Should we rent out the house instead of selling it to pay for care?
Sometimes it's the right call — but run three honest numbers before deciding, because the rental that "covers the care bill" on paper often doesn't in practice.
First, the real net: rent minus taxes, insurance, management, and the repair appetite of an older house. A 1970s rambler doesn't stop writing bills because a tenant moved in. Second, the job: somebody becomes a landlord, usually the same adult child already managing everything else. Third — and this is the one households miss — the tax clock. The capital gains exclusion on a primary home generally requires having lived there two of the last five years. Rent the house long enough and that exclusion can quietly expire, which can turn a tax-free sale into a taxable one. Confirm the specifics with a CPA; I'm not one.
If you want, I'll pull what the house would actually rent for and what it would actually sell for, so the comparison is real instead of theoretical.
I wrote this answer, and I stand behind it. I'm Chris Deutsch, a Minneapolis Realtor (MN #20382264). Twenty-five years of walking these neighborhoods, checking basements, and sitting across kitchen tables from people making exactly this call. I re-check every answer and date it — this one was last verified .
If your situation is more specific than the market, that's the one worth talking through. Email me at chris@lakesarearealty.com.