To sell or not to sell, that is the question. Medford, MA.

To sell or not to sell, that is the question. Medford, MA.

Investor · Windham, NH · Member since 2017 · 26 posts · 4 votes

Overview: This is my first post so thanks for hearing me out. I own a two-family in Medford (near Tufts, Davis Sq, Mystic Valley Parkway) and am considering selling soon--or not. Trying to figure that out. The motivation for selling is to generate capital to use on the next investment(s) and to possibly get more space for me and my family. I bought in Somerville in 2009, Medford in 2014, and am now seeing that insane growth trajectory start to bleed over into other towns--and I want to get in ahead of the curve again like in Somerville and Medford.

Background: I bought the house in 2014 and invested about $30k in the past two years while living in one unit and renting the other. It's now worth at least $200k more than we paid (plus we will get back our original investment--i.e. the 20% downpayment). The rental income greatly subsidizes our mortgage payment. If we were to rent both units, we would clear about $2000/month over our mortgage payment. If I sell the place, I need to find somewhere else for me and my family to live...Somewhere with more space perhaps and near a commuter rail? Ideally, I would be able to keep the house, rent it, AND buy another house but that would drain all my savings.


What would you do in this situation? Options:

1) keep living in one unit and renting the other. Pro: Affords us the luxury of having someone else pay for most of our mortgage. Con: our money is "tied up" in the property and we don't have the space we need with a young child.

2) rent both units and collect $2000/month in profit. Pro: steady cash flow. Con: have to drain all savings in order to make the downpayment on another house to move to. Or rent for a while...

3) Take the money and run. Pro: would produce lots of capital to invest in another property or two. Con: be back on the competitive buyer-side of the market.

Any and all advice is welcome! Also, if I can provide any more background, insights, etc that would be helpful, please let me know.

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  • Investor · Somerville, MA · Member since 2016 · 150 posts · 70 votes
    9y
    I think a lot of this depends on your future goals with real estate. Somerville and Medford are an amazing market for stability but CAP rates are pretty low here. You could certainly sell, take whatever money you need to go and buy another home then reinvest the remainder and still have cash flow close to the same as you would had you kept the Somerville home. However if you like the steady income and are okay with draining your savings then rebuilding it there is nothing wrong with that. Another option you have is getting a HELOC on your Somerville home for emergencies when your saving is used on a new primary home. If you'd like to discuss this more with real numbers and comps let me know! I currently live & invest in East Somerville
  • Developer · Boston, MA · Member since 2016 · 175 posts · 155 votes
    9y

    Like Mike I also invest in Somerville. I also agree with Mike's comment. If I were in your position I would have my cake and eat it too. I would get a HELOC. You would be able to keep the house and invest money somewhere else. Getting a HELOC would take about 30 days where as selling the house could take a few months. You have a lot of good options. The best option is the one that lets you sleep great at night!

  • Investor · Windham, NH · Member since 2017 · 26 posts · 4 votes
    9y

    @Mike Abramowitz great feedback, thanks for your insights. I think your point about the CAP rate is a really good one to consider. Instead of the dismal CAP rate I'm getting in Medford, I could reinvest the sale proceeds (roughly $300k) into one or several more modest properties with higher CAP rates.

    That aligns better with my long term goals, too, as I want to expand my portfolio and diversify my holdings. Also, on a more practical note, some of my "savings" are actually tied up at the moment on a flip I'm doing in Maine. Hoping to be out of that one by fall at the latest. Knock on wood.

    @Josue Velney The sleeping well at night point cannot be forgotten. My current thinking is to continue with the plan we're on--i.e. making some final cosmetic improvements to our two-family in Medford and listing in about a month--and if we hit our sale target we will reassess at that point in time.

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