Scaling up for military guy

[Percy Price]

I moved from my primary residence in the metro Atlanta area and am currently renting it out. The tenant reached out to my property manager within the last week and asked if I was interested in selling. The thought has crossed my mind several times to purchase a rental closer to where I currently live. However, my emotions may be playing a factor since it was my first home(I know that's a no-no). I am not sure whether to keep it or sell.

I paid 93K for it back in 2015. It is a townhome so the HOA does eat a little into my profit margin but I'm still making roughly $300 after all is paid at the beginning of each month. I plan to increase the rent by $100 or more if the market continues to allow for the area. Two months ago, I did see a neighbor sell their home, exact same layout, fixtures, sqft, everything, for 170K. The only differences between my house and the one sold are I upgraded the following: a/c system, luxury vinyl plank floors on the first floor and small items such as pull knobs in the kitchen and interior/exterior door knobs.

I would like to receive no less than 176K but I'm on the fence to sell. When my family and myself moved, several townhome neighborhoods were under development. The first neighborhood started at 160K several years ago. The other neighborhoods are currently selling for 220K-260K. First and foremost, the houses I have seen sell in the newer townhome subdivisions are 3BR/3BA. My townhome is 2BR/2.5BA so obviously they are a little off as far as the same layout. However, I am wondering if I should hold on to the property since the area is continuing to grow. I believe the new residential growth has been driving my property value up but I could be wrong. Is appreciation the game I should be playing?

If I were to sell, my plan is to purchase two additional rentals. The first would be a cash deal and the second would have a mortgage. It would be a step down in property class(B to C) as well. If it helps with the decision process, I also have a HELOC on the property with $19K tied up. $68K is the outstanding balance on the mortgage. Any suggestions?

To wrap it all up, I'm wondering if I should hold off to see how much the property appreciates or go ahead and sell now. Thanks BP community!