Should I keep this SFH as a rental

[Peter Pierzchala]

Hey there BP friends!

I own a SFH in Simsbury, CT which locally is a very desirable town to live in with great schools. Its a 4 br 2 ½ ba colonial on a quiet street with a great yard. I've been hoping to get into RE investing and as it happens, I am likely going to be moving soon. I would like to keep this house as a rental but im not sure if it makes the most sense, so I'm reaching out for advice.

In talking to some realtors and property managers in the area, Rent could be 2800 – 3000 monthly

My PITI is 2000/mo and with 5% set aside each for vacancy, maintenance and Cap Ex come to 420 – 450 monthly

Property management, best and most expensive at 10% would be 280 – 300 monthly

Cash flow at 2800 rent is 100 monthly, and at 3000 rent it’s 250 monthly.

I could self manage for better cash flow (380 to 550), I’d be an hour away once I moved and I do have contacts in town. Is that a better option?

I bought the house at 370k five years ago, owe around 280k. So with 90k "invested" the ROI and Cap rate are low. But, I finally get my foot in the door and have the chance to Heloc on it for other opportunities (thanks appreciation!). Talking to my mortgage broker, the rent on this would be counted as income, credited at 75% and cancel out the existing mortgage, allowing me to finance a new place. I have plenty of reserves to make it work as well.

What would you do and what am I not thinking of?