Should I sell my rental for money to put down on my own home?

[Jeremy Mahan]

I currently have a rental property that I purchased several years ago in the town where I went to college. I am currently renting and saving money to buy my own house in about a year. I enjoy having rental property and plan to pursue more deals in the future, but for now I just need to get into my own home. Should I sell my rental to put extra money down on my own house? I net about $200/month on the rental. I could sell it and net about $20,000. I'm thinking selling the rental would help my DTI ratio when buying my own house and give me more money down, however, I have really enjoyed having the investment property. Could I just borrow against the equity in the new house I buy due to the fact that I put more money down on it? I'm not sure what the best strategy is. Does anyone have any advice? Thanks.