Buy or Rent out

[Zane Kotzur]

Hey everyone, I'm looking for some advice when it comes to either keeping my existing property and renting it out or selling it. I'm 21 years old with a baby on the way, I house hacked my first property which is currently the only property I live in and have, I bought the property for 260k and have only had it for 7 months, I used a VA Loan, it's 4bed 2 bath duplex each unit is the same 1200sqft with the same layout on both sides, I currently rent out to some buddies in the other unit for 1370 a month utilities included my mortgage with everything included is 1801 a month. The buddies that are renting it for me are going to be moving out within the next year, I'm thinking for my area I'll be able to get around 1400 a month for each unit max. I'm considering buying another house because I am approved to get another, and I wanna be in a nicer area with a nicer house for the baby obviously it's not a necessity for me to move but me and my girl would like to.

My question is should move out and buy a 3 bed 2bath house that I could rent out down the road when I PCS ( move duty stations ) because I will be here for another 2 years, the house will be around 360k and my interest would be around 5.6% at a fixed rate. And keep the other duplex as well. And be pulling in roughly 900 of monthly cash flow that I could be putting back towards the principal of the loan to pay it off quicker.

Or should I sell the Duplex id only have about 5-7k equity in the duplex if I'd sell, then buy the other house and not have to worry about property management and everything else. The only reason why I'm considering this is because the duplex is not in the best side of town and besides one duplex on the street it's the nicest on the street and most expensive. 

Or I could buy a fixer upper with the VA Construction loan remodel it and refinance and pull the money out of it and live in it. but I have no experience in doing something like that and I don't know if that'd be a good option if especially I have a baby in the way.

Obviously the other option is to just keep the duplex and live in it for the remainder of the 2 years left of this contract.

Just need some advice I'm new to this game, and looking to be financially set up so I can provide plenty to my little family. And sorry if any ideas are stupid just been reading a lot of books and listening to other people's experiences, and trying to figure out the best outcome for me and my family. Feel free to let me know any good ideas yall have too.

[Dominic Mazzarella]

Quote from @Zane Kotzur:

Hey everyone, I'm looking for some advice when it comes to either keeping my existing property and renting it out or selling it. I'm 21 years old with a baby on the way, I house hacked my first property which is currently the only property I live in and have, I bought the property for 260k and have only had it for 7 months, I used a VA Loan, it's 4bed 2 bath duplex each unit is the same 1200sqft with the same layout on both sides, I currently rent out to some buddies in the other unit for 1370 a month utilities included my mortgage with everything included is 1801 a month. The buddies that are renting it for me are going to be moving out within the next year, I'm thinking for my area I'll be able to get around 1400 a month for each unit max. I'm considering buying another house because I am approved to get another, and I wanna be in a nicer area with a nicer house for the baby obviously it's not a necessity for me to move but me and my girl would like to.

My question is should move out and buy a 3 bed 2bath house that I could rent out down the road when I PCS ( move duty stations ) because I will be here for another 2 years, the house will be around 360k and my interest would be around 5.6% at a fixed rate. And keep the other duplex as well. And be pulling in roughly 900 of monthly cash flow that I could be putting back towards the principal of the loan to pay it off quicker.

Or should I sell the Duplex id only have about 5-7k equity in the duplex if I'd sell, then buy the other house and not have to worry about property management and everything else. The only reason why I'm considering this is because the duplex is not in the best side of town and besides one duplex on the street it's the nicest on the street and most expensive. 

Or I could buy a fixer upper with the VA Construction loan remodel it and refinance and pull the money out of it and live in it. but I have no experience in doing something like that and I don't know if that'd be a good option if especially I have a baby in the way.

Obviously the other option is to just keep the duplex and live in it for the remainder of the 2 years left of this contract.

Just need some advice I'm new to this game, and looking to be financially set up so I can provide plenty to my little family. And sorry if any ideas are stupid just been reading a lot of books and listening to other people's experiences, and trying to figure out the best outcome for me and my family. Feel free to let me know any good ideas yall have too.

If it were me, I'd probably hold onto the duplex. You're sitting on a low-interest VA loan, pulling in solid rent, and even if it's not in the best neighborhood, it's already cash flowing and likely to appreciate a bit over time. Selling now with only 5–7k in equity probably won't move the needle much, especially after closing costs.

Buying a nicer house for the family makes sense emotionally, and since you’re approved, it’s worth looking into—but if you’re trying to build long-term wealth, stacking properties is usually better than swapping one for another. That $900/month could go toward the principal or just sit as a nice cushion.

I'd probably keep the duplux and rent it out when you move and buy the next house when you find the right one.