u/mochigirl8

Hello! I am looking for a home watch service and curious if anybody has a recommendation. Like someone who will come by and check on your house and cars during extended vacations? Or for your vacation/unoccupied homes in westchester?

We bought our house about 5 years ago in Westchester, NY and have done extensive renovations since then. Im talking 3 bathrooms, kitchen, all new insulation, new heat pump and HVAC system, new windows etc. It is now finished as much as a house can be, and is beyond beautiful - to me at least. We’ve also started a family and both kids were born here so there are beautiful memories on top of it all. There is a huge backyard that my older one loves to kick balls and run around in. Now we sit in evenings and watch all the fireflies come out and it’s just magical.

But due to a job situation, we need to move across the country. We have 2.5% 30 year fixed so it is hard to give up that mortgage in addition to the emotional attachment. So that brings us to the torment of having to decide between selling or renting. We’ve talked to realtors who all claim it’s a great seller market and the type of work we have done would warrant a high price and bidding war. We’d be able to recoup all the money we spent on renovation (but not a lot more). Renting it out is hard to say what kind of rent we would get since the rental market is so thin in westchester but we’d most likely be able to cover mortgage+taxes, maybe make a little extra money but there is the obvious wear and tear and potential nightmare tenants who we have to manage from far away.

Realistically, we would probably not be moving back to this area unless job situation drastically changes. Even then, we are also sick of the rat race in NY job market and would like to spend more time with the kids than commuting to and from iobs in the city. On the other hand, renting would give us an option to come back if something unforeseen happens. Also the house can go up in value, especially if inflation goes through the roof. So selling could turn out to be the best or the worst decision ever. We’ve been going back and forth and just cant make a decision. So, what do you guys think?

We bought our house about 5 years ago and have done extensive renovations since then. Im talking 3 bathrooms, kitchen, all new insulation, new heat pump and HVAC system, new windows etc. It is now finished as much as a house can be, and is beyond beautiful - to me at least. We’ve also started a family and both kids were born here so there are beautiful memories on top of it all. There is a huge backyard that my older one loves to kick balls and run around in. Now we sit in evenings and watch all the fireflies come out and it’s just magical.

But due to a job situation, we need to move across the country. We have 2.5% 30 year fixed so it is hard to give up that mortgage in addition to the emotional attachment. So that brings us to the torment of having to decide between selling or renting. We’ve talked to realtors who all claim it’s a great seller market and the type of work we have done would warrant a high price and bidding war. We’d be able to recoup all the money we spent on renovation (but not a lot more). Renting is out is hard to say what kind of rent we would get since the rental market is so thin in westchester but we’d most likely be able to cover mortgage+taxes, maybe make a little extra money but there is the obvious wear and tear and potential nightmare tenants who we have to manage from far away.

Realistically, we would probably not be moving back to this area unless job situation drastically changes. Even then, we are also sick of the rat race in NY job market and would like to spend more time with the kids than commuting to and from iobs in the city. On the other hand, renting would give us an option to come back if something unforeseen happens. Also the house can go up in value, especially if inflation goes through the roof. So selling could turn out to be the best or the worst decision ever. We’ve been going back and forth and just cant make a decision. So, what do you guys think?

Edit: thanks for everyone’s comments and suggestions, but it seems Reddit is just as divided on sell vs rent 😂