Sell or rent in Ballard, Seattle?

Question

We purchased our home (2 bd 1 bath, 3-story [including functioning basement] and detached walk-in only garage) in 2013 at $353K in a very desirable neighborhood in Ballard, just blocks away from Ballard Ave. We're relocating and I'm having a difficult time deciding if we should rent out or sell now. We're locked in a 3.5% 30-year loan and pay around $2200 per month. I believe we could rent our home for around $3200 per month in the current market. Similar homes are going for more than 700K currently.

Would it make sense to sell now or hold onto for a few years for a better ROI? We would most likely use a property management company since we'd be living out of state, making it easier for us, but more costly to rent and maintain ourselves.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Would it make sense to sell now or hold onto for a few years for a better ROI? We would most likely use a property management company since we'd be living out of state, making it easier for us, but more costly to rent and maintain ourselves.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Megan Shay · Answer

Factor in the first month's rent + 10% per month for property management. Also consider Seattle's extremely renter-friendly laws. I'm not going to get into the details here, but I'd sell. The market is crazy-hot now. And even if you have it managed, you'll still need to make some decisions if major repairs come up. Personally, I'd rather have the peace of mind of not having to deal with it. :-) And that's coming from someone who did a solid year of property management. Now I stick to sales, and leasing (if the owner wants to self-manage after I advertise and place tenants). Because I hate being the one who gets the midnight calls when something is wrong.