money and the paperwork at closing. On your sale, the buyer's funds pay off your loan and any other liens, and the rest comes to you or moves into your purchase.
7. One page with both dates. All of the above lives in a written plan: when you list, when you offer, when each side closes, and what happens if something moves.

If you want to see which of the five fits you, answer 5 questions at veronicayeary.com/sell-and-buy. It takes a couple of minutes and tells you where to start.

• Listing before you talk to a lender. If it turns out you can't buy without selling, you've already signed a sale with dates that leave you no time to shop calmly. Lender first, sign second.
• Believing you always have to sell first. That used to be the default, and for many families it's still the simplest. But there are more ways to sequence it now, and some of them save you a move.
• Treating a website estimate as your number. A website tells you roughly what your house is worth. It doesn't tell you what you keep after the payoff and the costs of selling.
• Offering with a contingency without understanding the seller's notice. Under the Texas addendum, the seller can accept another offer and ask you to waive your contingency within the time the addendum sets. If you don't, your contract ends. You want to know that before you sign, not after.
• Staying after closing on a handshake. The Texas contract warns that staying without a written lease can expose both sides to losses and that insurance coverage may be limited. Put it in writing, every time.

Picture a family in Frisco. They've been in their home for years, they've built equity, and they need another bedroom and a real office. Their first instinct is to sell first, because that's how their parents did it.

Before listing, they talk to a lender. The answer: yes, they can buy, but only using the money from their sale. Buying first is off the table. So the plan comes together around one page: the sale is listed with a closing date built to line up with the purchase, and the sale contract includes a short stay after closing on the TREC temporary lease. If the purchase slips a few days, they still have a roof.

One move, one page with both dates, and nobody signs anything they don't understand. This is an example, not a real client; your situation may point to a different option.

• Your current loan statement: what you owe today. The exact payoff on closing day is requested from your lender by the title company.
• Your lender's answer: whether you can buy before you sell, or only after, and which documents they need.
• Your real walk-away number: what you keep, not a website estimate. You can run it on the walk-away calculator.
• The dates that can't move: the end of the school year, a job change, a lease or a builder deadline. Those set the plan.
• The TREC forms that will be used: the contract, the sale-of-other-property addendum if it applies, and the temporary lease if you stay a few days. They're all published at trec.texas.gov.

In the moves Veronica Yeary handles in Dallas-Fort Worth, these five things get checked before the sign goes up, not after.

Can I buy a house before selling mine in Texas?

Yes, if your lender approves you while you carry both homes for a while, or if you use a bridge loan or a line of credit on your equity. If that doesn't work for you, same-day closing or a home sale contingency are other options. Your lender confirms which ones apply.

Is it safer to sell first or buy first?

It depends on which risk weighs on you more. Selling first removes the risk of carrying two homes, but you need a place to live in between. Buying first removes the double move, but you pay for both for a while. Your number and your dates decide which one feels steadier.

Can I stay in my house after I sell it?

It can be negotiated. In Texas it goes in writing on a TREC temporary residential lease, with clear dates and terms. The standard contract warns that staying without a written lease can expose both sides to losses and that insurance coverage may be limited.

What happens if my house doesn't sell after I offer with a contingency?

Under the TREC addendum, if your sale doesn't happen by the date in the addendum, the purchase contract ends on its own and your earnest money is refunded. If the seller accepts another offer first, they notify you, and you decide within the addendum's window whether to waive the contingency or let the house go.

Which of the five options is right for me?

It comes down to three things: your equity, what your lender approves, and how fixed your dates are. With those three answers, usually one or two options are left, and you pick the one that gives you peace of mind.

You don't need everything figured out to start. You need to know which of the five options fits you, and that comes from a few answers.

Answer 5 questions and see which option fits you: veronicayeary.com/sell-and-buy

Call or text 469-441-8890 · veronica@veronicayeary.com

Veronica Yeary, Realtor®, CRS, ABR, SRS, CIPS · All City Real Estate DFW · Dallas-Fort Worth. This isn't legal, tax or loan advice: your lender and the title company confirm your case.