HomeLight Alternative in Connecticut: Buy Before You Sell vs a Local Bridge Loan
HomeLight's Buy Before You Sell program is one of the best-known ways to buy your next home before you sell the one you're in, and unlike some national programs, it does operate in Connecticut. So this page isn't about availability. It's about cost and control: how HomeLight's flat fee and 120-day clock compare to a local lender's bridge loans in Connecticut, and which one costs less for your numbers.
Short version
HomeLight charges a flat program fee of 2.4% of your current home's sale price and gives your agent 120 days to sell it; if it hasn't sold by then, HomeLight buys it at the loan payoff value and relists it. AFC's bridge loan is priced on the amount you borrow, not your home's price: 2.5% origination plus 1% per month that accrues only while the loan is open, with up to 12 months to sell and no backup purchase. On a quick sale of a modest home they land close together. On a higher-priced home with a small bridge, the local loan usually costs far less.
- HomeLight: 2.4% of the departing home's sale price, plus $1,500 if you don't use HomeLight Closing Services; 120 days to sell; backup purchase at the loan payoff value (per HomeLight's help center)
- AFC bridge: 2.5% origination on the amount borrowed, 1% per month accruing interest, $3,250 flat fees, up to 12 months, no prepayment penalty, no backup purchase
- Who you work with: HomeLight runs through your agent; AFC is one local team in Monroe that also writes your new mortgage, with any agent you choose
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| Compare | HomeLight Buy Before You Sell | AFC bridge loan (Connecticut) |
|---|---|---|
| Available for a Connecticut home you're selling? | Yes. HomeLight lists Connecticut among the 47 states where the program is live. | Yes. AFC lends across Connecticut, including Fairfield, New Haven, and Hartford counties. |
| What the cost is based on | The sale price of the home you're selling: a flat 2.4% program fee. Minimums apply if the sale price is under $375,000. | The amount you borrow: 2.5% origination plus a flat $3,200 in attorney and processing fees and a $50 wire fee. |
| Other program costs | An additional $1,500 if you don't use HomeLight Closing Services on one of the transactions. | None beyond the above. Third-party costs (appraisal, recording) are listed line by line on our bridge page. |
| Interest | HomeLight's help center describes a flat program fee and doesn't list a separate interest rate. Ask HomeLight for the full cost in writing. | 1% per month, accrues and is settled at payoff. Nothing due monthly. No minimum interest. |
| Time to sell | Your agent has 21 days to list the home and 120 days to sell it. | Up to 12 months. List when you're ready. |
| If it doesn't sell in time | HomeLight "will purchase it at the Loan Payoff Value, then will relist it on the open market." Ask HomeLight how proceeds from that resale come back to you. | No backup purchase. You keep the home and keep selling at market; interest keeps accruing and we work the plan with you (price adjustment, extension, or refinance). |
| Who holds the bridge and the new mortgage | HomeLight provides the equity unlock; your mortgage comes from a lender you choose. | AFC funds the bridge with its own money and writes the new mortgage. One Approval Team, one set of conditions. |
| Speed | Approval runs through your agent and HomeLight. | Funded as soon as 7 business days after approval. |
| Who you talk to | Your agent, HomeLight, and your mortgage lender. | A local Home Finance Advisor and Approval Team in Monroe, Connecticut. |
Sources for HomeLight figures, checked October 1, 2026: HomeLight Agent Help Center, "How HomeLight Buy Before You Sell Works" (2.4% flat fee of the departing residence sale price; fees subject to change and may vary by region; 21 days to list, 120 days to sell; purchase at Loan Payoff Value if unsold after 120 days); HomeLight Agent Help Center, "Pricing & Fees" (minimums under a $375,000 sale price; additional $1,500 fee without HomeLight Closing Services); HomeLight lender FAQ (live in 47 states, including Connecticut). HomeLight's terms can change; confirm current terms with HomeLight directly. HomeLight is not affiliated with AFC Mortgage Group.
When HomeLight Wins vs When a Local Bridge Loan Wins
HomeLight wins when...
- You're confident the home sells well inside 120 days, and you want the cost fixed no matter how long it takes within that window
- Your current home's price is modest relative to the equity you need, so a percentage of the sale price is a small number
- You want a guaranteed exit at day 120, and you've asked HomeLight how the resale proceeds come back to you
- You and your agent are already set up to work with HomeLight
A local bridge loan wins when...
