[Fern]

For those of you who have had the experience of selling your home, how did you time the sale of your house with the purchase of a new one?

I know the conventional thing to do is first get a buyer for your home, and then start looking for a new one, but if you are somewhat particular about where you live, what do you do if you're afraid you might not be able to find something you really like within the 1 or 2 month window typical in a buyer's contract?

I'm also not crazy about carrying 2 mortgages for several months. Seems kind of risky, especially in this sort of slowed down real estate market.

I thought maybe you could make an offer once you find something you like, with a contingency clause that says the offer is contingent upon your being able to sell your own house, but people have said to me that wouldn't appeal to sellers since it's really very iffy and not a firm offer.