Last updated October 28, 2026
How do you buy your next house before you sell the one you’re in? In June 2025, my brother-in-law wanted 5941 Creek Side Place in Cedar Hill while he still owned 5154 Autumn Ridge Drive in Imperial. We bought first, with no home-sale contingency, and ran two contracts, two sets of inspections and two closings as one plan. Step into my seat, make the calls, then read how each one played out.
Make the purchase stand on its own, then sell into it. On a 2025 Cedar Hill purchase, that put the two closings six days apart with no bridge loan. The process has four steps:
How it went on this sale: 5941 Creek Side Place in Cedar Hill went under contract June 8, 2025. 5154 Autumn Ridge Drive in Imperial went under contract six days later. The purchase closed July 10 and the sale closed July 16.
| Date | Creek Side purchase | Autumn Ridge sale |
|---|---|---|
| May 28 | 5941 Creek Side Place listed at $309,900 | |
| June 7 | Full-price VA offer, no home-sale contingency; preapproved up to $350,000 | |
| June 8 | Contract accepted: $309,900, $2,000 earnest money, July 10 closing | |
| June 11 | Inspections begin, including radon and sewer | |
| June 12–13 | Coming soon June 12; active at $275,000 June 13 | |
| June 14 | Contract signed: $290,000, $5,000 seller-paid closing costs, July 16 closing | |
| June 17–20 | Elevated radon and other findings negotiated | Inspection finds two actively leaking front-wall cracks |
| June 23–25 | Waterproofing scheduled for July 10; seller credit raised to $8,500; inspection resolved | |
| June 30 | VA appraisal: $320,000, no required repairs | Appraisal scheduled |
| July 3 | Lender clear to close, pending the amendment | |
| July 9 | Final amendment: $315,000 price, $5,650 seller credit; cash to close $1,879.01 | |
| July 10 | Closed and funded | Waterproofing done; HOA trustee letter paid |
| July 15 | Payoff statement arrives; final walk-through | |
| July 16 | Closed and funded |
Have the lender approve the VA loan without counting on the sale, then write the offer like any other buyer: price, financing, earnest money and a closing date. Leaving out the home-sale contingency makes the offer as strong as any financed buyer’s. On a 2025 Cedar Hill purchase, a full-price VA offer with no contingency was accepted the next day.
How it went on this sale: The buyers were preapproved up to $350,000 with VA financing. We offered full price, $309,900, with no home-sale contingency, $2,000 earnest money and a July 10 closing. The sellers accepted the next day. What a home-sale contingency costs you →
Within days. Once the purchase is under contract, you know where you’re going and when. The sale’s contract can then land while the purchase is still in its inspection and appraisal periods, and you can set the sale closing to follow the purchase closing. On a 2025 Imperial sale, the house was listed four days after the purchase contract and under contract two days later.
How it went on this sale: Autumn Ridge went up as coming soon on June 12, four days after the purchase contract, and went active at $275,000 on June 13. By June 14 it had a signed $290,000 contract with a July 16 closing, six days after the purchase. How the Autumn Ridge sale went →
Run them as two separate negotiations with their own deadlines. As the buyer, negotiate a concession for what the inspection finds. As the seller, get a contractor’s scope and price before you answer the buyer’s request, so you’re negotiating a number, not a worry. Put each resolution in a signed amendment. On a 2025 buy-and-sell, both inspections were being negotiated the week of June 17.
How it went on this sale: On the purchase, the inspection found elevated radon. We negotiated a $1,000 radon-related concession, and mitigation was arranged after closing. On the sale, the buyers’ inspection found two actively leaking front-wall cracks. We had a waterproofing company scope the work, the seller paid for it at closing, and the seller credit went to $8,500 total. The sale’s inspection was resolved June 25. How repair requests get negotiated →
Use it as room to restructure the price and seller credit, not as free equity. A higher price means more principal to finance, so the goal is a price at or below the appraisal with a credit that lowers the buyer’s cash to close. Then check that the lender’s and title company’s figures match the amendment before signing. On a 2025 Cedar Hill purchase, a $320,000 appraisal on a $309,900 contract became a $315,000 price with a $5,650 seller credit.
How it went on this sale: The VA appraisal came in at $320,000 with no required repairs, $10,100 above the $309,900 contract. The first proposal was $317,000 with a $7,100 credit. The final amendment set $315,000 with a $5,650 credit, $5,000 under the appraisal. After the lender rebalanced, cash to close was $1,879.01. VA loans in St. Louis →
Qualify for the new loan on its own and cover the purchase’s cash to close without the sale proceeds. Then close the purchase first and the sale a few days later. The overlap is days of two loans, not months of two payments, and there’s nothing to bridge. On a 2025 buy-and-sell, the buyers brought $1,879.01 to the purchase closing and carried both loans for six days.
How it went on this sale: The buyers brought $1,879.01 to the July 10 purchase closing. Autumn Ridge closed July 16 and paid off the old mortgage. That was six days with both loans and no bridge loan or HELOC. Bridge loans, HELOCs and two payments →
Title paperwork, more often than the buyers. On a 2025 Imperial sale, the formal mortgage payoff arrived the day before closing. Order these early so the sale closes on schedule:
How it went on this sale: The HOA trustee letter needed a $125 payment, made July 10. The formal payoff statement didn’t arrive until July 15. Title also needed the waterproofing invoice and lien waiver. We did the final walk-through that evening, and Autumn Ridge closed and funded July 16.
Treat them as one plan on one calendar. List every deadline for both contracts: inspections, appraisal, amendments, title items and both closings. Follow up on each item separately, because the problems on one side are rarely the problems on the other. The purchase has to land first. On a 2025 buy-and-sell, the purchase closed July 10 and the sale closed July 16.
How it went on this sale: The purchase had its own issues: the appraisal restructure, the radon concession and the lender rebalancing. The sale had different ones: the foundation cracks, the HOA letter and the payoff. Both closed in the right order, six days apart. Buying first worked because the purchase was financed on its own and the sale was priced to move. Should you sell first or buy first? →
Get the purchase financed on its own, list once it’s under contract, and run both closings on one calendar.
Your lender has to approve the new loan without the old house selling. On Creek Side, a VA preapproval up to $350,000 made that possible, and the offer went in at full price with no contingency.
Close enough that you aren’t carrying both for long, with the purchase first so you have somewhere to go. Here it was six days: July 10 for the purchase, July 16 for the sale.
No. It gives you room to negotiate the price and seller credit, but a higher price is more principal to finance. Here we settled at $315,000 with a $5,650 credit, $5,000 under the appraisal.
The mortgage payoff statement and any HOA letter. Title needs a formal payoff, not your monthly statement, so order it early.
Can you buy with a VA loan before selling your current home?
In this sale, yes. The buyers were preapproved up to $350,000 while they still owned Autumn Ridge, offered with no home-sale contingency, and closed six days before the sale.
What does title need to pay off the seller’s mortgage?
A formal payoff statement from the lender. On Autumn Ridge the regular mortgage statement wasn’t enough, and the payoff statement arrived the day before closing.
Do you need a bridge loan to buy before you sell?
Not always. These buyers bought first without a bridge loan or HELOC; their cash to close on the purchase was $1,879.01.
More in this series: Lessons From a Sale · The Autumn Ridge sale: $15,000 over asking · Related: Should I sell first or buy first? · VA loans in St. Louis
Grew up in South St. Louis, lived in Dogtown for 6 years, now in South County. You’ll find us at Wellspring on Lindbergh on Sundays. I'm not selling you a house — I'm showing you how to think about buying or selling a house.