Should I Buy Another Property?

[Michael Cha]

Hi all,

I am new to the site and being a property owner. I bought a condo in June of 2020 and am looking to rent it out in June of 2021. My question is if I:

1) Should buy another property with 5% down - with the hopes of renting that property out in the future as well - and live there for the foreseeable future?

2) Move back in with parents (if they're willing haha) and save for a bigger down payment (potentially 20%)?

For reference, I am in the Greater Seattle area and am confident that I can receive about $2,500 in rent every month (covers my mortgage and HOA dues). I would not really be receiving any profit (barely break even with mortgage and HOA dues), but I would be happy to have someone else foot that bill for me as I lower my principal. I did not really do an analysis of the numbers when I had purchased the property (my bad!).

If I am doing things wildly wrong, please let me know! I am always open to feedback and welcome the chance to learn more about what I should or could be doing better. Thank you in advance for the time and consideration.

[Bryan Balducki]

@Michael Cha my advice would be to buy another property with 5% down instead of waiting to save 20%. I would rather pay private mortgage insurance than put down 20%. I did the same thing for my first property and am break even on that condo. That condo deal taught me more than I could have ever learned from education, so I consider it a blessing!