[Advice Requested] Deciding to Sell or Rent

[Jordan Holt]

Greetings,

My wife and I are planning on relocating to the Raleigh area from Syracuse, NY in May/June. We are trying to decide if we should sell our current home or rent it out. (3Bd, 1 Ba)

Selling: We purchased the home last June. The current balance on the loan is $51,000. The realtor thinks we could sell for ~$57,000. Thus we would probably break about even...maybe a thousand or two up or down.

Renting: The property manager thinks we could rent it out for ~$950. The escrow payment will be around $600. Tenant to pay utilities, water, and handle all snow removal and yard upkeep. The property management fee is 10% plus $500 for each new tenant. With about $50 / month in general upkeep that would put us pocketing around $200 each month. However, the hot water heater will probably go in the next year or two and the roof has maybe 3-5 years left.

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.