OUT-OF-STATE investing: 15% rent increase and PM hiring once we close OR manage ourselves?

[Edita D.]

Hey guys!

We are purchasing a 3-br SFR out-of-state (NOT a turn-key), and current tenant, being on a month-to-month basis, wants to stay until his house is built in 5 months.

His current rent is 15% below market rent, and we were wondering what would you do in this scenario:

-Hire PM (property management company), have PM sign a new lease that reflects 15% rent increase. OR

-Sign a distant lease with the tenant and manage the property OURSELVES until tenant moves out. Once he moves out, hire PM for the next tenant.

My concern with not having a PM watching over the property is that it seems risky since we are out-of-state. Nobody to perform an initial inspection to make sure to hold the tenant accountable for anything that's destroyed once he moves out.

In the same time we want to accommodate the tenant and NOT increase his rent since he lived there for 2.5 years now, and we will HAVE to increase to cover the costs of hiring PM.