If you're buying it shortly and THEN after you own it will it be ready and available for rent-the costs will be capitalized and accounted for with the basis of the property as well (when you eventually buy it). 

Quote from @Colton Bridges: I recently bought a duplex that I plan to convert to a fourplex.

I wanted to share the numbers and want to make sense if it's a good deal for us according to what we are looking for.Price: $450k (agent said that we can get it down to $420k)2 Units (1 bedroom in each unit)Mortgage with 3 year fixed comes up to around $2.3kInsurance and tax is roughly $400Rent per unit is $1.4k so if we move out then total rent comes up to $2.8kThere's a detached ADU (garage) that can give us another $100-$150 if we rent it for storage and there's a scope of converting it into another unit later on.So currently rough calculation says that it can cashflow up to $300 per month.

If it is a legal 4-family, you should have it converted to a 5-family.

MF with many garages to convert to ADUs, parcel splits, full on development, coop/tic with the resources to handle financing challenges, etc.To raise money in this market as a newby will also be challenging unless you can get it from friends and family.

I stood my ground and eventually she got an appraiser at the $780.

This lead me into Youtube and construction/renovations, which eventually brought real estate and investing onto my radar.

You are afraid of rent control, but if you add an ADU and it is detached, the main house (if built prior to 1978) may eventually become subject to LA Rent Control. 3.

Those who blow it off eventually lose eligibility.To ignore the correlations is nonsense.

BEST DECISION I EVER DID WAS MAKE MY WIFE MY BUSINESS PARTNER THIS YEAR FELT LIKE NEW BEGINNINGS LEAVING A OLD PARTNERSHIP AND STARTING A NEW ONE LITTLE  DID WE KNOW THIS FLIP WOULD BE THE WORSE THING WE DID THIS YEAR TALK ABOUT A HOUSE THAT WOULDN'T STOP SPITTING OUT PROBLEMS FROM SQUATTERS BREAKING IN , FROM THE CITY CONSTANTLY GIVING VIOLATIONS, WE EVENTUALLY TOOK A LOSS OVER 50K OUCH!!