Would you keep renting or sell?

[Anonymous]

I have a 1BR condo in an older garden-style development in the Seven Corners area of Falls Church that's about 1.5 miles from the EFC metro. I got married and bought a house with a spouse three years ago this summer. I currently rent the condo, and the rent covers the mortgage, condo fees, and insurance, plus I make a profit of about $200/month. I bought back in the early 2000's, and the price skyrocketed to about 200K above the purchase price during the bubble of around 2005/2006, then crashed again, and is now up to about 80K above my purchase price. My mortgage will be paid off in 12 years. I have a child who will be in college in 16 years (hopefully), and my thought in hanging onto the condo was that rental income near the Metro would always be pretty decent and it would be really nice passive income once the mortgage is paid off. Plus, if it keeps appreciating somewhat steadily, it's a nice nest egg. (I don't have much retirement savings otherwise.) I grew up believing rental properties are really good income, and I like owning something solid.

Now that the appreciation is up pretty nicely, though, and since home values can't be guaranteed, I'm tempted to sell it. Being a landlord hasn't been all that fun (I have a great tenant now but unfortunately there are noisy people in the unit adjacent who drive him nuts, and there isn't much I can do to fix it, which stresses us all out.) I'd have to sell by the end of the summer in order to avoid paying capital gains on the profit. If I was underwater or wasn't making at least a small profit on rent, I'd sell it, but I like the idea of someone else paying down my principal every month.

Long term, Seven Corners is going to be redeveloped, and the vision includes lots of luxury apartments and condos, and so there might be a glut in the market, and my affordable little place with great light and hardwood floors might not be very attractive to renters. But the improvement in the overall neighborhood also might make it more valuable. So I'm torn.

What would you do?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a 1BR condo in an older garden-style development in the Seven Corners area of Falls Church that's about 1.5 miles from the EFC metro. I got married and bought a house with a spouse three years ago this summer. I currently rent the condo, and the rent covers the mortgage, condo fees, and insurance, plus I make a profit of about $200/month. I bought back in the early 2000's, and the price skyrocketed to about 200K above the purchase price during the bubble of around 2005/2006, then crashed again, and is now up to about 80K above my purchase price. My mortgage will be paid off in 12 years. I have a child who will be in college in 16 years (hopefully), and my thought in hanging onto the condo was that rental income near the Metro would always be pretty decent and it would be really nice passive income once the mortgage is paid off. Plus, if it keeps appreciating somewhat steadily, it's a nice nest egg. (I don't have much retirement savings otherwise.) I grew up believing rental properties are really good income, and I like owning something solid.

Now that the appreciation is up pretty nicely, though, and since home values can't be guaranteed, I'm tempted to sell it. Being a landlord hasn't been all that fun (I have a great tenant now but unfortunately there are noisy people in the unit adjacent who drive him nuts, and there isn't much I can do to fix it, which stresses us all out.) I'd have to sell by the end of the summer in order to avoid paying capital gains on the profit. If I was underwater or wasn't making at least a small profit on rent, I'd sell it, but I like the idea of someone else paying down my principal every month.

Long term, Seven Corners is going to be redeveloped, and the vision includes lots of luxury apartments and condos, and so there might be a glut in the market, and my affordable little place with great light and hardwood floors might not be very attractive to renters. But the improvement in the overall neighborhood also might make it more valuable. So I'm torn.

What would you do?

I don't think 7 corners has much of a chance of being redeveloped. They have been saying that for years gong back to the 70s when they built all those high rises. I would cash out and be a landlord to somewhere that is metro accessible.

[Anonymous]

Combo of "being a landlord isn't fun" + significant appreciation + last chance to sell before paying capital gains = Sell it!

You can invest the money in something else that isn't going to require you to be a landlord!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a 1BR condo in an older garden-style development in the Seven Corners area of Falls Church that's about 1.5 miles from the EFC metro. I got married and bought a house with a spouse three years ago this summer. I currently rent the condo, and the rent covers the mortgage, condo fees, and insurance, plus I make a profit of about $200/month. I bought back in the early 2000's, and the price skyrocketed to about 200K above the purchase price during the bubble of around 2005/2006, then crashed again, and is now up to about 80K above my purchase price. My mortgage will be paid off in 12 years. I have a child who will be in college in 16 years (hopefully), and my thought in hanging onto the condo was that rental income near the Metro would always be pretty decent and it would be really nice passive income once the mortgage is paid off. Plus, if it keeps appreciating somewhat steadily, it's a nice nest egg. (I don't have much retirement savings otherwise.) I grew up believing rental properties are really good income, and I like owning something solid.

Now that the appreciation is up pretty nicely, though, and since home values can't be guaranteed, I'm tempted to sell it. Being a landlord hasn't been all that fun (I have a great tenant now but unfortunately there are noisy people in the unit adjacent who drive him nuts, and there isn't much I can do to fix it, which stresses us all out.) I'd have to sell by the end of the summer in order to avoid paying capital gains on the profit. If I was underwater or wasn't making at least a small profit on rent, I'd sell it, but I like the idea of someone else paying down my principal every month.

Long term, Seven Corners is going to be redeveloped, and the vision includes lots of luxury apartments and condos, and so there might be a glut in the market, and my affordable little place with great light and hardwood floors might not be very attractive to renters. But the improvement in the overall neighborhood also might make it more valuable. So I'm torn.

