You’ve found the perfect Intracoastal front home in Hampstead, or maybe a rare double-lot property in Downtown Wilmington. There’s just one problem: your equity is trapped in your current house.

In the fast-moving real estate market of New Hanover, Pender, Onslow, and Brunswick counties, making an offer "contingent on the sale of your home" is often a non-starter. Sellers want certainty, not a chain of "maybe." To compete, you need to unlock your cash before you close.

Two common tools for this are Bridge Loans and HELOCs, but in North Carolina, they work differently than most buyers expect.

The Bridge Loan: Speed at a Price

A bridge loan is a short-term financing tool designed to span the gap between buying new and selling old.

How it Works: You take out a temporary loan against your current home’s equity to fund the down payment on the new one. Once your old home sells, you pay off the bridge loan in full.

The NC Reality Check: Be careful with the terminology. In North Carolina, true "hard money" bridge loans are often restricted to investment properties due to consumer protection laws. However, many local lenders (like First National Bank or Intercoastal Mortgage) offer specific "Cross-Collateralization" loans for primary residences. These allow you to leverage your current home without the predatory rates of a commercial bridge loan.

Best For: Buyers who need to move now and have significant equity (usually 20-30%+) but little cash on hand.

The HELOC: The "Plan Ahead" Strategy

A Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) works like a credit card secured by your house.

The Strategy: You open the line of credit months before you list your home. You draw on the funds for your down payment and Due Diligence fee. When your home sells, you pay off the balance at closing.

The Trap: You generally cannot open a new HELOC once your home is listed for sale. Lenders view a "For Sale" sign as a risk that you are about to pay off the loan, so they won't approve the application.

Best For: Planners. If you are thinking about upgrading to a larger home in Leland or Surf City next year, open the HELOC now while you are still happily settled.

The "Third Option": Buy Now, Sell Later Programs

In 2025, technology has given us a new alternative. "Power Buyer" companies (and some forward-thinking lenders) offer programs that effectively turn you into a cash buyer.

How it Works: These companies will front the cash to buy your new home, allowing you to move in first. They then list and sell your old home for you.

Why it Wins Here: In a multiple-offer situation on a hot Wrightsville Beach property, coming to the table with a "cash" offer (backed by one of these programs) beats a contingent offer every time.

The Verdict

• Choose a Bridge Loan if you are already in the thick of the hunt and found a house you can't lose.
• Choose a HELOC if you are 6-12 months away from listing and want the cheapest access to cash.
• Choose a "Buy Now" Program if you want to avoid the stress of a double move entirely.

Your Next Step

Financing a transition is just as much art as it is math. You need a strategy that matches your timeline and risk tolerance. At Aspyre Realty Group, we don't just find you a house; we connect you with the specific local lenders and programs that make the transition possible. We help you translate your equity into purchasing power so you never miss out on the right home.

Trapped in your current home but ready to move? Let’s sit down and map out a strategy to get you from "Listed" to "Sold" without the headache.