Should I keep my first house as a rental property?

[Taylor Thorne]

I own a house in Aurora, CO that I bought in 2016 for $251,000. I have been using it successfully as a house hack with 3 tenants while I have been attending nursing school. I will be graduating in May 2022 and plan on moving to Michigan to be closer to family. I am wondering if I should sell the house next spring/summer or keep it as a rental.

Here is the information. The house was purchased tin 2016 for $251,000 with 5% down. I have refinanced since then so I currently have a 20 year loan on $225,000 at 3.125% and owe $218,000. Total payment (P&I, property tax, & insurance) is $1,571. I refinanced out of the PMI. The house is worth around $400,000 right now. If I keep it as a rental I would probably do a cash out refinance for $280,000, use some of the money to fix up the house a little and use the rest for a down payment on another house in Michigan. For $280,000 on a 30 year the payment would be about the same ($1,590) at a slightly higher rate of 3.4%.

I think that I can rent the house for at least $2,300. Tenants will pay all utilities, 10/10/10% vacancy/CapEx/Management gives me about $80 cash flow.

I would like to keep this house as a rental, especially because the Denver/Aurora market looks like it will continue to grow and appreciate. It may also be a good opportunity for me to start gaining landlord experience although it will be managed by a property management company because I will be in Michigan.

Any advice is appreciated.