What would you do?

I don't think 7 corners has much of a chance of being redeveloped. They have been saying that for years gong back to the 70s when they built all those high rises. I would cash out and be a landlord to somewhere that is metro accessible.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/mason/sevencorners/7cs_draft_plan_text_master_draft_september_23.pdf

You wouldn't consider a 1.5 mile walk to be Metro accessible?

[Anonymous]

7 corners of hell!

I wouldn't bank on any redevelopment

[Anonymous]

If you don't like being a landlord I'd sell.

[Anonymous]

Sell. Get that $80k tax free.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a 1BR condo in an older garden-style development in the Seven Corners area of Falls Church that's about 1.5 miles from the EFC metro. I got married and bought a house with a spouse three years ago this summer. I currently rent the condo, and the rent covers the mortgage, condo fees, and insurance, plus I make a profit of about $200/month. I bought back in the early 2000's, and the price skyrocketed to about 200K above the purchase price during the bubble of around 2005/2006, then crashed again, and is now up to about 80K above my purchase price. My mortgage will be paid off in 12 years. I have a child who will be in college in 16 years (hopefully), and my thought in hanging onto the condo was that rental income near the Metro would always be pretty decent and it would be really nice passive income once the mortgage is paid off. Plus, if it keeps appreciating somewhat steadily, it's a nice nest egg. (I don't have much retirement savings otherwise.) I grew up believing rental properties are really good income, and I like owning something solid.

Now that the appreciation is up pretty nicely, though, and since home values can't be guaranteed, I'm tempted to sell it. Being a landlord hasn't been all that fun (I have a great tenant now but unfortunately there are noisy people in the unit adjacent who drive him nuts, and there isn't much I can do to fix it, which stresses us all out.) I'd have to sell by the end of the summer in order to avoid paying capital gains on the profit. If I was underwater or wasn't making at least a small profit on rent, I'd sell it, but I like the idea of someone else paying down my principal every month.

Long term, Seven Corners is going to be redeveloped, and the vision includes lots of luxury apartments and condos, and so there might be a glut in the market, and my affordable little place with great light and hardwood floors might not be very attractive to renters. But the improvement in the overall neighborhood also might make it more valuable. So I'm torn.

What would you do?

I don't think 7 corners has much of a chance of being redeveloped. They have been saying that for years gong back to the 70s when they built all those high rises. I would cash out and be a landlord to somewhere that is metro accessible.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/mason/sevencorners/7cs_draft_plan_text_master_draft_september_23.pdf

You wouldn't consider a 1.5 mile walk to be Metro accessible?

usually it has to be under a mile.

[Anonymous]

Under a mile plus pedestrian friendly.
What are the capital gains rules? I thought if you held for a long time you pay reduced rate like with stocks?
I have a condo losing $1-200 a month after taxes mortgage and condo fees in Ballston. I figured it would be paid off by the time child goes to college so that was an easy college fund savings method. But I'm having doubts that maybe stock market would be better. Certainly Had better returns the past ten years. No tenant problems. In your case Id sell. Tenant headaches are stressful.

[Anonymous]

First, you will owe some ax on ths sale, depreciation recapture tax and you will loose transaction costs.

I'd put aside the pain of being a landlord. You are in essence earning a tax favored yield on that work and you won't replace that if you sell it. You'll slightly improve your quality of life, but you will slightly financially worse off.

The only legitimate question to ask yourself, is with that approximate $80k of cash would you buy that same place today or something different. If the yield (cash return and mortgage pay down) is greater somewhere else, sell and buy that instead. If not keep it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a 1BR condo in an older garden-style development in the Seven Corners area of Falls Church that's about 1.5 miles from the EFC metro. I got married and bought a house with a spouse three years ago this summer. I currently rent the condo, and the rent covers the mortgage, condo fees, and insurance, plus I make a profit of about $200/month. I bought back in the early 2000's, and the price skyrocketed to about 200K above the purchase price during the bubble of around 2005/2006, then crashed again, and is now up to about 80K above my purchase price. My mortgage will be paid off in 12 years. I have a child who will be in college in 16 years (hopefully), and my thought in hanging onto the condo was that rental income near the Metro would always be pretty decent and it would be really nice passive income once the mortgage is paid off. Plus, if it keeps appreciating somewhat steadily, it's a nice nest egg. (I don't have much retirement savings otherwise.) I grew up believing rental properties are really good income, and I like owning something solid.

Now that the appreciation is up pretty nicely, though, and since home values can't be guaranteed, I'm tempted to sell it. Being a landlord hasn't been all that fun (I have a great tenant now but unfortunately there are noisy people in the unit adjacent who drive him nuts, and there isn't much I can do to fix it, which stresses us all out.) I'd have to sell by the end of the summer in order to avoid paying capital gains on the profit. If I was underwater or wasn't making at least a small profit on rent, I'd sell it, but I like the idea of someone else paying down my principal every month.

Long term, Seven Corners is going to be redeveloped, and the vision includes lots of luxury apartments and condos, and so there might be a glut in the market, and my affordable little place with great light and hardwood floors might not be very attractive to renters. But the improvement in the overall neighborhood also might make it more valuable. So I'm torn.

What would you do?

I'd sell and use the proceeds to buy a condo in a gentrifying area of DC, assuming you live close enough. Managing a condo rental should be easy if you live close enough.