Sorry to see you leave the area
@greymouser7
Long distance rental is probably a bad idea unless your profit margin is very, very high.
Renting my wife's house has worked out very well for us, but-
We are about 20 minutes away. Far enough not to be all up in their business, but close enough to get there in an emergency or to spot check.
The house is located 5 min from a major highway between 2 major cities.
It practically rents it's self.
..and more importantly, as with cars, you make your money on the buy. The house was refinanced a couple of years before we started renting it (without taking out cash, or lengthening the term) and the mortgage is less than half of what we can charge for rent.
Don't forget you can't claim homestead exemption on a rental, so property tax will go up.
Insurance on a rental is cheaper, but not enough to make up the difference.
A couple of things mentioned earlier really scared me-
1- who would ever rent out a house they owed money on...without a signed written contract?
After a lot of research, we ended up writing our own lease, and it's a perpetual work in progress.
Check your local statutes for any clauses that must be included or worded specifically if they are included and any clauses that can not be included.
An example above could have been cured with an early termination clause.
2- renting to family, friends or friends of family...that is an absolute recipe for disaster!
It's all about the numbers first, then the execution.
Good luck in TX.
How you gonna get all those cars 1/2 way across the country?
