Current Residence, Sell or Rent?

[Bryan Beyers]

I'm in the beginning phases of getting into the rental real-estate market. My current residence is the only property I own (single family), however, a new job has left me with a long commute and I'm looking to move.

1) Should I keep my current residence as my first rental, use the equity (total equity is ~90k but would only be able to tap into 50% of that from what I've found with cash-out refis) as leverage for more rentals and have a small cash flow of about $50-100/month? I have already recovered my entire down payment through renting out my basement (FYI).

2) Sell the house, take the ~90k in cash (minus sale fees), and use this to invest in higher cash flow rentals?

About the house:

-Purchase price: 285k

-DP: 15k

-Basement rental income to date: 22k

-Fully remodeled on the inside

-new roof, AC unit, kitchen appliances and furnace (4k out of pocket from me for upgrades etc)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!