Three Ways Floridians Buy Before They Sell
Program and regulatory figures verified September 19, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
The three structures are the same in every state. What Florida changes is the cost of the second one and the usefulness of the third.
Carry both payments, then recast
If your income supports both housing payments, this is usually the best available answer and it is the one most often skipped. You buy the new house with ordinary financing, carry both payments for the overlap, and when the departing home sells you apply the proceeds to principal and ask the servicer to recast, which re-amortizes the loan over the remaining term at the lower balance.
In Florida it has a particular advantage. No new lien is recorded against the departing residence, so no documentary stamp tax and no intangible tax is triggered on a second obligation. On a large line those taxes are real money, and this structure simply does not incur them.
The test is whether the overlap is survivable, and in Florida the overlap tends to be longer than people assume. Detail on qualifying while you still own the first house.
Borrow against the equity you already have
If income alone does not carry both payments, the next question is whether the equity in the departing home can. Florida places no constitutional ceiling on borrowing against your own home the way Texas does, so both term financing and lines of credit are genuinely available.
What Florida does instead is tax the instrument. Documentary stamp tax runs $0.35 per $100 of the obligation secured, the nonrecurring intangible tax adds 2 mills per dollar, and the Department of Revenue states the doc stamp is due on the amount secured even if the indebtedness is contingent. There is no cap on a mortgage recorded against Florida real property; the $2,450 maximum applies only to unsecured notes.
The practical consequence: a line is taxed on its full face amount at origination, whether you draw all of it, some of it, or none of it. Sizing a line generously "just in case" has a specific Florida price. That comparison is worked through on the line versus term page.
Keep the departing home and rent it
This structure removes the timing pressure completely, and until recently it was also the easiest way to add qualifying income. That second part is no longer true.
Fannie Mae restructured its rental income policy effective September 2, 2026, and lenders must apply the new rules to all loans with application dates on and after November 1, 2026. For a departing residence, the qualifying calculation is gross rent multiplied by 75%, less the property's PITIA. If the result is positive it offsets that property's own payment and nothing more. If it is negative it goes into your debt ratio as a liability.
Lease agreements are not permitted for any departing residence under the new rule, so market rents have to be established another way. Six months of PITIA reserves are required when the borrower has less than 12 months of property management experience. The full treatment is on the rental conversion page.
How the choice actually gets made
| If this is true | Usually points to |
|---|---|
| Income comfortably covers both payments | Carry both and recast |
| Income is close, equity is strong, sale is near | Term financing against the departing home |
| Overlap is likely to be long or uncertain | Structures with the lowest carrying obligation |
| Departing home covers its own payment at market rent | Rental conversion, with the new rules applied |
| Equity is thin and income is tight | Selling first, and we will tell you that |
Start with the Florida guide, or see what the local numbers look like on the market page.
Your real estate agent handles the purchase itself and your county property appraiser decides your assessment. We handle the financing: what you qualify for, how the equity gets used, and what the payment looks like on both houses.
Frequently asked questions
Which buy-before-you-sell structure is cheapest in Florida?
Carrying both payments and recasting after the sale, when income supports it, because it records no new lien and therefore triggers no Florida documentary stamp tax or intangible tax on a second obligation. Borrowing against the departing home costs roughly $5.50 per $1,000 secured in Florida taxes before any lender fee.
Does Florida limit how much I can borrow against my home?
No. Unlike Texas, Florida places no constitutional cap on borrowing against a homestead, so both term financing and home equity lines are available. Florida's constraint is the transaction tax on the lien rather than a limit on its size.
Can I still use rental income from my current home to qualify?
Yes, but it works differently for applications dated on or after November 1, 2026. Under Fannie Mae B3-3.8-05, departing residence rental income is gross rent times 75% less PITIA. A positive result offsets that property's own payment only and does not add to qualifying income; a negative result is counted in your debt ratio.
Is it ever better to sell first in Florida?
Yes. When equity is thin, income is tight, or the departing home sits in a metro with a long time on market, selling first is frequently the sounder plan. Florida metros run well above the national mean days to pending, which makes overlap risk real rather than theoretical.
Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about financing, not a loan commitment and not legal, tax, or real estate advice. Homestead eligibility, portability, and landlord-tenant rules change and depend on your facts; your county property appraiser, your CPA or a Florida attorney, and your real estate agent each handle their own part. Loans are subject to borrower and property qualification.