Ground up Duplexes OR Change Zoning R2 to R3 in Woodland Hills?

[Trevor Baker]

We are pondering the purchase of a property (and possibly the adjoining property) on a fairly major street in Woodland Hills. The first lot has a house in really bad shape so it seems like a tear-down. The second one has slightly better, but not great SFH. Each lot is about 7700 square feet and we believe they are currently zoned R2.

We haven't done any ground-up construction yet, but we're not afraid of it.  So firstly, we are wondering what to estimate construction costs for a duplex on each lot.  Or, do we look into changing the zoning and combining the lots so we can build a larger apartment building?  

Lastly, what should we anticipate as rental rates in the Woodland Hills area, or where do we get that info?

Thanks!