Sell or rent out - DC row house

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rent it!! Here’s my amazing property manager: https://www.mainstayrentalsdc.com/

We’ve been renting for the last 18 months and have had NO issues. It’s all about finding the right tenants on the front end, and our property manager did that for us. He handles everything, and it has been amazing.

And in the 18 months we’ve been gone, the renters have paid more than $50K of our mortgage principal. Plus we get significant tax benefits. It has been great for us.

Everything you say is true, but...will the right tenants want to live next to a neighbor who is engaged in "blatantly illegal" behavior and who the OP thinks is a threat to their safety? We are currently renting and have 800+ credit scores, HHI 600K+ and would nope right out of this arrangement immediately when it became apparent it was as hellish as OP describes. Which means, your pool of renters is maybe not top tier. 100% agreed though if OP plans on renting they need a property manager. I would never rent from a newby overseas landlord without someone local managing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rent it!! Here’s my amazing property manager: https://www.mainstayrentalsdc.com/

We’ve been renting for the last 18 months and have had NO issues. It’s all about finding the right tenants on the front end, and our property manager did that for us. He handles everything, and it has been amazing.

And in the 18 months we’ve been gone, the renters have paid more than $50K of our mortgage principal. Plus we get significant tax benefits. It has been great for us.

Everything you say is true, but...will the right tenants want to live next to a neighbor who is engaged in "blatantly illegal" behavior and who the OP thinks is a threat to their safety? We are currently renting and have 800+ credit scores, HHI 600K+ and would nope right out of this arrangement immediately when it became apparent it was as hellish as OP describes. Which means, your pool of renters is maybe not top tier. 100% agreed though if OP plans on renting they need a property manager. I would never rent from a newby overseas landlord without someone local managing.

* newbie

[Anonymous]

Your potential tenant is going to be complaining big time about the neighbor. And do you want to live next to this neighbor when you move back? I personally would sell.

[Anonymous]

I'm the PP. I should say that I lived about a bad neighbor in a condo and she made my life miserable and then my tenant (I moved out because I hated dealing with her and thought she would be nicer to someone else - I was wrong).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you sure you'll be back? I hear people say this, but then another opportunity arises and they stay or end up going somewhere else or "come back", but schools/yard/crime push them into the 'burbs where they would have ended up anyway.

+1, btdt - the neighborhood won’t even feel the same to you after 3 years away.

^this! Of your peer community, many will also be moving while you’re away.

We were a former Petworth family and at some point people did move (bc schools, neighbors, need space…) we loved the neighborhood and house but still ultimately made more sense to move to a new neighborhood. This would probably be the same for all closer in dc neighborhoods, a high turnover rate for people coming in and moving for jobs and such.

You’ll make memories and definitely start new ones when you’re back.

[Anonymous]

It really depends on if you're the type of person to worry at night about your house being destroyed.. For the peace of mind alone just sell the house don't think of it as an investment.

[Anonymous]

We rented out our Bloomingdale row house for a few years and had a great experience. Came right back to the house and thank God we did. I can't afford anything anymore. And my oldest is 8 - there are plenty of decent elementary schools, public and charter, near Petworth. If you are city people, I say rent it out. If you feel done with your chapter of city life, sell it.

[Anonymous]

Rent. Get a good property manager and try for a 3 year lease to world bank or state types through your networks. Your neighbor will probably be locked up or lose the house to taxes by the time you return.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rent. Get an excellent property manager and have a 740 credit score for each adult in the home. Also, no pets.

PP here, I have been landlording in DC for 15 yrs btw. It’s not that hard, but you will need help and to have a strong relationship with your property manager.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sell. You do NOT want to be a landlord in DC, especially if you are living abroad. You would have to hire a property management company to deal with all the maintenance hassles---so that will cost you. You cannot refuse to rent to Section 8 so you could be subject to being part of that regulatory regime and run the risk of having your property trashed. It is impossible to evict a tenant for anything other than non-payment of rent. So tenants having their rent paid by government vouchers can trash your property and you have no recourse. And unless you are planning to come back and live in the property, if you rent it and then want to sell it, you have to (a) legally offer the tenant the right to buy it, which can tie you up for months and (b) have to show it for sale with the tenant in it, which means the property will show poorly.

If she is moving back she can easily evict the tenant, she will be occupying the place, in fact she can rent it with that in mind and seek a tenant for specific timeframe, this isn't illegal and is not uncommon. She has to disclose this beforehand that extending the lease is not guaranteed. As far as section 8 is concerned, I am not familiar with the area to know probability of section 8 outbidding regular tenants and jumping ahead of the line if there is strong demand for rentals and it's well priced. From what I hear section 8 is specifically sought out by some landlords and especially multifamily building owners to get higher than market rate. If she doesn't insist on getting more than what market pays then it will be regular tenants.

Her challenge would be to deal with a scary neighbor from what she describes. This is a far bigger problem because it makes it undesirable for her to live there too and maybe more reluctant to move back. Otherwise she needs a maintenance company and has to make numbers work to see if it makes financial sense. She can't manage property from overseas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rent. Get an excellent property manager and have a 740 credit score for each adult in the home. Also, no pets.

PP here, I have been landlording in DC for 15 yrs btw. It’s not that hard, but you will need help and to have a strong relationship with your property manager.

This. Make sure to find a decent management company and do market research on rents/demand in your area vs. your cost of carrying the home while you aren't living in it. Do the math. And another issue is whether you want to even live near your crazy neighbor again after living away for 3 years. Also, only you know what specific problems this neighbor may potentially cause to your tenant creating issues for your maintenance company to deal with and you being so far away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It really depends on if you're the type of person to worry at night about your house being destroyed.. For the peace of mind alone just sell the house don't think of it as an investment.

She isn't. She said she want to return back to live there, so it's a home, not an investment.

[Anonymous]

For sure, keep it. Housing prices are accelerating in the wrong direction (up), mortgage rates won’t be coming down and you will have your pick of strong tenants.

Find an excellent property manager. They will make sure all ducks are in a row and they will properly screen applicant tenants. (Each adult should have 740 credit, a job that can pay the rent and no history of trouble making rent or mortgage payments … no evictions or foreclosures.) if you can find a tenant who is here temporarily, then you are assured they will leave at the end of the lease.

[Anonymous]

Sell. You think you’ll want to move back in, but you won’t. Your life, your perspective, and your plans will change a lot living abroad. You’ll also be able to view the house realistically for what it is without the same degree of emotion you have around it now. Let it go. Move forward.

It’s been 3 years since we sold our beloved Capitol Hill rowhouse to move abroad and I can’t imagine moving back in now. (Or back to DC either.) An international move is a lot of logistics and I’m glad we didn’t also have renters to deal with too. Putting the proceeds into investments has kept up.

[Anonymous]

Anecdotal story. Long time ago, we were in your shoes. Against everyone's advice, we decided to use a property manager to manage it as a rental. With rent and increased income, we were able to pay it off by the time we came back. Although we ended up mortgaging another house, we kept it as a rental and finally now hoping to move back there as space, commute and schools aren't our concerns anymore.