Something many new investors don't think about is that property managers usually negotiate volume discounts for some of this stuff.

From what I've heard, local banks are sometimes more flexible than the big guys.A buddy of mine managed to snag a HELOC on his rental property, which isn't always straightforward, but it opened doors for him.

Do you have a property management company you use? 

I'm a broker and property manager.

I'm certainly cognizant of the risks of managing a property remotely (my wife and I did rent out our Chicagoland house for a couple years while living in STL).

I have one rental in RB and a few in Memphis which i will probably be selling soon since I can't seem to find a property management company that I wouldn't mind working with.

That means learning how to vet a manager.

Meet with financial advisers/wealth managers and see what other options other than real estate there are and how to best allocate / diversify. ie have you maxed out your TFSA?

This also leads owners to ASSUME simpler is better when it comes to management contracts.

To rent the home, I would lose about $2,500 per month (based on comparable rents in my area, property management fees, etc).Both options loose the same amount by roughly 2 years, and by this time, I still will not have built up much more equity in the home to make selling it a break even unless there is price appreciation by then.My dilemma is this: I speculate that my home will not appreciate much in the next 3-5 years due to the rapid pace of development in the surrounding area.In 5-10+ years, maybe, but by then I'll have bled $150,000 - $300,000.I have thought about this a lot and feel that I mar'-too close to the problem to see the best solution.