A retirement house

[bisimpson]

Quick question for those who have gone before me—we live in Washington DC. Work is the only reason I'm there. My wife and I are always thinking about where we would live once we've reached FIRE status. Is there any sense in buying something now and renting it in the meantime? We don't really have a timeline—perhaps we're looking at perhaps ten years out.

Thoughts?

[Gronnie]

Good chance the renters trash it.

[ixtap]

Ten years is a long time, you could want something very different by then.

[GrayGhost]

Potential rental properties must be evaluated skeptically and on a case-by-case basis. Personally, if I wasn't going to live around an area, I wouldn't own a property there unless it's quite profitable or I could get an economy of scale going somehow.

[chrisgermany]

I'd just try out some places renting for shorter stints after retirement.
To buy and then discover that you do not like the area is very expensive IMHO.
A place can change a lot in 10 years and also your ideas of retirement.
Gardening or not? Turn key and travel for longer periods or not? Guestrooms or not?

[bisimpson]

This is all great feedback. We have rentals out of town, so I'm not too worried about renters and we would certainly look for a good investment. We have a pretty good idea where we want to land, but we might not be as clear on the details (condo? SF? In the city? outside of the city?) Just renting when we get to that point is a great idea.

Personally, as I think about this journey, I find my mind jumping to the end. Maybe the question behind the question is finding that balance between working the day to day plan but considering how to make a transition to something different.

Thanks again for the feedback.