When to SELL a rental property

[Matt Weber]

I've bought three places but probably NONE of them would pass all the tests for good deals aside from me getting into a property and doing my best to ensure that they cover mortgage+condo fee with an afterthought for maintenance and vacancy.

The first one I did so-so on, the second one I bought on a short sale, the third has turned out to be lovely. So, now that I have three, it's easy to see that the first two do not have appreciating rental rates while the third one does. So, I figure I can sell the first two to pick things up in a market with appreciating rental rates but the transaction costs and the taxes of sale, together with the cost of closing on a new place seem unpleasant. Can anyone help me figure out the math on that? I ask for myself but I bet there's a lot of people on this forum that would like to know.