investing in Duplex vs Townhouse in Rancho Cucamonga /Upland Ca

[Jennifer Smith]

My boyfriend and I are planning on getting married in the next year and a half and have expressed a strong desire to invest in real estate together AFTER we get married. We are currently both independently working on saving the 20% needed for a down payment. We desire to invest in the Rancho Cucamonga/ Upland area. We originally were looking to invest duplex/Triplex, but after doing research using the MLS it appears that there are VERY few duplexes/triplexes available in this market. As a result we are now considering purchasing townhouses in the Rancho Cucamonga area instead. Rent for a 3 bedroom 2 bath townhouse is about $2450 per month (HOA fees range from 300-low 400 per month depending on the complex). Rent for a duplex 1/1 and 2/1 is about 1100 and 1300 ( combined rent $2400) . Additionally, there are many newer townhouse developments in the city of Rancho .

Taking this market into consideration would you invest in townhouses,multi family units (duplexes/triplexes),or other?

We appreciate any advice you can give :) 

Jennifer and Michael

[Tyler Hungerford]

Hey @Jennifer Smith and Michael, have you thought about getting a house with a detached garage and then converting that into an accessory dwelling unit (ADU)? That way you can live at the front house, house hack the garage, and have the back unit pay for a significant amount of your mortgage? I'm doing this with one of my client's in Redlands. He's buying his first house and he purchased a property that needs a bit of work and has a large garage. He's planning on moving into the garage and renting out the front house for $1900-2200. Once he decides to move out of the garage, he can lease that out as well. His monthly mortgage payment is $1800, so immediately, he'll be able to have his renter paying for his mortgage and once he leave, he'll be able to rent out the garage for another $1000-1200/month!! Now that is CASHFLOW!

With regards to townhouses in that area, that is not a bad idea at all! But just remember, you have to keep in mind what your mortgage is going to be on a purchase that large. Are you only planning on buying the townhouses for rentals? Or will you be living in them as well?