Crushed it on my first deal...aaaannnnddd now I'm homeless! Help!

Crushed it on my first deal...aaaannnnddd now I'm homeless! Help!

Yuba City, CA · Member since 2016 · 40 posts · 7 votes

We did it!!! 

It's been a long, arduous road but we are about to close the sale of our primary residence and move to a new place. Our first deal will officially be in the books shortly! We've put a lot of sweat equity into our current home, made a good profit, and we are looking forward to bringing everything we've learned into our new duplex close to the beach here in San Diego. I'm happy to share the specifics of either deal if you're interested, but this post is about one of the many dilemmas that you face as a seller. 

We've been negotiating with the buyer for several weeks and we finally have been able to come to an agreement. Here's the catch: we thought we'd be able to rent back our home after escrow closes but it looks like that is no longer an option. 

The place we are moving into has tenants and they need to be given 30-day notice once we release our contingencies, one of which is closing the sale of our current property. My agent presented the idea to the buyer's agent and apparently, the buyer flipped out and almost walked away from the deal. 

Now I'm in a position where we can close the deal, but my family (I have 2 amazing toddler daughters and a beautiful wife!) needs to be out of our home in 10 days and probably need to rent a place for 45ish days. 

I've heard this is a pretty common problem with selling and people get through it all the time. I'm posting it here because I've always received great feedback in the forums and I value the outside perspective or insight from anyone who has been through something similar. Sometimes there is an obvious answer that I'm not seeing so I appreciate any comments. 

I'm happy to provide any additional details if you need.

Here are a couple of the things I'm concerned about: 1) I have a very unique disdain for moving. I know it's not a common thing, but I hate moving, and it would be awesome if I didn't have to do it twice. 2) I don't have an unlimited bankroll. Even though we are making a nice profit on this place it is all going into the down payment of the new place so money is a little tight at this point. Ideally, the solution will also be something economical    

What would you do if you were in my shoes?   

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Walnut Creek, CA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
8y

Airbnb or vrbo with stuff in storage.

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  • Rental Property Investor · Erie, PA · Member since 2018 · 6k+ posts · 9k+ votes
    8y

    First idea :

    What are your friend /family situations like ??Could you pay them some money each week for the trouble  and stay with a family member or close friend or work associate with extra space 

  • Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    8y
    Put your stuff in storage and take the fam on vacation.
  • Cambridge, MA · Member since 2017 · 268 posts · 247 votes
    8y

    School is also almost over. So assuming you can take time off from work or work remote, maybe pack up and go camping (weather should be nice)? All the stuff gets put in storage as mentioned.

  • Cambridge, MA · Member since 2017 · 268 posts · 247 votes
    8y

    Also since you are in San Diego, one of the hotter markets, maybe it would help us if you could give a ballpark of what kind of appreciation and ARV value you got and what it cost you to move to the next house. Assuming, as you said, that most of the profits are going to the downpayment of the next house, then it seems you either made a small profit or you are moving to a big house!

  • Yuba City, CA · Member since 2016 · 40 posts · 7 votes
    8y

    Sure...we purchased our home in September 2015 for $408,000, over 2 and a half years we put in about $40,000 in rehab and we're selling for $592,000. The new place is a duplex close to the beach and I'm buying it for $720,000. We have about $17,000 on our heloc and we are putting 20% down on the new place. After closing costs and the downpayment, it's pretty much a wash. I anticipate moving expenses to be in the ballpark of $2500 plus the cost of whatever we do in the interim (45-60 days).  

  • Real Estate Agent · Cypress, TX · Member since 2018 · 156 posts · 73 votes
    8y

    Long term stay hotel? Something like Candlewood Suites or Staybridge Suites? If you are booking for 30+ days they will likely give a good rate (speak to a manager, not front desk agent) and negotiate a rate. Additionally, here in Texas you arent liable for normal nightly hotel taxes if you are booked for 30+ days which equals a huge savings. Just a thought. Hope you find something soon!

  • JD MartinBusiness Member
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    Rock Star Extraordinaire · Northeast, TN · Member since 2015 · 10k+ posts · 16k+ votes
    8y

    Well, you are more or less limited to: renting someplace short term, staying with friends or relatives, or hitting the road until your place is ready. What you are describing is not uncommon but you usually negotiate these things on the front end; the buyer may be in the exact same situation, and thus cannot allow you to rent the house that they need to move into themselves. 

