Buying a multifamily home with people already in it

[Jonathan Kramer]

Is this a good idea to purchase a double house with someone already renting out one side? I'm ready to buy my first property, and I really like this place; however, being new to this i don't know if it's a good idea to buy it with someone already living there. What do you think? Also, they're paying 100 dollars less then the average rent for that neighborhood and type.

[Nicholas Patrick]

I found that people on BP are surprisingly split on this topic. Taking on old tenants can be hard, because there's a possibility they aren't "trained" right. You don't want to take on bad tenants. I have to say, i would put them through my own tenant screening process, and make sure that they are quality tenants. I would also try to find some kind of reason to raise rental prices, if possible. Something that would benefit both you and the tenant. I wouldn't want to be the grumpy landlord that just comes in and raises prices. That's just my personal opinion. I don't own a multi-family yet so maybe that will change, but that's what I think I would do.