Compare three paths for buying your next home while selling your current one. Enter your numbers, weigh the trade-offs, and choose the strategy that fits your situation.
Current Home — Monthly Carry
Step 1 of 3
What you pay to own your current home each month. Used to calculate carrying cost while it's listed or sitting vacant during the transition. Enter $0 for P&I if the home is owned free and clear.
From your mortgage statement. $0 if debt-free.
Sum of all HOAs if there are multiple
Power, water, lawn, pool — what runs while it sits empty
New Home — Monthly Carry
Step 2 of 3
What you'll pay to own the new home each month. Used in the Buy First scenario when you'll be carrying both homes during the overlap.
Your projected permanent mortgage payment. Enter $0 if the new home is all-cash or if a bridge loan alone is funding it. The bridge toggle below stacks on top of this figure if you have both.
Sum of all HOAs (some neighborhoods have a master + sub HOA)
Power, water, internet, lawn — full operating cost
Transition Assumptions
Step 3 of 3
Wilmington/Wrightsville Beach median: ~60–90 days
Interest-only assumption. Bridge accrues for the same period as the overlap (days to sell).
Custom Expenses (optional)
Add costs unique to your move — pre-listing staging, pet boarding, rent-back fee, inspections, furniture, etc. Each expense can be one-time (pick the month) or monthly.
Your Three Paths
Review the costs and trade-offs of each strategy, then choose the path that fits your situation.
Month-by-Month Cash Flow
Extra outflows during the transition, by month. Month 1 = the first month of overlap. Months with a tan tint mark a key event (sale closes, purchase closes, move).
Cumulative Transition Cost Over Time
Running total of out-of-pocket transition costs, by month, for each path.
Estimates only. This tool is for illustrative purposes and does not constitute financial, tax, legal, or lending advice. Actual costs and outcomes will vary based on lender terms, tax circumstances, market conditions, and the specific terms of your transactions. Consult your CPA, attorney, and lender for figures tailored to your situation.
How to Use the Move Cost Analyzer
A 3-step walkthrough to compare the carrying cost of each path.
What This Tool Does
It compares the actual cash you'll spend during the overlap period for three ways to move from your current home into your next one. The figure for each path is the total out-of-pocket from "starting the move" to "settled in the new home." That's why Buy First is usually the most expensive — you're paying for both homes during the carry — and Sell First trades that double-carry for temp housing and an extra move.
Step 1 — Current Home Monthly Carry
Pull your most recent mortgage statement and a recent property tax bill. Enter your monthly P&I (or $0 if the home is debt-free), annual property tax, annual insurance, HOA dues (sum of all HOAs if there are multiple), and the utilities figure for when the home is sitting empty.
Step 2 — New Home Monthly Carry
Enter the projected monthly cost of owning the new home: P&I (or bridge interest if you're financing it temporarily), property tax, insurance, HOA dues (again — sum any sub-HOAs and master HOAs), and occupied utilities. These figures drive the Buy First scenario, which has you paying both homes' carry until the old one sells.
Step 3 — Transition Assumptions
Set days to sell to a realistic figure for your market. The default (75 days) is the Wilmington / Wrightsville Beach median.
Enter the single-move cost, plus the monthly temp housing rent and storage figures (only used in the Sell First scenario).
If you're using a bridge loan or HELOC to fund the down payment on the new home, toggle that on and enter your terms.
Click Calculate Scenarios.
Reviewing Your Three Paths
Sell First — Lowest financial risk if your home takes longer to sell, but you'll move twice and live in temp housing.
Buy First — One move, no temp housing, but you carry both homes until the old one sells. Requires liquidity or a bridge loan.
Simultaneous Close — Cheapest when it works. Requires tight coordination between the two transactions.
Click Choose this path on the strategy that fits your situation. The cumulative chart highlights your selection so you can see the running total over time.
Sharing With Your CPA, Lender, or Spouse
Click Download PDF to generate a one-page summary you can email or print. The PDF includes all three scenarios, the month-by-month cash flow, and the cumulative chart.
Glossary
Plain-English definitions of every term used in this tool.
Strategies
Sell First
You list and sell your current home first, move into temporary housing, then purchase and move into your new home. Two moves total. Minimizes financial risk because you've already cashed out before buying.
Buy First
You purchase and move into the new home first, then list and sell the old one. One move, but during the overlap you pay both homes in full — new home's mortgage, taxes, insurance, HOAs, and utilities, plus the old home's vacant carry. Requires liquidity or bridge financing for the down payment.
