I agree with westernrvparkowner on many points. Something about 'The bird in the hand...' comes to mind:)!
That being said, I'll share a perspective that what maybe right for one region, or during one RE cycle - may not be right the next time around - things do change:)!
-During bottom of the trough of the last RE slump, we had the opportunity to get control of a house in front of us. It was being sold out of an estate, and was in pretty rough condition (Kitchen sink was so rusted, it actually fell thru the counter when the DW attempted a cleaning:)!). We wanted to get control of the home, so we could put a view variance on the property, to protect our view from our home's second floor. (Bay and Pacific Ocean, in the San Diego area.) So we bought it 'as is', put $100K into fixing it up nicely (Not a 'Fluff & Puff Flip'. We wanted to add value to our neighborhood, and since the buyer would be our neighbor, we fixed it up the 'right way'. We also put a view variance at 18', in favor of our home. From purchase to make, three months. And, we negotiated a 1% fee with a Broker, to place on MLS and handle the paperwork for us. But, it was listed as 'For Sale By Owner'. We staged the home, held open houses, etc. and in 4 weeks, got an offer mid range of our price point. Which we accepted. (Right place. Location. Location. Location. And, while still in the bottom of the busts trough for the San Diego region. Our sub regional area never dipped near as bad as the balance of San Diego did. We believe we helped the climb back up from the trough!)
So in that instance, and that location, and admittedly with some luck. (And frankly, before the every Tom, Dick & Mary becoming RE Investors and the craze of 'Home Flipping!' kicked in...) We did not follow the advice from westernrvparkowner. And, we did just fine. (Probably due to higher quality work 'doing it right', and quite a bit leaning on luck:)!))
But here we are now, at the seeming slight slowing down from steep climbing RE price cycle. How much longer? (NO ONE KNOWS!) But, again regional differences, and as always Location. Location. Location. Have my DW and I thinking the time is coming up close, to sell one of our two homes here in San Diego. If we did not have 'family dynamics' in the mix, I'd have had the property prepped by now, and hitting the market before June. And, I'd use a Real Estate agent this time around. But we do have family dynamics, and it will probably be Q1 of 2019 before we start to sell one of the homes. My personal opinion, for this location and region, is we'll probably realize a 1.5-2% home gain in this 8-12 month period. Interest Rates will probably continue to climb, but I expect will still be below the 5% mark - which seems to be the 'putting on the brakes' from a rate stand point. One big unknown, appropriate for this region, is the impact of the latest tax regulations on Schedule A Mortgage and Property Tax deductions. Will IMO, also reduced the volume of potential Buyers, and shift the market in impacted regions, to more of a neutral playing field between Buyer and Seller. (Currently, still leaning towards a Seller market is our localized region...).
So if I could, because I'd really like to harvest some of these gains now (Feel the features of that Bird in The Hand:)!) - I would not gamble, and sell now... But, expect we'll be OK by early next year too...
So, that's my rambling. And heck, hear on the Pacific side - not even Cocktail Hour yet - boy I could have really gone on if this was a few hours later:)!
OP - Congrats on being ready for the next phase of extended traveling! Have a blast...
Best to you, and all,
Smitty
(And High Scott!!! Getting a bit warm at the river by now:)!)
