Bridge Loans in Las Vegas: Unlock Your Equity to Buy Before You Sell
- Published on
- 8 min read
-
Joseph Gordon EditorClose
Joseph Gordon EditorJoseph Gordon is an Editor with HomeLight. He has several years of experience reporting on the commercial real estate and insurance industries.
Buying a new home in Las Vegas while trying to sell your current one can feel like walking a financial tightrope. You’re trying to line up two major transactions — and when inventory is tight and home prices are steep, the pressure can be overwhelming.
It might seem like your only option is to sell first, move out, and figure out temporary housing while you search for your next place. But there’s another option that could help the pieces fit together more smoothly.
A bridge loan might be the solution you’re looking for. This short-term financing option helps you buy your new home before your current one sells, giving you a little more control in a stressful situation.
Yes, You Can Buy Before You Sell. Why Move Twice?
Through our Buy Before You Sell program, HomeLight can help you unlock a portion of your equity upfront to put toward your next home. You can then make a strong offer on your next home with no home sale contingency.
What is a bridge loan, in simple words?
A bridge loan in real estate is a short-term loan that helps you buy a new home while you’re in the process of selling your current one. It gives you access to the equity in your existing home so you can cover a down payment and closing costs on your new purchase without waiting for your old house to sell.
Bridge loans tend to cost more than traditional mortgages, but they are designed to be fast and flexible, helping you move forward without as much financial stress.
Bridge loans are also sometimes referred to as:
- bridge financing
- bridging loan
- interim financing
- gap financing
- swing loan
How does a bridge loan work in Las Vegas?
A common situation in which a Las Vegas buyer might need a bridge loan is when the buyer has to buy their next home before selling their current one. The buyer would then use the equity from their old home to help cover the down payment and closing costs of the new purchase.
Typically, the lender handling your new mortgage will also manage your bridge loan. Lenders usually require that your current home is listed for sale and will offer a bridge loan for a term of six months to one year.
Your lender may calculate your debt-to-income ratio to decide if you qualify. They might include payments from your existing mortgage, your new mortgage, and any interest-only payments on the bridge loan. If your old home is under contract and the buyer has final loan approval, the lender may only factor in your new mortgage payment.
Lenders want to be confident that you can handle payments on both homes if your sale doesn’t happen immediately.
What are the benefits of a bridge loan in Las Vegas?
Borrowing a bridge loan has several benefits, such as positioning you as a more flexible homebuyer in Las Vegas.
- You can make a non-contingent offer on your new home
- You only have to move once without the hassle of finding temporary housing
- You can prepare your old home and focus on staging after you’ve moved out
- Some lenders don’t require payments during the loan period, reducing short-term financial pressure
- You can act quickly on the right property without waiting for your current home to sell
These combined benefits can make a bridge loan a convenient option if you’re tight on cash before selling your previous home, giving you the flexibility to repay the loan with your sale proceeds.
What are the drawbacks of a bridge loan?
While a bridge loan can increase your flexibility and ease some of the stress of buying and selling, there are some drawbacks to consider.
- Additional loan costs like underwriting fees, origination fees, and administrative expenses
- The added financial stress of paying two mortgages and a bridge loan at the same time
- Qualifying may be harder than it would be for a traditional mortgage loan
- Underwriting can take longer than you might expect, delaying your plans
Lenders will look at your monthly income and how much equity you have in your current home when deciding how much you can borrow. If you owe more than 80% of your home’s value, you might not qualify.
When is a bridge loan a good solution?
A bridge loan isn’t a blanket solution for all real estate transactions, but it can ease the stress of transitioning between an old home and a new one for some sellers.
Some examples of when a bridge loan might be a fitting solution include:
- You need the equity you’ve built in your current home to make a down payment on a new one.
- You only want to move once and avoid renting or staying in a hotel between selling and buying.
- You’ve found a new home but don’t want to risk losing it to another buyer in a competitive market.
- You’ve made an offer, but the seller won’t accept a home sale contingency, and you want to buy immediately.
- You cannot prepare or stage your current home while living in it, either because you need a blank slate for the best price or because major renovations are required.
