Strange Situation, Potential Pitfalls?

[Michael DeYoung]

I came across a strange listing yesterday that I'm very interested in and have a showing for tomorrow. I haven't been inside yet, so I haven't been able to run the hard numbers.

It is a listing for two houses located on a single lot. Not a duplex, two separate buildings, one city lot. The city says they cannot be parceled into two separate properties because the lot is too small. So they will remained tied together. But, I can rent them out separately. On the surface, it seems like a great deal, it's essentially 2 houses for the price of 1, in a desirable area. I would be planning to buy and hold, while fixing the properties up over time. They do need some work. There is currently a family with 11 kids living in both houses, owner occupied, not currently a rental.

I've already contacted my insurance agent to get his point of view and an estimate. I'm going to talk with my lender today and see what he says about financing it. I'm asking B.P. is there something I'm missing here. Can anyone tell my why this situation would a problem? What issues could I run into down the road? Any one have experience/insight with a situation like this?

Thanks everyone.