Orders don’t decide what happens to the house; your numbers do. Five questions settle most rent-or-sell decisions, and the rest of this page points to the tools and the rules for whichever way you go.
Want a second set of eyes on your numbers? The Home Strategy Quiz is four questions, and Rudy sends back a plan for the house and the move.
Take the Home Strategy QuizFive questions that decide it
- Does the rent cover the payment, tax, insurance, HOA and upkeep? Keep or Sell Calculator
- How much equity would a sale free up? What could my home sell for?
- Do you expect to come back to San Diego? Compare My Selling Options
- Will you need the cash or the VA entitlement for the next purchase? Entitlement when you sell or keep
- Who will look after the home? Renting it out from your next station
What homes rent for near each base
The two ZIP codes nearest each base, from the base pages on vabenefitssandiego.com. Gross rent yield is plain arithmetic, typical rent × 12 ÷ typical value, before any costs; it is not advice.
| Base | ZIP | Area | Typical rent | Typical value | Gross rent yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naval Base San Diego | 92113 | San Diego | $2,220 | $644,800 | 4.1% |
| Naval Base San Diego | 91950 | National City | $2,440 | $687,300 | 4.3% |
| NAS North Island | 92118 | Coronado | $5,120 | $2,571,300 | 2.4% |
| NAS North Island | 92101 | Downtown San Diego | $2,920 | $707,700 | 5.0% |
| Naval Base Point Loma | 92106 | Point Loma (San Diego) | $2,880 | $1,806,800 | 1.9% |
| Naval Base Point Loma | 92107 | Ocean Beach (San Diego) | $2,850 | $1,510,200 | 2.3% |
| MCRD San Diego | 92110 | San Diego | $2,970 | $980,000 | 3.6% |
| MCRD San Diego | 92103 | San Diego | $2,760 | $1,063,200 | 3.1% |
| MCAS Miramar | 92126 | San Diego | $3,040 | $979,700 | 3.7% |
| MCAS Miramar | 92123 | San Diego | $3,200 | $944,400 | 4.1% |
| Camp Pendleton | 92672 | San Clemente | $3,400 | $1,754,300 | 2.3% |
| Camp Pendleton | 92673 | San Clemente | $3,590 | $1,745,800 | 2.5% |
Zillow Research, Sep 2026 (ZORI typical rent, ZHVI typical home value). Every ZIP code on this site: Rental Yield by ZIP.
If you rent it out
- Your VA entitlement stays in use until the loan is paid off (VA.gov); see what that leaves for the next purchase.
- Tell the Assessor when the home is no longer your main home. The homeowners’ exemption takes $7,000 off the taxable value, and December 10 is the last day to end it without a penalty (BOE).
- Renting changes the dates for the home-sale tax exclusion; the PCS rental tax timeline works them out.
Renting it out from your next station
A rental can run smoothly from across the country with a few things set up before you leave. These are the California rules that come up most for an owner on orders.
A licensed property manager
In California, someone who leases a home, finds tenants or collects rent for another person for pay is doing real estate broker work (California Business and Professions Code 10131(b)), and that work needs a Department of Real Estate license (California Business and Professions Code 10130). Check any manager’s license on the DRE public license lookup before you sign. Ask about screening criteria, repair limits and monthly reporting. Rudy does not manage rentals, refers no property manager and takes no fee from one; you choose your own.
Deposits, and renting to another service member
- A security deposit can be at most one month’s rent, plus the first month’s rent (California Civil Code 1950.5(c)(1)).
- A small landlord, as the law defines one, may take up to two months’ rent, but never when the prospective tenant is a service member, and a landlord may not turn down a service member because of that rule (California Civil Code 1950.5(c)(5)(B)). A settlor or beneficiary of a family trust counts as a natural person for the small-landlord test (California Civil Code 1950.5(c)(5)(C)).
- Since April 1, 2025, a higher than standard deposit charged to a service member because of credit or rental history needs a written statement by the day the lease is signed, and the extra is returned after no more than six months if the rent is current; the return date goes in the lease (California Civil Code 1950.5(c)(4)).
Choosing a tenant fairly
Military or veteran status and source of income, including housing vouchers, are protected in California housing, and the law covers landlords, property managers, real estate agents and home sellers alike (California Civil Rights Department). One set of written screening criteria, applied the same way to every applicant, keeps it simple.
A checklist before you leave
Rudy Flores, Realtor® · Coldwell Banker West · CalDRE #02257808 · Responsible Broker CalDRE #01481919 · (619) 392-6714 · Equal Housing Opportunity · vabenefitsrealestate.com
Loan, coverage and HOA rules
The home, before you go
The lease and required notices
Advertising and screening
Money, records and the manager
A sale later on
For planning only, not a legal determination; have a landlord-tenant attorney look over the lease and notices before you go.
Haven’t done the Home Strategy Quiz yet? It is four questions, and it helps Rudy plan around your report date.
Take the Home Strategy QuizLeaving on orders? Send Rudy your checklist
Rudy will follow up about your timing, what homes near your base rent and sell for, and whether a later sale could make sense. Lease, notice and management questions belong with a landlord-tenant attorney or a licensed manager you choose.
If you sell
Before you leave, the PCS Seller Countdown lines up the dates; after you leave, selling from a distance covers signing, keys and a tenant in place. Once the home is sold and the VA loan is paid in full, the entitlement it used can be restored on request (how that works).
Talk to a lender. Rates, loan programs and approvals come from lenders, not from websites or real estate agents. Talk to your own mortgage broker, or use our preferred lender, Point Mortgage Corporation (NMLS #231073), at (619) 475-4095. You are always free to choose any lender you like, and you can verify any lender’s license at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
Rudy does not pay or accept referral fees, and you are always free to choose any lender, attorney, CPA or other professional you like.
Common questions
Should I rent or sell?
It depends on the five questions at the top of this page. The Keep or Sell Calculator and the Home Strategy Quiz help you put numbers on them.
How long can I rent before the tax exclusion is gone?
The IRS test asks for 2 years of use in the 5 years before the sale, which is where the familiar 3-year rule of thumb comes from; qualified duty can stretch it. The tax timeline finds your own date, and a tax professional confirms it.
Does renting tie up my VA entitlement?
Yes, until the loan is paid off. After payoff it can be restored when the home is sold, or once without selling (VA.gov).
Can Rudy help from a distance?
Yes. He can tour the home by video, send a value estimate and recent sales, and walk you through the remote-sale steps in selling from a distance.
Talk through rent or sell with Rudy
Share your home’s ZIP code, your report date and which way you are leaning. Rudy will follow up with a value estimate and Zillow’s typical rent for your ZIP code.
More from Rudy
- Take the Home Strategy Quiz
- PCS rental tax timeline
- Keep or Sell Calculator
- Compare My Selling Options
- What could my home sell for?
- Rental Yield by ZIP
- PCS Seller Countdown
- Selling from a distance
- Owning near a San Diego base when orders come
- Book a 15-minute call
Sources, checked Nov 5, 2026: VA.gov, Eligibility requirements for VA home loan programs (updated Sep 22, 2026); IRS Publication 523 (2025), Selling Your Home; California Civil Code 1950.5(c)(1), (c)(4) and (c)(5); California Civil Rights Department, Housing; California Department of Real Estate, Public License Lookup; California State Board of Equalization, Homeowners’ Exemption; California Business and Professions Code 10131(b); California Business and Professions Code 10130; Zillow Research (ZHVI typical home values and ZORI typical rents by ZIP code).
General information, not legal, tax or lending advice: an attorney, a tax professional or your lender confirms how these rules apply to you. Not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense or any government agency.