Transferred Out of Calgarysell or rent it out?

The question that settles most of these

Would you buy this house, at today's price, purely as an investment? If not, keeping it is a decision you are making because selling feels like a loss of a foothold — which is a real feeling and a poor investment thesis.

The corollary is the honest exception: if the move might reverse within a couple of years, selling and rebuying costs a great deal at both ends, and keeping it can make sense on those grounds alone even if the rental maths is unremarkable.

What keeping it actually involves

• You become a landlord, subject to Alberta's residential tenancy rules, at a distance. Property management costs money and not using it costs time.
• The full carrying cost, not the mortgage payment: taxes, insurance — which changes when the home becomes a rental — maintenance, and vacancy.
• Tell your insurer and your lender. Both have a legitimate interest in the change of use, and neither reacts well to finding out later.
• Tax treatment changes when a principal residence becomes a rental, and it is not a footnote. That conversation belongs with an accountant before you decide, not at the next filing.

If you sell

You can sell a Calgary home from anywhere — documents are handled remotely as a matter of routine. What benefits from being handled in person is the preparation: getting the home ready, deciding what to fix, and being available for decisions in the first two weeks on market, which is when most of what matters happens.

Start earlier than feels necessary. A relocation date that looked distant compresses fast. How long selling takes →

Related Calgary questions

• Rent it out instead of downsizing?
• How long does selling take?
• Should I buy or sell first?