So someone who is looking purely to maximize potential return (and has unlimited time and/or is just starting out building their wealth) is unlikely to find this a good fit.

(You're paying the bank back with dollars that are of less value than the ones you borrowed from them; it's like borrowing gold and paying the lender back with gravel...maybe not that extreme, but you get the point).I think the plan of sitting tight and re-visiting the market in 6-12 months could work, but it could also backfire if property values don't go down significantly in 6-12 months....if prices hold steady, and rates increase even more (which seems likely), we could be in an even tougher position in 6-12 months (but, that's pure speculation...at the end of the day, nobody knows what will happen, and it's totally possible that prices are lower in 6-12 months...we're already seeing a notable uptick in days on market and price reductions, and a noticeable decrease of demand in many markets--but who knows how far that will go).Strange days, indeed.Good luck out there!

If you want a pure labor contract, then talk to contractors about performing labor using materials you supply for a very, very, specific design that you or your architect supply.

Anyone buying it purely for investment would be wanting some tenants, likely with upside to fill the last tenant unit.  

If it was purely cash, I'd refi and hold on long-term, as you'll do much better than realizing a $9000 profit by holding. 

Assuming your property is up to snuff in terms of condition and amenties, it is purely rate driven.

Every potential avenue of "doing what you love and the money will follow" was ******** and filled me with pure misery, ruining many of my favorite hobbies to the point I lost interest in doing them for fun!

It was purely the add-ons. 

So it becomes purely FICO and appraisal based.

Hey Annie - you're asking the right question here.With the assumption you can comfortably afford both houses without the rental income AND they are in equivalent neighborhoods, the house hack will be better from a pure financial perspective for the following reasons:1.