- Your home is worth a lot but you only need a modest bridge. Our cost is sized to what you borrow, not what your home sells for. In Fairfield County that's the common case.
- You want up to 12 months rather than a 120-day clock
- You'd rather keep selling at market than hand the home over at the payoff value
- You want to choose your own agent and closing attorney, with one local team holding the bridge and the new mortgage
Two Worked Examples From Fairfield County
Example 1: a typical move-up
You own a $650,000 home in Fairfield with a $300,000 balance and you're buying an $850,000 home in Trumbull with $200,000 down. The old home sells three months after you close on the new one.
| Line item | HomeLight terms | AFC bridge loan |
|---|---|---|
| Amount you need to unlock | $200,000 | $200,000 |
| Program fee or origination | 2.4% of a $650,000 sale price = $15,600 | $5,000 (2.5% of $200,000) |
| Flat fees | $0 with HomeLight Closing Services; $1,500 without | $3,250 (attorney, processing, wire) |
| Interest over 3 months | None listed | $6,000 (1% per month, accrues) |
| Approximate total at 3 months | $15,600 to $17,100 | $14,250 |
| If it takes 4 months (day 120) | $15,600 to $17,100 | $16,250 |
| If it takes 6 months | HomeLight purchases at the loan payoff value after day 120 and relists | $20,250; you keep selling at market |
Example 2: a higher-priced home, a smaller bridge
You own a $1,200,000 home in Westport with plenty of equity and need $150,000 to close on your next home before it sells. The old home sells in three months.
| Line item | HomeLight terms | AFC bridge loan |
|---|---|---|
| Program fee or origination | 2.4% of $1,200,000 = $28,800 | $3,750 (2.5% of $150,000) |
| Flat fees | $0 to $1,500 | $3,250 |
| Interest over 3 months | None listed | $4,500 |
| Approximate total at 3 months | $28,800 to $30,300 | $11,500 |
Notice the shape. HomeLight's cost is set by what your house sells for and stays flat for 120 days. AFC's cost is set by what you borrow and grows with time. When the house is expensive and the bridge is small, the local loan is usually the cheaper tool by a wide margin. When the sale runs long, HomeLight's flat fee helps until day 120, when its backup purchase takes over and the sale is no longer yours to price.
Illustrative only. Uses HomeLight's published 2.4% program fee and $1,500 closing-services fee as checked October 1, 2026 (HomeLight notes fees may vary by region), and AFC's representative bridge terms: 2.5% origination, 1% per month accruing interest, and $3,250 in attorney, processing, and wire fees. Excludes third-party costs common to both (appraisal, recording) and the cost of your new mortgage. Your rate, fees, and eligibility depend on credit, equity, and market conditions. Not a commitment to lend.
How AFC Handles It
AFC is a retail mortgage lender in Monroe, Connecticut, family-run since 1998. We built our bridge program for exactly the buy-before-you-sell problem HomeLight addresses, and we fund it with our own capital.
- We are a retail lender, not a broker. Our Approval Team approves 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 fund as soon as 7 business days after approval 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.
- Any agent, any closing attorney. Our bridge doesn't require a particular brokerage or closing service.
- Want a cash-backed offer, not just a down payment?AFC's Cash Offer Program finances up to 100% of the new purchase so your offer competes with cash.
Real results: 90 bridge loans funded · median 59 days to payoff · 0 defaults. Fairfield County: $112K bridge on a $580K purchase, paid off in 16 days.
★★★★★ 4.9 · 461+ Google Reviews · Connecticut direct lender · Family-owned since 1998 · NMLS #2801 · Equal Housing Lender
HomeLight Alternative in Connecticut: Frequently Asked Questions
Is HomeLight Buy Before You Sell available in Connecticut?
What does HomeLight Buy Before You Sell cost?
How does AFC's bridge loan compare on cost?
What happens if my home doesn't sell in 120 days?
Do I have to use a particular agent or closing service?
How fast can AFC close a bridge loan?
See What a Connecticut Bridge Loan Looks Like for You
Two minutes, no SSN, no hard credit pull. A local team that lends its own money will show you what buying before you sell costs with your numbers. Want the terms first? See our bridge loans in Connecticut page, or run your numbers in the bridge loan calculator.
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