What would you do in my situation?

[Wojciech Grajewski]

SITUATION 1:

I purchased a house with a VA loan (this means I cannot rent it out) for $225K located in Long Island NY. The current mortgage is $200K. The current rental value is $2,400. The PITI on the house is $1300. I can't sell it cause I have no lived in the house in the past 5 years.

Should I refinance out of the VA mortgage and rent the house out?

SITUATION 2:

I have $170K in cash. I am currently stationed in Europe right now so it's hard to get the travel back to the states to find a rental property. 

With the above mentioned ... what would you do in my situation? How would you take my situations and invest or create passive income. 

Any input is appreciated. 

Thank you!