Looking for advice - Unemployed and planning my 2nd purchase

[Corbin Lane]

Hi BP, this is my first post.

I am not a smart man, and I'm looking for some advice to help direct my thoughts and research toward my 2nd investment property.

From a high level, what would you do if you were in my shoes?

Here's my current situation, in excessive detail:

Earlier this year I rented out my home in southern California and moved to an apartment in Portland, OR.

I was working remotely and was laid off a few months ago.

Since then I've been receiving unemployment benefits and looking for my next job.

When employed I normally make around 100k doing database and software engineering.

My rental home has been a godsend during covid as it is cashflowing almost enough to cover my rent here.

So far my tenants have not brought up any finanal troubles due to covid.

They are mature and skilled, and most likely are working from home.

With the addition of the unemployment benefits and my already mininalistic/frugal lifestyle, my bank balance has been depleting but not too quickly.

It seems clear that my first priority needs to be getting employed, but there's only so much job hunting that can be done in a day and I'm not really sure what's going on in tech hiring right now - one recruiter signaled that companies are not really hiring much yet.

I've been taking this opportunity to learn and plan so that I can be ready to purchase my next rental property when the opportunity is right. At this point my strategy is simple buy and hold, and self-management of rentals. I managed and DIY'd several improvements to my first house so I'm comfortable working with most systems in a home, and comfortable with hiring and managing helpers, handymen, and subcontractors. I would not consider myself skilled enough to manage a significant rehab, but kitchen and bathroom remodels are within my comfort zone.

I'm still undecided about whether I think the fallout from covid will cause a major correction in RE prices but I've been getting some real heavy 2006 vibes from all the sellers markets, not to mention the unprecedented load of uncertainty we currently face. As eager as I am to expand my rental income, and even though I'm cashflow oriented, I'd hate to ruin a good thing by making a poorly timed buy.

Since I'm currently renting (lease ends in June,) and since I have family in NW WA that I'd like to see more often, I've been thinking about buying a duplex in that region (specifically, the swath between Sammamish and Bellingham) and possibly house hack it a bit. I understand that this area can be less than ideal for investing due to high prices and low cashflow potential. I'm not really sure about the reliability of the local economy either, at least in the areas that I could afford.

I'm not set on any one area or even on investing locally, but there would certainly be some benefits in that I wouldn't have to rent a place, and I could directly manage and work on the home instead of trying to manage it from across the country. At this point I have no interest in moving away from the West coast states.

Financial stats:

Credit score: 750

Other Assets

Cash $15k

IRA (VTSAX): $12k

Car value: $10k

Stats for my rental property:

Location: San Diego County

Size: 3bd/2ba 1200sqft

Current value: $510-540k (according to Zillow, Redfin)

Loan Balance: $200k

Rent: $2850

Interest Rate: 4.0%

Loan type: FHLMC Afford Mod (HAMP mod)

Principal + Interest: $1005

Escrow (includes sewer, prop taxes and homeowners ins): $545

Total mortgage payment: $1550

Yard maint + Handyman: ~$100/mo avg

Thanks in advance for any advice that you can spare. I don't personally know anyone who's into real estate and am fairly introverted so I'm hoping to break out of the vacuum and gain perspective as well as a sanity check on my numbers and goals.