What’s required to get a bridge loan in Las Vegas?
To qualify for a bridge loan in Las Vegas, you typically need the following:
- Qualifying income: Your lender will review your income to make sure you can afford both mortgage payments and possibly a bridge loan payment.
- Sufficient equity: You should have at least 20% equity in your current home, though some lenders may require up to 50%.
- Good credit history: A credit score above 650 is often needed. A higher score can help you secure better rates and terms.
- Your current home to be listed for sale: Some lenders require proof that your existing home is on the market to ensure it will sell within the loan term.
How much does a bridge loan cost in Las Vegas?
Below is an example of how much a $300,000 bridge loan might cost, along with possible fees.
You find a home you’d like to purchase, but you’re still waiting for your current Las Vegas house to sell. The new home’s asking price is $440,000. You can only come up with $140,000, but you have at least another $300,000 worth of equity in your current property. You want to access that money to cover the shortfall before your new home is sold to another buyer.
| Net loan amount | $300,000 | $300,000 |
| Interest (varies) | 10% (example for 6 months) | $15,000 |
| Origination fee | 1.5% | $4,500 |
| Underwriting fee | $1,000 | $1,000 |
| Appraisal fee | $700 | $700 |
| Closing cost* | 2% | $6,000 |
| Total repayable amount | $327,200 |
*These closing costs typically range between 1.5%-3%
How Much Is Your Las Vegas Home Worth Now?
Get a near-instant real estate house price estimate from HomeLight for free. Our tool analyzes the records of recently sold homes near you, your home’s last sale price, and other market trends to provide a preliminary range of value in under two minutes.
Who provides bridge loans in Las Vegas?
Due to the underwriting demands for this type of loan, you may find that fewer institutions in Las Vegas offer bridge loan products. Curious borrowers may inquire with a variety of lenders before submitting an application. The most common sources include:
- Your mortgage lender
- Local banks
- Credit unions
- Hard-money lenders
- Non-qualified mortgage (non-QM) lenders
There are also modern real estate companies that can seamlessly handle finding you a bridge loan to help you fill the gap between buying and selling a home. We’ll share how this works later in this post.
Are there alternatives to bridge loans in Las Vegas?
While a bridge loan might not work for every Las Vegas homeowner’s unique situation, there are alternatives to consider:
- Home equity loan: This kind of loan (sometimes called a HEL) allows you to borrow money using the equity in your home as collateral. Interest rates for a home equity loan can be more expensive than your current rate on your first mortgage, but instead of completing a cash-out refinance (paying off the first mortgage and borrowing cash), you can just borrow the money you need at the higher interest rate and leave your first mortgage of at its lower rate.
- Home equity line of credit (HELOC): Another option to use your existing equity is a HELOC. This allows you to pull money out of your property for a relatively low interest rate. Instead of receiving the money all at once, your lender will extend a line of credit for you to borrow against. You may have to pay an early closure fee if you open this line of credit and close it very soon after. Unlike a home equity loan, HELOCs typically have adjustable interest rates.
- Cash-out refinance: This type of loan lets you pull cash out of your home while refinancing your previous mortgage at the same time. Interest rates are typically higher for these kinds of loans compared to regular refinances but are lower than those for bridge loans. This is not a solution for everyone, though. For example, you cannot do two owner-occupied loans within one year of one another. This would mean that you might have to wait longer to finance your new purchase with an owner-occupied mortgage using the cash from your cash-out refinance.
- 80-10-10 (piggyback) loan: This option is called a piggyback loan because you would be taking a first mortgage and second mortgage out at the same time to fund your new purchase — this means that you would only need 10% down. For buyers who can’t make as large of a down payment before selling their previous home, this could be a solution that helps them avoid the cost of mortgage insurance. You would, however, still be carrying the cost of three mortgage payments until you sell your current home and can pay off the second mortgage.
