The fork: sell or hold
Selling from a distance is fully doable — remote closings are routine — but the mechanics reward preparation: the prep and documentation work done before you leave (a vacant, un-prepped house shows worst of all — the vacant-home problem is real), pricing set with this month's incentive climate in view, and a local support system for showings and punch-list items. A leaseback from your buyer, or listing while still resident, beats managing a vacant listing from two time zones away. Holding as a rental deserves an honest audit, not a default: long-distance landlording means professional management (price its percentage into the math), an eventual tenant-in-place sale, reserves for the roof you won't be there to see, and a re-read of your insurance and HOA rental terms. Sometimes it genuinely pencils — the corridor's relocation engine keeps tenant demand real. Sometimes it's inertia wearing a spreadsheet.
The timing squeeze
The classic failure is the double-payment window between the new job's start and the old home's close. The bridges, in order of typical preference: sell-with-leaseback, price-for-pace in the defensive scenario from the proceeds exercise, or a short intentional rental — chosen, not defaulted into. Educational only, August 2026; tax treatment of a converted rental has real consequences — talk to a professional before choosing the hold path.
Selling into a builder's market takes timing.
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