It's hard enough when you only have to buy a house. So buying and selling houses at the same time really is double the difficulty. What's more is you have to time everything right so you will still have a home when find a buyer for your house. You have to avoid maintaining two houses either because that would be more expensive. Because of this you definitely have to sell your house first. When you sell your home, you will also know how much you can afford for a new house. While you would want to get as much for your home you also must take note that you should price it fairly if you want to be able to sell it sooner. Since you are selling before buying a house, you should negotiate for a long close. You can also ask to rent back your house while you have not bought a new home yet. To speed up the process of selling you should hire a realtor and you should prioritize buyers who are pre-approved by lenders.   On the other hand, it would help you budget if you looked at how much houses are in the area you want to live in. Don't dwell on the houses that are out of your league though. You should get pre-approved so you can check out the houses that you can afford. And when you find the one you like, you can make an offer right away since you are pre-approved already. Again, a realtor can help you find a listing of houses that satisfy your requirements. They can also facilitate a faster and a smoother transaction for you.