- A 401k loan: Borrowing against your retirement account comes with some benefits and drawbacks — your repayment period will be relatively short (up to 5 years), and your monthly payment will likely be high. This could affect your ability to qualify for your new mortgage, as your lender will need to include this monthly payment when calculating your debt-to-income ratio. If your 401k plan allows, you might be able to borrow up to $50,000 to put toward your new purchase.
Are there modern ways to buy a house before I sell?
With today’s technology, real estate solution companies like HomeLight incorporate bridge loans into convenient programs that streamline the process of buying and selling a house simultaneously in Las Vegas. These “Buy Before You Sell” programs can provide a more complete “bridge” to help you successfully complete your move to a new home, thereby reducing stress and worry.
Together with your Las Vegas agent, HomeLight can help you move into your new home with speed and certainty while helping you get the strongest possible offer for your old home. Check with your agent to see if HomeLight Buy Before You Sell is available in your area.
Examples of other “Buy Before You Sell” or home trade-in service companies include Knock, Orchard, Flyhomes, and Homeward.
How does HomeLight Buy Before You Sell work?
Here is how HomeLight’s Buy Before You Sell program works for home sellers in Las Vegas:
- Apply in minutes with no commitment: Find out if your property is a good fit for the program and get your equity unlock amount approved in 24 hours or less. No cost or commitment is required.
- Buy your dream home with confidence: Once you’re approved, you’ll have access to a portion of your equity in your current home. You’ll be able to submit a competitive offer with no home sale contingency at any time — regardless of how long it takes to find your dream home. Our near-instant Equity Unlock Calculator lets you estimate how much equity we can unlock from your current home.
- Sell your current home with peace of mind: After you move into your new home, we will list your unoccupied home on the market to attract the strongest offer possible. You’ll receive the remainder of your equity after the home sells.
Benefits of Homelight Buy Before You Sell
- Your timeline is flexible: There is no need to sync up sale and purchase dates perfectly. This program gives you breathing space to plan your move without feeling hurried.
- Financial peace of mind: Say goodbye to the stress of potential double mortgages or dipping into savings to bridge the gap between homes.
- Enhanced buying power: In a seller’s market, a non-contingent offer can stand out, increasing your chances of landing your dream home.
- Sell for up to 10% more: After you move, you can list your old home unoccupied and potentially staged, which can lead to a higher selling price, according to HomeLight transaction data.
For Las Vegas homeowners caught in the buy-sell conundrum, HomeLight’s Buy Before You Sell program offers a convenient and stress-reducing solution. Learn more program details at this link.
HomeLight also offers other services for homebuyers and sellers in Las Vegas, such as Agent Match to find the top-performing real estate agents in your market, and Simple Sale, a convenient way to receive a no-obligation, all-cash offer to sell your home in as little as 10 days.
You might also try HomeLight’s Net Proceeds Calculator as you plan your home sale.
A creative financing solution for Las Vegas homeowners
As Las Vegas homebuyers face a competitive market and high home prices, some are turning to bridge loans to ease the challenge of buying a new home while selling their old one.
A bridge loan allows you to borrow against the equity in your current home to help fund your next purchase, giving you extra flexibility and reducing the pressure of perfectly timing both transactions.
While a bridge loan can be a convenient tool, it can also be costly and isn’t the best fit for every buyer.
Consider HomeLight’s Buy Before You Sell program to help take the uncertainty out of your next move. HomeLight can also connect you with a top-performing Nevada buyer’s agent who has experience with bridge loans.
Editor’s note: As a friendly reminder, this post is intended for educational purposes, not financial advice. If you need assistance navigating the use of a bridge loan in Las Vegas, HomeLight encourages you to reach out to your own advisor.
Header Image Source: Jean-Philippe Delberghe
- "What is a home equity loan?," Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (September 2024)
- "What is the difference between a Home Equity Loan and a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)?," Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (January 2025)
- "What is a “piggyback” second mortgage?," Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (September 2024)
- "Can you borrow from your 401(k)? Rules, interest rates, and loan details," Business Insider, Tessa Campbell & Jake Safane (April 2025)
At HomeLight, our vision is a world where every real estate transaction is simple, certain, and satisfying. Therefore, we promote strict editorial integrity in each of our posts.
