Equal Housing Lender
Fairway NMLS #2289
Ken Powell NMLS #2656628
Most homeowners believe they have to sell before they can buy. Fairway offers three distinct Buy Before You Sell strategies, each built to solve a different problem: the equity problem, the qualification problem, or the contingency problem. One move. Less stress. More options.
Ken does not lead with program names. He diagnoses the problem first, then matches the solution.
Buy Before You Sell (Contingency Removal)
You qualify carrying both homes temporarily, but sellers keep passing on your contingent offers. This strategy lets you purchase the new home first, remove the home-sale contingency, move once, then list and sell your current home after you are settled, empty, and staged.
Best for: homeowners who qualify but need their offer to compete.
Equity Unlock
Many sellers have six figures of equity but cannot touch it until they sell. This strategy lets you access equity from your current home before it sells, use it for the down payment and closing costs on the next home, then repay the advance when the departing home closes.
Best for: homeowners whose down payment is trapped in their current house.
Mortgage Liability Removal (DTI Drop™)
Sometimes income is not the obstacle; counting your current mortgage payment is. When program requirements are met, a backup offer mechanism on the departing residence may allow the existing mortgage liability to be omitted from qualifying ratios, which can significantly increase purchasing power.
Best for: homeowners who can afford the new payment but cannot qualify carrying both.
If yes, Equity Unlock is usually the starting point.
If not, Mortgage Liability Removal may solve the qualification problem.
If that is the only obstacle, contingency removal makes your offer compete.
Strategies can also be combined depending on the scenario. The right answer depends on your equity position, income, timeline, and the departing property's eligibility for the program review process.
Your client can buy the next home first, move once, and sell their current home after they are settled. That means the listing shows empty, staged, and on your timeline instead of around a family living in it.
How many visitors at your open houses say they need to sell first? Send Ken those homeowners. He evaluates which of the three strategies fits, and the ones that fit become buyers now instead of maybes next spring.
It depends on the strategy. With standard contingency removal, yes, you typically qualify carrying both temporarily. With Mortgage Liability Removal, the departing mortgage may be excluded from qualifying ratios when program requirements are met.
Possibly. The Equity Unlock strategy is built for exactly this. The current property must have sufficient equity and meet program guidelines, and your credit and income must support the new mortgage.
Yes. The departing residence must be eligible for the program review process. Ken evaluates both properties when he reviews your scenario.
Ken is licensed in both Maryland and Virginia. Program availability and terms vary by property and scenario, so the fastest way to a real answer is a scenario review.
Send Ken your scenario: current home value, mortgage balance, and what you are hoping to buy. He will tell you which strategy fits, or whether one does at all.