Newbie Looking For Advice: Rent or Sell?

[Vito Ellison]

I own a rowhome, free and clear in what you'd probably characterize as a C market. My parents lived in it for almost a decade, while I've had my own career, homes and life out of state.  Now that my Mom will be moving into the "in-law suite" at my home, I have a dilemma between rehabbing the rowhome and putting it up for rent, or trying to take advantage of the hot market (the Zestimate is higher than the purchase price) and getting it off my hands.  

Key considerations, I'm not handy and don't relish the idea of being a landlord, so I'd probably spend on a project manager (limiting my upside), but I can also see the potential upside of holding the property as an asset on the books either way.

My question for the community is, what should I think about in making my decision?  My plan was to talk to a realtor to get a realistic idea of the potential value of the property; bring in my contractor to get a realistic price on the rehab to make it a better rental and to try to find rental comps online.  That said, this (clearly) is not my area of expertise.  If you can either answer me or point me toward resources to help me make the right call, I would really appreciate it. 

[John Warren]

@Vito Ellison I would think carefully through any looming CapEx issues that are coming up. Do you have older plumbing? older windows? An older roof? How soon will the flooring need to be completely redone?

A lot of times people underestimate these items, and even a paid off piece of real estate can go negative cash flow for a while if you have to complete redo a building system.