All in all, the price was very low. 

I’ve got the age old question of whether we should sell our townhome or keep it and make it our first rental.This is my first post on BiggerPockets so please let me know if I have left out any information that may be helpful in the analysis.Single Family TownhomeBuilt: 2001Purchase Date: 2008Purchase Price: $270,000Property Tax: $5700/yearHOA: $125/monthWater/Sewer: $1320/year (Must be paid to county by home owner)Insurance: $800/yearMaintenance Costs: $400/year Other planned future costs: Roof (in about 5 years, ~$5000), water heater (in 7 years, ~$1300 including labor), water softener (in 5 years, $500)Current Mortgage (Refinanced in 2012)Term: 15Rate: 3.375%Principal: $140,000Market Value: $230,000 (Upstate NY market with minimal appreciation expected)Rental: $2000/month ($2200 possible but I want to be conservative)I was also considering refinancing to a 30 year mortgage to help with cash flow but I’m not sure if it is worth the $4000-5000 in closing costs to refinance.Normally I would not consider this a good rental property because of the low/negative cash flow.

They do have a huge hardware store (was Ace) in town but the prices there are not going to be competitive with HD, Lowes, etc. 

As far as the stock market goes your money is at significantly more risk than a savings account and it is very volatile in the short term however over long term (10+ years) low cost index funds have proved themselves reliable, unfortunately this isn't a feasible time frame if you are saving for a down payment in most cases.

If you reckon that you NEED an added unit to rent out, do you really think that the cost of buying your forever-duplex will be EASIER in 8 years time, even given your planned "low ROI" interim investments that are aimed at starting your equity-ball rolling?

On the scale of mistakes you can make, $200 is on the low end.

The FIfighter was pointing out those are the golden years where maintenence costs are really low.

PS ive bought a low cash flowing property Hoping for appreciation but it was way way below replacement costs and in a resort town.

They took a 5 acre parcel I had purchased to build new transmission lines and re-conductor old lines in order to provide power from a new utility scale solar generating plant (solar farm) they had constructed.My attorney hired the appraiser with only 2-3 weeks prior to the date our expert witness and discovery production had to be turned in to the courts.The appraiser found very low comps in the area.

The purchase price relatively low, only $47.5K.