Should I finish the basement in a Duplex to increase STR Cashflow?

[Marc Shin]

I found a duplex that is a 1/1 on each side. The basements on both sides are unfinished. I can finish both basements and turn both sides into a 2/2, and that would increase the STR cashflow by $700 per side. But in order to do this, I'd need to take on an additional $70K in debt to finance the basement rehab effort. The additional debt for the basement rehab is about $300/month, and it would increase overall STR cashflow by $1400/month.

is this a good idea in your opinion?  This is my first time investing.  Should I just purchase the property, run it for a year, gain some experience and then finish the basements later on?  Do investors usually finish their basements in order to increase cashflow?

[Gino Barbaro]

@Joshua Christensen

Investing in real estate is about investing in a business. You are ultimately purchasing a future stream of revenue.

You have to take into consideration ROE, Return on effort. IS it worth investing not only 70k, but the brain damage and the time it takes to achieve the desired return.