Should I sell my home to buy more houses?

[Ryan Veatch]

I purchased my home during the low end of the market in 2011 for 108k. I've been renting the 2 beds out for the cost of rent and maint. for 5 years while living in the 3rd bed. Now, the value has gone up to ~160k and my equity is ~65k. I'm just starting to try and build a real estate portfolio, but the market in my area (Meridian, ID) seems really high right now. My spouse needs to be located somewhere in this general area, so moving far isn't an option.

I'm contemplating somehow selling the home to acquire the equity and using the after-tax balance (estimating ~40k) to afford 2-4 new homes for the next 2-4 years, house-hack-style. Acquiring each home year-by-year, under an FHA loan.

Since how you start your path can make a big difference in the distant future, I'm searching for advice or critique on this plan.

[Jesse Kindra]

@Ryan Veatch - consider a HELOC. You won't have the expenses of refinancing or even selling and you can use only the funds you need. I've done this on my primary as well as a few rentals and have capital when needed.