(All of the input you guys are providing is really helping me to weigh this out and really see all the PROs and CONs. Thank you all, again and again. You are awesome.)
It seems that the two biggest CONs to moving are:
1. Living in an apartment
2. Being a landlord
Since I've worked out most of what living in an apartment will entail, I'd like to consider option 2 for a bit.
Being a landlord sucks. There are risks. The tenant could leave without paying rent — especially in this economy. They could trash the place. They could be very demanding of time or full of complaints. They could be late on rent. Lots of issues.
One thing that can really help is a rental management company.
This company locates and screen tenants (including background checks), collects rents, asses late fees, and performs evictions as needed. Additionally, they ensure that all laws are followed, and that the rental property is listed in databases if the current tenant should desire to vacate. They handle all maintenance requests and often work with volume repair providers to supply a discount in costs. They are well versed in what repairs a landlord is required to cover and insures the tenant pays for those that are his responsibility (a sock stuck in a toilet causing plumbing issues, for instance). A quick Google Search find a DFW company that would cost me $630 for each new tenant, plus $120/mo. Over the course of a year that's $2070.
If the cost of maintenance is a concern, there are also companies that provide unlimited maintenance calls and all associated labor and most parts for a set annual fee plus a per visit cost. The per visit cost is passed in whole or in part on to the tenant and some risk is removed this way.
Of course, in the end, the financial risk is still mine. Assuming the tenants aren't malicious or careless, presumably any expense I incur for repairs is something that would have broken anyway if I had been living there.
The bottom line.
Assuming I hire a management company to keep me safe and keep hassles low, after I factor in HOA dues and all of that, given my current mortgage payment and the rough estimate for monthly rent, here's where I come out:
I'll lose $200/mo.
I know that sounds horrible, and it is. I might be able to negotiate or refinance a little away from that, but, for the most part, that's where I'm at. And that assumes my tenant doesn't skip on rent or destroy anything that wouldn't have broken if I had been living there.
Of course, even if my apartment rents for the same amount that my mortgage is I should recover that loss in savings. Of course, that's all a guess based on anticipated utilities, fuel costs, and toll tag fees. But, it should be a pretty accurate guess.
So, given prior estimates and this new information, in the end I'll be saving $100-200/mo over the cost of living in my house. And I'll be gaining 4 to 6 hours a week in time. But will have the new financial risk that comes with being a landlord. Additionally, and not minimally, I have the costs of moving not once, but twice. And finally, I have the costs involved with leaning out my belonging to fit a smaller space, and then expanding again when I eventually move back into a house.
Your thoughts?
