Live in flip to..? Advice on next step

[J Rhodes]

I’m currently living in my second live in flip. I sold my first one to fund my current one. I live in a somewhat expensive market. I have probably somewhere close to $80k in equity. Here are my thoughts:

1. Renting out current house - cash flow about $600 a month vs $80k down payment on my next house if I sold only reducing monthly payment by maybe $400 a month. I have access to VA loan so I really don't need a down payment and don't need to worry about mortgage insurance.

2. Use my equity to purchase an investment property using a HELOC and stay put in my current house for a few years. Doing this in my market is rough. Lots of competition and tight profit margins. Not sure if it's entirely worth it.

3. ?? Open to other ideas.