Should I sell my rental?

[Nicole Shipley]

Hi everyone, 

I’m looking for guidance on whether or not to keep my property. Here’s the story.... I bought my 3 bed 1.5 bath in June 2019 thinking it would be a “turn key” rental for the neighborhood. 

I purchased the house for $94,000 with a conventional loan. Cash to close $26,914.  I thought that I was going to get tenants in right away but, ended up having to do some repairs and didn’t get tenants in for 2 months. Holding cost+ repairs= $13,696. Then had repairs in 2020 for a total of $16,552. Tenant turnover in 2020 with holding cost of $2064.93 Monthly cash flow right now is $498 after paying PM and mortgage. I believe current value of the house is around $110,000. (Zestimate) 

The house is in a neighborhood that I don’t assume will appreciate a ton over the next couple years. Also, the house is 92 years old so I assume I will continue to have repairs. 

Do I sell it now, take the loss, take my cash and buy something else? Or do I wait 8-9ish years to make back my losses that I have spent in repairs and cross my fingers I don’t have any big repairs and my tenants stay in the house.

I’m Interested in hearing what other investors think. I also have a google sheet that has more details if anyone wants to dive into this.

[Sharon L.]

What was your intent with the property when you made the purchase? I'm assuming it was to buy and hold since you were looking for " Turn Key. Also, the age of the house and neighborhood lack of appreciation were known before the purchase. So those should have already been taken into consideration before the purchase. Honestly 92 yrs old is not that old for some areas of Baltimore. I would hold since it seems to be cash flowing now.