Inherited a house - HELOC and rent? Sell?
Hello, I'm new to the website and I'm looking for advice. I've tried searching for posts similar to mine and figured that I'd might as well make my own post.
My dad passed away in 2017, leaving me the sole inheritor of the house and it does not have a mortgage on it. It was appraised in 2015 around 150k. Going off of zillow, I know this is not an accurate tool for gauging market prices, but it lists the property around 200k. My mom lives in the house and has moved her sister in since my dad has passed. My mom and aunt now want to move to AZ, for my aunt's medical benefit, and the house is in FL (3/2 1400 sq ft with an uncovered pool).
My question is if it would be better to sell or rent. I think the home is in a B class neighborhood, maybe C, and I have no desire to move back to that area or continue investing there. My mom is sour that my dad did not leave her anything, and often states that he told her she could live in the house as long as she wants.
This would include all moving expenses, as my mom has no savings as I'm told and my aunt is receiving a disability check, from which my mom tells me I would be getting paid the mortgage, taxes and ins for a house that they are looking to move into in AZ, taking a HELOC on the FL house and or me getting a conventional loan to make this happen. Should I sell and just give my mom a lump sum to detach myself from my mom and aunt's unstable income? Is a HELOC a terrible idea? On zillow there are a ton of properties in the area which are renting right now, and similar houses are renting at $1600.
I don't want this to continue being a money pit for me, forking over 4k a year in taxes and about 1k in insurance. My mom mows the grass and tends the pool.
My goals are to use this opportunity invest in long term real estate providing me cash flow, so that I can eventually quit my day job. I am active duty military and thinking about leaving the service at the end of my contract (in 5 months) to go back to school and finish my bachelors, as I only have one semester left, in which I would be using my GI bill, and savings, to get through school and enter the technology field. On the side, I would be investing in real estate and learning as much as I can to also quit that job some day.
Thank you,
Ben