Those 7 years were cash positive, but we just weren't making enough cash flow to make it worth the trouble. 

As rental rates increase, cash flow becomes strongly positive.  

IF you plan on going back someday, and this is the home you want to move back to, then renting it would be a good idea as long as you estimate that it will cover itself, or preferably, cash flow, which it appears that yours will at @ $2K or so per month (after expenses). 

Purchase price: $785,000 Cash invested: $156,000 Short term vacation rental in Panama City Beach.

If you buy in a good market, appreciation will beat cash flow every time. 

Additonally investor buyers use matrix like cash flow to determine value. 

Would love to connect and share insights on building a hands-off, cash-flowing portfolio!

Hello, anybody looking to purchase any investment properties for All cash in Polk county, FL and/or Pinellas county, FL?

In the long run, I want to build a portfolio that will bring in cash flow.Would be great to connect with all types of professionals who work in the area.

Imagine making millions of dollars over the course of your career and then having to pay 30-50% every year to uncle sam instead of compounding that cash over time.This is exactly what real estate professionals have learned to mitigate.To reduce their taxable income, they just buy a building every year, do a cost seg, and use depreciation to reduce their tax liability dramatically.Their personal wealth snowball grows much larger and much faster than their W2 counterparts who give most of their money back to the government each year.Following this strategy as a real estate professional is one of best ways to end up with a much larger net worth at the end of your career.