Simultaneous Close
Both transactions close on the same day — your sale funds the purchase. Cleanest on paper, requires the two contracts to align perfectly. A rate-lock extension is often budgeted as a buffer.
Costs & Cash Flow
Carrying cost (monthly carry)
The full monthly cost of owning a home: principal & interest, property tax, insurance, HOA dues, utilities, and any maintenance reserve. In this tool, "old home carry" assumes the home is vacant (lower utilities than when occupied).
Principal & Interest (P&I)
The mortgage payment portion that pays down the loan balance plus the interest charge for that month. Does NOT include taxes or insurance (escrow).
Transition cost
The total cash you'll spend during the overlap period — from "starting the move" to "settled in the new home." For Sell First, that's temp rent, storage, and two moves. For Buy First, that's the full monthly carry of both homes plus bridge financing if any. For Simultaneous, it's essentially just the move and a small rate-lock buffer.
Financing & Timing
Bridge loan
A short-term loan secured by your current home that funds the down payment on the new one. Typically 6–12 months, interest-only, paid off when the old home sells. Higher rate than a traditional mortgage but flexible.
HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit)
A revolving credit line secured by the equity in your current home. Can be drawn against and repaid like a credit card. Often a lower-cost alternative to a bridge loan if you have it set up before listing.
Days to sell
The expected time between listing your old home and closing on the sale. Wilmington / Wrightsville Beach median is roughly 60–90 days. Properties at higher price points often take longer.
Rate-lock extension
A fee your lender charges to extend the mortgage rate they've locked for you past its original expiration date. Common in simultaneous-close scenarios when timing slips.
Get Your Move Cost Analysis PDF
A branded PDF report you can save, share with your CPA or lender, or keep for your records.
Methodology & Disclaimer
How the calculations work, what's modeled, and what isn't.
How Each Scenario Is Calculated
"Transition cost" means the actual cash you'll spend during the overlap period — what leaves your account between the time you start the move and the time you're settled. The three figures are directly comparable because each one covers the same window: from "still in your current home" to "settled in your new home."
Sell First — You sell your old home first and live in temp housing until the new home closes. During that window you pay rent and storage (no home carry, since you've sold one and haven't bought the other). You also move twice.
Buy First — You close on the new home, move in, and list the old. Until the old sells, you carry both homes in full: new home full operating cost (P&I, tax, insurance, HOA, utilities) PLUS old home vacant operating cost (P&I if any, tax, insurance, HOA, vacant utilities). If a bridge loan funded the down payment, its interest accrues over the same window.
Buy First cost = (NEW home full carry + OLD home vacant carry) × months
+ bridge interest × months + bridge fees
+ 1 × move cost
Simultaneous Close — Both transactions close the same day. Effectively no overlap — you exit one home and enter the other in a single move. A small rate-lock buffer covers coordination slippage.
Simultaneous cost = $750 buffer + 1 × move cost
Assumptions Baked In
Temp housing period (Sell First) equals the days-to-sell input.
Bridge loan accrues interest over the same days-to-sell window, interest-only.
Old home utilities are entered as the vacant figure — what runs with no one home.
Property tax and insurance are spread evenly over 12 months (no escrow timing).
Simultaneous close uses a flat $750 buffer for rate-lock / coordination.
What's NOT Modeled
Sale proceeds, mortgage payoff, agent commissions, or seller / buyer closing costs — those happen regardless of which strategy you choose and don't affect the comparison.
Capital gains tax — a downstream tax obligation, not a transition expense. Discuss with your CPA before listing.
Lost investment return on equity tied up in the old home during overlap.
Market appreciation or depreciation on the new home during the temp-housing period.
Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) or pre-payment penalties.
Maintenance reserve as a separate line (assume utilities figure absorbs vacant maintenance).
Property staging, repairs, or pre-sale prep costs.
Estimates only. This tool is for illustrative purposes and does not constitute financial, tax, legal, or lending advice. Actual costs and outcomes will vary based on lender terms, tax circumstances, market conditions, and the specific terms of your transactions. Before making any decision, consult your CPA, attorney, and lender for figures tailored to your situation.
Prepared by Will Daube, Broker #308018 · Cadence Realty Corp, Firm License #C26881
(910) 409-3605 · will@cadencerealty.com