How to Buy a House Before Selling Yours in Connecticut
You found the next house before your current one sold. In Connecticut you have three real paths: a bridge loan, a HELOC opened ahead of time, or a contingent (Hubbard) offer. This page compares them honestly, with Fairfield County numbers, from a family-run lender that closes bridge loans with its own money.
Short version
If you can open a HELOC before you list and carry the payment, it's the cheapest way to fund the next down payment. If you're already listed, under contract, or need to close fast, a bridge loan is the tool: about 10 days to close, no monthly payment while you sell, up to 12 months to sell. A Hubbard-contingent offer costs nothing but loses to non-contingent offers in most Fairfield County bidding situations.
- Bridge loan: buy first, move once, pay it off when your home sells
- HELOC: cheapest, but must be opened before you go to market
- Hubbard offer: free, but sellers often skip it and accepted ones carry a kick-out clause
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| Compare | Bridge loan | HELOC (opened before listing) | Contingent (Hubbard) offer |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it works | Short-term loan against the equity in your current home; funds the down payment (or, with AFC's Cash Offer, up to 100% of the purchase). Paid off when your home sells. | A line of credit against your current home that you draw for the down payment and repay monthly until the sale. | Your offer says the purchase depends on selling your current home first. No financing involved. |
| Speed | As little as 10 days to close. | 30 to 45 days to open, and only before you list. | Instant to write, but the seller can keep marketing the home and bump you with a kick-out notice. |
| Cost | 2.5% origination, 1% per month accruing interest, about $3,000 in fees. No prepayment penalty. | Low closing costs; interest-only monthly payment on what you draw. | $0 in financing cost. The cost is the houses you don't get. |
| Strength of your offer | Non-contingent. Competes with cash. | Non-contingent, if the line is already open. | Contingent. In competitive Fairfield County situations, many sellers pass or accept a cleaner offer instead. |
| If your home doesn't sell quickly | Up to 12 months; we work the plan with you. | No deadline; you keep paying the HELOC alongside two mortgages. | You lose the house if the seller invokes the kick-out or a better offer arrives. |
| Who you deal with | AFC's local Approval Team, start to settlement. | Your HELOC bank plus your purchase lender. | Your agent and the seller's agent; no lender involved until you sell. |
Why Non-Contingent Offers Win in Fairfield County
Connecticut is one of the states where the home-sale contingency has its own name: the Hubbard clause. It protects you, because you can walk away if your home doesn't sell. But listing agents in Fairfield, Westport, Trumbull, and Stamford read "Hubbard" as "maybe, someday." In a multiple-offer situation, a Hubbard offer usually loses to one that isn't waiting on a sale, even at a lower price. And an accepted Hubbard offer almost always carries a kick-out clause: the seller keeps showing the home, and if a cleaner offer comes in you get a short window, often a few days, to remove your contingency or lose the house.
What a non-contingent offer does for you
- Puts you on equal footing with cash and relocation buyers
- Lets you negotiate on price and terms instead of apologizing for your contingency
- Removes the kick-out risk entirely
- Lets you move once, then sell an empty, staged home that shows better
What it costs you
- Short-term financing cost (bridge or HELOC) for the overlap period
- A short stretch of carrying two homes
- An honest conversation about what your current home will really sell for
- That's the trade: a few thousand dollars for certainty
A Worked Example From Fairfield County
You own a $650,000 home in Fairfield with a $300,000 balance and you're buying an $850,000 home in Trumbull. You put $200,000 down, so the new mortgage is $650,000 (about $4,108 a month at an illustrative 6.5%). Your old home sells three months after you close on the new one.
| Line item | Bridge loan | HELOC | Hubbard offer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Funds the $200,000 down payment | Yes, in about 10 days | Yes, if opened 30 to 45 days before listing | No; you wait to sell first |
| Upfront cost | $5,000 origination + about $3,000 fees | Often $0 to $1,500 | $0 |
| Cost over 3 months | $6,000 interest (accrues) | About $4,000 interest (paid monthly at illustrative 8.0%) | $0 |
| Approximate total | About $14,000 | About $4,000 to $5,500 | $0, plus whatever the lost house was worth to you |
| Offer strength | Non-contingent | Non-contingent | Contingent, with kick-out risk |
Both financed paths get you a non-contingent offer. The HELOC is cheaper but only works with lead time. The bridge is the one that works when the house you want is on the market right now. Held six months, the bridge would run about $20,000; there's no prepayment penalty, so a faster sale costs less.
Illustrative only. Uses a $650,000 current home with a $300,000 mortgage balance, an $850,000 purchase, an illustrative 6.5% 30-year fixed rate on the new mortgage, and AFC's representative bridge terms (2.5% origination, 1% per month accruing interest, about $3,000 in attorney, processing, and wire fees). HELOC and home equity loan figures use an illustrative 8.0% rate. Your rate, fees, and eligibility depend on credit, equity, and market conditions. Not a commitment to lend.
How AFC Handles It
We're a family-run Connecticut lender, and buy-before-you-sell is the move we structure more than any other. Because we offer the bridge, the HELOC, and the permanent mortgage, we can put all three in front of you and let the numbers decide.
- We are a retail lender, not a broker. Our Approval Team underwrites and closes in our own name, right here in Connecticut. You talk to the same people from first call to settlement.
- We lend our own money on bridge loans. No outside bank has to sign off, which is why we can close in as little as 10 days and give you up to 12 months to sell.
- No prepayment penalty, no minimum interest. Interest accrues only while the loan is open and is settled at payoff, so nothing is due out of pocket month to month.
- Your pre-approval never expires. As long as your income, assets, and credit are unchanged, it stays valid, so you can shop without a clock running.
- Need to make a true cash-backed offer?AFC's Cash Offer Program finances up to 100% of the new purchase so your offer competes with cash, then you sell and pay it off within 12 months.
- Already stuck behind a Hubbard clause? Converting to bridge financing can remove the contingency and firm up your deal before the seller's kick-out clock runs out. Call us first.
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Buying Before You Sell in Connecticut: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I buy a house before selling mine in Connecticut?
What is a Hubbard clause?
How does a bridge loan let me buy first?
Is it cheaper to sell first and rent in between?
Do I need to sell my current home within a set time?
Does my pre-approval expire while I shop?
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