All Forum Posts by: Seth Martin

Hoping for some advice from those that have been there before. 

So I'm trying to weigh selling my rental vs keeping and renting out through a management company. 

I am an out of state investor. I bought a townhome in the Charlottesville, VA area in 2019 where I was going to school. Lived there and rented half out to a roommate until 2023. I then moved out of state, and I've been renting it to a friend for the past year. However, he's moving out in October of 2024.

I initially bought the property for around $215k, but it's now worth ~$350k with about $165k left on the 30-yr mortgage that is at 2.85%.. I could rent it out for around $2200/mo. Escrow payments are around $1100/mo and HOA is ~$200/mo. After crunching the numbers I'd be cash flowing around $600-700/month if I hire a full service manager (and this is without accounting for any repairs, which it does need). Orrr I could sell it and get about $150-160k in cash to invest in in stocks or in a larger property closer to my current residence. The traditional ROI S&P500 for that amount of money would be fairly similar after accounting for everything. Just not sure if the headache and stress of owning a property out of state is worth the potential upside.

Any advice on what someone would do or has done in a similar situation?

I have a somewhat unique situation. I am about to finish my last year of medical school. In June I will head out of state for my intern year training, and then I will return to Charlottesville. My plan was to purchase a home, rent it out for a year (possibly to some of my friends), and then live in it while I complete the last 3 years of my residency in Charlottesville. The hope would be to retain it and rent it out after I settle down somewhere. 

My question is whether or not you all think it would be worth getting into the market right now? There are not many properties within my price range (175-225K) that also fit my specifications (2-3 bed, 2-3 bath).

A second question pertains to whether or not houses being on the market for quite some time is a bad sign? There are a handful of houses that would seem to work for me and work numbers-wise, but they have been on the market for almost a year, and in this volatile market, it makes me wary of making an offer...

Any suggestions/advice would be appreciated!

Thanks,

Martin

Thanks guys, I'm already really impressed with the website.

Hi everybody,

My name is Seth Martin. I'm currently a medical student at UVA. Originally from Springfield, Illinois, I plan on staying out here for quite some time.

To be completely honest, other than signing the lease on the apartment I live in, I have not done any real estate deals yet. However, I have done my fair share of reading on the subject, and I think I have a good grasp of the basics.

At this point, I'm really just hoping to learn more about real estate so I can put that knowledge to use when I feel ready. I strongly believe in hands-on learning. Finding a mentor that I could add value to would be my ideal situation. However, I realize it might be difficult to find someone who could work with my inflexible schedule.