My husband and I can't decide if we want to sell our house or where we want to live if we do. We are considering renting our house for a year while we buy a new rv and travel. Our home is paid off and we are retired. WE will use rental money to pay off some debts and put away for new house if needed. Does anyone have experience in renting their home? Not sure what the pros and cons are as we have never rented before. We could either put our furnishings in storage or leave most for renter. Your advise would be greatly appreciated.
renting house while traveling for a year
- Thread starter soozcna
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Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
Renting is a crap shoot. Some tenants are excellent - they pay on time every month and take care of the property like it was their own. And then there is the other kind of tenant, slow pay or no pay, abusing the property, and leaving it dirty and damaged. Your old neighbors complain about them too.
You will need to figure in the cost of rental management and property upkeep. You aren't there to do the odd upkeep jobs or notice when something begins to go awry. And somebody has to collect the rent, listen to complaints, find and deal with home repair personnel, etc. Travelers often end up hiring a property management company to do that, which typically costs 12-15% of the income (e.g. one month rent per year).
You will need to figure in the cost of rental management and property upkeep. You aren't there to do the odd upkeep jobs or notice when something begins to go awry. And somebody has to collect the rent, listen to complaints, find and deal with home repair personnel, etc. Travelers often end up hiring a property management company to do that, which typically costs 12-15% of the income (e.g. one month rent per year).
SMR
Well-known member
have had a few rentals in the past - unless you get a great renter they will never take care of your property like you would
collecting rent is always a challenge- sometimes they have it and other times a little short. upkeep if you are not there can get get expensive if you need to hire out for the small jobs - unless you have a trusted handyman.
if you must rent it out then like Gary said look at a rental management company and really check them out.
we just started fulltiming last June and sold the house, invested the proceeds and should we decide to come off the road we can purchase another home. I doubt we will as we really like fulltiming!!
I personally don't want to have to worry about a house or being forced to return and spend time fixing it to re-rent. JMHO
collecting rent is always a challenge- sometimes they have it and other times a little short. upkeep if you are not there can get get expensive if you need to hire out for the small jobs - unless you have a trusted handyman.
if you must rent it out then like Gary said look at a rental management company and really check them out.
we just started fulltiming last June and sold the house, invested the proceeds and should we decide to come off the road we can purchase another home. I doubt we will as we really like fulltiming!!
I personally don't want to have to worry about a house or being forced to return and spend time fixing it to re-rent. JMHO
Dance Chick
Well-known member
We have rental property and have it with a property management company. They are very strict with their rental criteria and check out potential renters thoroughly. They've seen it all, so won't budge on what they'll allow or not allow. We've had no problems, and I'm sure it's because of their strict policies. They charge 1/2 month's rent to find a tenant and 10% monthly after that.
On the other hand, my sister & BIL had rental properties for years that they "managed" themselves. If a person had a breath and some cash in hand, they would rent to them...no credit checks or reference checks. Needless to say, they had an absolute nightmare time and again which cost them tons of money. BIL was too cheap to pay a management company. They now use the same property management company and wish they had come around sooner. They now see that the cost is worth it.
On the other hand, my sister & BIL had rental properties for years that they "managed" themselves. If a person had a breath and some cash in hand, they would rent to them...no credit checks or reference checks. Needless to say, they had an absolute nightmare time and again which cost them tons of money. BIL was too cheap to pay a management company. They now use the same property management company and wish they had come around sooner. They now see that the cost is worth it.
ArdraF
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2006
- Posts
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The fact that your home is paid off is a huge plus because you don't have to worry about a mortgage. If you do decide to sell it, would you want to turn to the same area? If so, then you probably won't be able to duplicate it with such a good price, especially if mortgage rates start rising.. Back in our working days we knew some people who had homes close to our workplace, sold them when they went overseas on assignment, and then couldn't afford to replace them several years later when they returned, during which time property values had risen considerably. On the other hand, if you think you would want to go elsewhere then selling your home might be a good deal. That might depend on how strong your ties to the area are such as family. There are so many pros and cons! I can see where keeping the house and having a relatively stable monthly income would be nice, as would having a nice chunk of money in the bank! We've known some people who have started RVing for a year or three and ended up still RVing 10 or 15 years later! Most of them have eventually settled elsewhere when it was time to hang up the keys. Maybe you can rent it for a year while you try out the fulltiming thing which gives you the option of returning after a year or selling it after a year. In any case, good luck and have fun while you're traveling down the road.
ArdraF
ArdraF
JudyJB
Well-known member
I rented out my parents house after my dad passed away. It had been newly painted and carpeting. Renters illegally kept very large puppies who ate some of the carpeting, and the humans pretty much trashed it.
I would never rent out a place I really cared about and wanted to live in again. Even people you know and supposedly can trust can make an expensive mess of something they do not own.
I would never rent out a place I really cared about and wanted to live in again. Even people you know and supposedly can trust can make an expensive mess of something they do not own.
