Rent out my first property or sell it?

[Nathan Doherty]

Hi everyone!

I’m looking to get some conversation going and take some advice from the BP community.

In 2018 I bought my first property using an FHA 203k loan. I've been living in that property since then but towards the end of this year I will be leaving the military and moving across the country to change careers. My wife and I are torn between selling and renting.

If we sell, we should make anywhere from 20-30k after closing costs and we will be exempt from capital gains tax. Making that money sounds pretty tempting when I think about having it in the bank as I transition careers. On the other hand, if we were to rent we could cash flow about 250/mo after accounting for expenses and vacancy. I would hope to find tenants that are military in hopes that they wild take decent care of the place but we all know any tenant can be good or bad. If I were to rent it out I would possible try and get a 100% LTV HELOC so that I still have access to that equity incase I want to use it for future investments or just emergency funds.

I can’t wait to hear some opinions! Ask any questions you may have! Thanks!

[John Warren]

@Nathan Doherty I am not a big fan of having a one off property across the country. My rule of thumb is that if I can sell and recoup 10 years of cash flow then I will highly consider selling. In this case, selling makes a lot of sense since you are right around that 10 year mark. If you can clear 30k tax free, why would you hold this property for 10 years to make 30k that is not 100% tax free?  You can always redeploy your equity into a property wherever you settle, which will give you better control as well.