You’ll want to weigh the potential profits from selling versus the costs of selling and moving on.

For you, it might come down to how much you value in-person relationships versus getting a higher yield and the flexibility of online platforms.

**Analyze Your Finances:** - Use the BiggerPockets calculators to see how much cash flow you can expect from an LTR property versus an STR

Sure there are people who have done it but like Joe mentioned above is why your rate on HELOC is probably higher than your first mortgage so you'd only do it if your balance is really low and near the end of your term anyway so you're just getting it paid off quicker (like the last 1-3 years of payments left) becaues you want to get ride of the monthly payment and improve your cashflow now versus later.

This gives much better diversification protection across geographies, asset types, strategies, investment subclasses etc. versus putting all the eggs into one basket.The downside is that it's not for everyone, and a person has to be comfortable with turning over control to someone else.

I'm on the fence with a mid grade carpet that gets replaced with each tenant, versus a higher quality that can stand up to stains and cleans well. 

Save the money, clean it till it shines, maybe basic improvements like a few new light fixtures or at least matching/bright lightbulbs, maybe a few new faucets, some paint touch ups and sell.If you’re hiring a Realtor®, they can tell you pricing in current condition versus pricing with a few minor changes.

You'll see a ton of people make money on the connection to the realtor, investor, and/or professional versus being them him/herself.

The 15% tax hit is a one time expense, versus 4.3% is annual interest.

This is the real estate version of “dollar cost averaging.”So even though home prices do go up and down, they tend to go up overall.If you get in the market you are getting a piece of the pie, versus waiting and missing out.For example, you might end up selling when prices are lower, but then you are buying a new place when prices are lower too.