Buying and selling with kids

If you sold and bought your home with school aged children-how did you do it? Were you able to coordinate the timing so they were able to go to the new school in the fall? I have no clue how this works. Also, where did you live between purchases?

Re: Buying and selling with kids

Most of my clients do have to have a "plan B" so that if they cannot line up everything perfectly, they have somewhere to "land." It's very difficult -- but not impossible -- to go straight from your current home to your new home. In order to make it work, you have to find a seller who is willing to accept a contingency (that your purchase of their home is contingent on the sale of yours), and you have to be able to find a home quickly, as the contingency is usually not an open-ended one. You usually need the buyer to agree to a post-closing possession agreement so that if you close on your current house (which most people need to do to close on the new house), you can stay in your current home until you close on house 2 and can move your stuff in.

I have seller clients now who are buying another home in the area. We just listed their home, and they have an accepted offer on another home with a provision that they have 90 days to sell their home.

I have other clients who sold their home in June, but we couldn't find them their next home until a couple of weeks ago. They have family in the area and were able to stay with them, but we are hoping for a quick closing so they will be in their house by the time their daughter starts kindergarten. But they can register with a signed contract, so even if they are not in, their daughter can start school.

I have other seller clients who just sold their house in N. Bellmore and were able to line up their purchase in Dix Hills (they also have a daughter starting kindergarten next month).

I've also had clients rent in between (short term rental... like 6 month lease. but those are hard to find).

I also know of situations where the sellers closed during the school year and the kids were allowed to finish out the school year in their current school (if moving to a nearby town and the commute would work). Obviously, that would depend on the district.

As a seller, you can also negotiate an extended closing date (if you find a buyer for your house in early spring, for example, you can ask to delay the closing to late June so kids can finish school. Of course, the more flexible you can be as a seller with timing, the easier it is to get a buyer (broader buyer pool if not restrictions on closing), and top dollar for your house.

There's all different scenarios. Let me know if you have specific questions... maybe I can help (or at least give you a better idea of how it could possibly work).

Re: Buying and selling with kids

Thank you for the information. I guess we will have to hustle to sell quickly early next spring. My greatest concern lays on how quickly we can sell our current home. Most people I have known bought their forever home first and offer no experience in this situation. I know many families make this work somehow so hopefully we will figure out a way.