Question about a first property

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Hi. I'm fairly new to real estate investing- I've been doing my research and I'm looking to buy soon. For my first property I'm planning on buying a triplex, living in one unit and letting the other two pay the mortgage and eventually expanding from there. I've found a house I like in an area I really like and I've been preapproved for a mortgage. Except when I took a closer look at the history I realized the house has been sitting on the market for a long time- 18 months, it was actually de-listed and then relisted in that time frame. This is a very stable and competitive market- good houses sell within days of being listed.

I walked through the property once- needs some cosmetic updates, new carpeting, wall paper taken down, ideally redo the kitchen in the one unit. A few minor fixes like the hand railing on the front steps needs re-anchored. Yes, obviously I would get a home inspection done to look for major problems.

This property has a lot of good things going for it (like tons of off street parking!) and as of right now 2 out of 3 units are rented but I'm a little worried as to why it has been sitting so long. Should I walk away or use this to my advantage and try to negotiate a killer deal?

[Tracie Davis]

Are all triplexes selling quickly? You don't want to compare this house to a SFR. Most people aren't real estate investors and could be the reason it has sat.