About to move, have never landlorded: rent out or sell?

[Brice Naylor]

I currently live in Ohio, and will be moving (somewhere) out west in the next few months. I have never rented out a property that I own before. I realize there are many potential hurdles with renters, from screening tenants to dealing with issues while they are in the property. Would I be best suited to find a tenant, use AirBNB, or just sell?

[JD Martin]

Before you can make that decision, you have to first determine if your house is a suitable rental property candidate. If yes, then you have to determine if you want to be a landlord. If also yes, then you can start sorting out how to do it. 

More times than not, your primary home is a better candidate to sell than to rent. Reason: you bought it with your needs in mind, not with the needs of the rental market. You improved it with your needs in mind, not with the needs of the rental market. No one is going to pay you more rent for your fancy light fixture or ultra low-flow toilet. People might pay more for these things when they are buying, however.