    If it were me, I would put everything in storage and try to find someone that has a room that can be requisitioned for two months, pay for their utility bills and groceries, and make the best of it. If you don't have anyone you're that close to, perhaps you can find someone that you know/like that will allow you to sublet part of their house for 2 months with a formal lease document (so they don't throw you out when they're sick of hearing crying kids :) ). 

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  • Walnut Creek, CA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    8y

    Airbnb or vrbo with stuff in storage.

  • Kalyanii K.Pro Member
    OR · Member since 2016 · 55 posts · 42 votes
    8y

    What about Air Bnb in the area?  Could you work out a 30 to 45 day stay in a place, rent a storage unit and put most of you belongings there and just keep what you need?  That way you aren’t technically moving twice, just packing and unpacking once.  Also might be cheaper than a hotel??

  • Real Estate Broker · Carlsbad, CA · Member since 2017 · 70 posts · 63 votes
    8y
    A friend recently sold their house in Carlsbad and rented a place on a monthly basis in Oceanside until they got settled. Now is the busy season for AirBnB and VRBO. Explore it, but you may be better off finding someone on Craigslist who will rent you their condo for a month at a time. It won’t be cheap, but it should work.
  • Walnut Creek, CA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    8y

    Craigslist has the temp and sublet section 

  • Investor · Akron, OH · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    8y

    You can get a Pod or uhaul pack box or something similar and only have to move your stuff onece. If you can swing it use this time to take a vacation and/or visit family. 

  • Severna Park, MD · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    8y

    I will be a nice guy ,I have an open unit I will rent you for 45 days for a fair price .    Oh yea Its in Maryland 

  • Developer · San Diego, CA · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    8y

    @David West Tough time of year to deal with this.  I've moved tenants out for multi-week timeframes in the past and summer has been virtually impossible to find long-term stay hotel rooms or short term rentals - too much demand from the vacation folks.

    I'm closing a ready-to-go vacant rental in 30 days I'd offer you, but sounds like the timing's not gonna work there.  Separately, I've got someone who moved out of their place (similar to you) temporarily living in a development property I'm doing while waiting for permits ... maybe someone else has something like that.

    If I was in your situation, I'd make plans to put everything in storage and treat it like a 45 day vacation.  In personal order I'd try to make happen:

    1. Find friends/family I could vacation at their house.

    2. Rent an RV for a couple weeks and stay at a campground with some amenities

    3. Rent a place downtown for a different lifestyle (like this: https://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/sub/d/adorable...)

    4. Look for a sublet somewhere that the timing just happens to work out well.

    5. Go live way out where most people wouldn't prefer to be right now ... think houses in the desert or rural ... Boulevard, Ocotillo Wells, Descanso.

    I've got kids too ... would be better for us to have a certain and sub-optimal plan than an uncertain optimal one.

  • Yuba City, CA · Member since 2016 · 40 posts · 7 votes
    8y

    @Justin R. I appreciate the reply. There's some great advice in there and congrats on the success! Sounds like you are staying very active and knocking down deals, so I love to hear that.

    I actually have a buddy who's putting an elevator in a home in Oceanside and they offered me a 45-day lease while the owner is out of the country. It would have been ideal except for being a trek to my office. Luckily, I just got a call from a former landlord where I used to live. It's actually a pretty sweet place in the La Jolla Shores area. They are going to allow for a month lease, so crisis averted! 

    What part of town are in? It would be cool to meet up and discuss projects if you have some time. 

    Best of luck! 

  • Real Estate Agent · San Diego, CA · Member since 2016 · 52 posts · 29 votes
    8y

    @David West what an awesome profit to make off of your first home! Congrats! I am still kicking myself for not having bought in San Diego in 2015! Where in SD were you able to find a duplex for $720k? That's awsome.  

  • Yuba City, CA · Member since 2016 · 40 posts · 7 votes
    8y

    @Tiffany Hoffman thanks! We were definitely lucky with the timing. Our new place is on the Pt. Loma Ocean Beach border. The location is ideal and we’re excited to be headed back to the beach. 

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