15 or 30 year mortgage on 1st rental?

[Masud Khan]

I’m in the process of buying my first rental property. My credit union is offering 3.1% on an15 year while another lender is offering 4.87% on an 30 year for investment properties. I’m 46 and aim to retire by 65. With only 20 years on the retirement horizon, do I go with a 15 year or 30 year mortgage?

A couple considerations:

-my goal now is but and hold. in retirement it would make sense to have all the rent come on as cash flow and not have to pay down a mortgage.

-in my area, prices are expensive, so I my rent would not quite cover the Monthiy expense even for a 30 year mortgage. This means even more out of pocket for a 15 year!

Any help would be appreciated!!