@Nate Lee You could viably get an appraisal and index the value back to the historical cost of the building when it was placed into service.

Then I got lucky to marry someone like minded (and I recall the Millionaire Next Door (great book) also found that having a good "defense" or saving money was a key, common theme of the high net worth accumulators of wealth in the US)...Back to the question, I saved some money, but then I did not just bury it in the back yard (where you actually lose money due to inflation, or even put it in a savings account which also loses money relative to inflation), but I read Peter Lynch, Warren Buffett, John Bogle and put what little I saved (and we saved post marriage) into quality stocks and index funds...

We will move to a slightly larger house soon and I'm trying to decide whether my current house will make a good investment rental, or whether it's best just to sell and invest my equity in index funds.

A) 5/1 ARM – 20-year Term; Up to 30-year AmortizationInterest Rate Options:1) L5 Resi Owner-Occupied 5/1 ARM No Point Rate + 1.00% + 1 point2) L5 Resi Owner-Occupied 5/1 ARM No Point Rate + 1.50% + 0 pointPresently: L5 Resi Owner-Occupied 5/1 ARM No Point Product is set at 2.50% therefore, the CML Non-Owner Occupied 5/1 ARM rate would be1) 2.50% +1.00% = 3.50% +1 point2) 2.50% +1.50% = 4.00% + 0 pointTerm: Max: 20 yearsAmortization: Up to 30 yearsFloor: The initial rate on the transaction will be established as the Floor rate for the life of the loan.Repricing: At the end of the initial 5-year period, the interest rate would reset to the then 1-year T-Bill Rate (Index) plus 325 basis points (margin)No prepayment penalties requiredInterest Rate Repricing Caps: 2% +/- at each change date; 5% +/- over life of the loanClosing fees: Utilize mortgage calculator fee scheduleStandard commercial real estate loan underwriting guidelines are required (i.e.

Then you need to take each name and run it in an index for the years covering ownership.

See the guides under the Education bar above and some of the tools for analyzing property...But as an otr trucker, I would guess getting a property managed probably works better (as you literally are on the other side of the country) unless you have an on call handy man plumber, etc. and some systems in place (lots of ideas on that on BP)..And  I would even read up on things like Index funds (read John Bogle's work if you can find it).

I see lots of these folks as a college teacher...pretty much watched this generation for some time and tried to get them into things like investing in index funds or stocks in my business class and I highlight the economic advantage of home buying... 

Fundamentally, to the extent of my knowledge, the Bay will still thrive and grow for a long time to come.But the question of: "Is the cost of living in the Bay so high compared to the rest of the country (maybe historically, or just the affordability index) that it is now a very attractive option for a ton of people to start moving elsewhere?  

The rate is based on an index rate plus a margin - I don't know which index and I would have to back calculate to determine the cap interest rate.

If this is the case, it could have a significant impact on our portfolios, not just in 2018, but as rates continue to (rapidly) rise across all indexes.