Converting a large SFR to a multifamily

[Julian Merchant]

I'm mainly looking for answers from a financial and logistical standpoint.

Wondering any folks out there have experience flipping a large single family and converting it into a rental fourplex.

Is it costly? Did you change the floor plan considerably? What did you do about utilities? Did it affect your financing if you changed it to more than 4 units?

I'd appreciate any stories or words of wisdom you have.

[David Wolber]

@Julian Merchant I know this post is old, but would like to talk about the logistics of turning a SFR into a 4plex.

Entrances - you now need 4 independent entrances and usually secondary egress for emergency for each unit

Utilities - The best way is to have 4 meters installed.  This means an almost complete re-wire of the ENTIRE building to ensure each unit is supplied by it's own power source.

Plumbing - you have to run all new plumbing to all the bathroom that you just installed which needs to have proper venting and drainage.  Not to mention if it's a septic system, then you need to make sure the septic tank is rated for how many bedrooms you are making the thing.

Structure - Depending on the style, a new stair case may be required, which may require installing a few supporting beams where the stairs go through the upper or lower floors.

Fire stops - you will, depending on local codes, be required to have a fire stop between each unit, such as a 1-hr burn rated wall.  5/8" drywall between each unit. 

HVAC - separate furnaces or single furnace?  Independent heating supplies or different zones?

Heat supply?  Oil? Gas? separate or independent?

Hot water supply - again, like HVAC are you going to run everyone off the same source and hope one doesn't use more than the others or run individual hot water heaters to each unit powered by the new separate meter you had installed.

Oh, and zoning.  I don't think anyone brought up zoning... ;)

OR you could, I guess, just lump everyone into a all utilities paid situation, but then you will always have people who will take advantage of that.  Oh it's too hot??  lets just open a window in Dec.  Why not, they don't pay any extra for utilities.

I can see how this could work in a college town type scenario, but not for a well maintained cash flowing property.