Leverage or Sell? How to make the next step in RE for the newbie!

[David Millot]

I'm looking for feedback on the best way to take the next step in my real estate adventure. Should I sell my current rental and reinvest in a better property? Or should I leverage my rental to acquire a new property while keeping the first?

Rental: Purchased in 2014 for $215,000. Current 30 year traditional loan fixed at 3.75% with $180k balance. Estimated current value at $385,000. Its a turnkey property 3bd 2.5ba 1,400sf detached built in 2003 in a nice suburb of Portland, OR with minimal expenses. Current 1 year lease is for $1,800 monthly rent. 8% property management, $55 HOA, and $1,280 mortgage, insurance and tax payment, and saving the the rest for future expenses. So essentially the house is net 0 cash flow.

Primary Residence: Purchased in 2017 for $435,000. Current mortgage is traditional 30 year fixed at 3.25%, balance of $388k. Current home value estimated at $585,000. 

Keep in mind, I am married with 4 young kids and full time career so managing the house on my own to eliminate property management isn't in the cards. My wife is supportive of my RE goals, but is not willing to house hack or any other overly intrusive strategy so I feel like my options are sell my rental and reinvest in something better, or leverage my current rental and add a rental to my portfolio.

Thoughts for the new guy?

[Brad Hammond]

Hey @David Millot, you are in a good spot right now!  I would recommend selling your rental when the lease is up (it is hard to sell a tenant-occupied property) and purchasing a small multi-family with those proceeds.  The appreciation and debt paydown you get will be a lot better than what you have now, plus you will lock in some great long-term debt at a very low interest payment.  Let me know if you want to talk more about stratgery.