The subject property is the only eyesore on the street, it appears to need mostly just cosmetic interior/exterior upgrades, and it basically pencils out at 7 units-- with an 8-unit conversion it will allow a refinance of most or all of invested cash within 2 years.

The only real fix is to excavate around the exterior foundation and seal it from there.

Mine has roof, floors, appliances, hot water heater, hvac, exterior paint or siding, bath and kitchen remodel, etc.

Multifamily is where you have one property owned by a single person and it has multiple units.Townhouses often have HOA fees and you are dependent on a company to manage the overall property (ie landscaping, exteriors). 

Anyway I have about $135k available on my heloc. sale price on the duplex is $279,000, so 20% is about $56k. the house is perfectly livable as-is, but at $60/sqft and properties on the block selling for $140/sqft i think there is room for some forced appreciation. the building is currently a three-floor duplex townhouse, one unit is the ground floor and unit two is the top two floors. all floors are basically the same floor plan. the second floor has a kitchen/laundry stacked above the first floor kitchen/laundry. on the third floor, the room is in the same place and empty, but utilities (water gas electric) are already run and in place for adding a third kitchen/laundry, so conversion to triplex would be simple as installing cabinets and appliances and building an exterior staircase up to the second floor rear deck. the three 2bed/1bath units would rent for $1000-$1200 a month each, conservatively. we would have to find somewhere else to live for that to happen, but that is our 1-3 year goal anyway. would it be better to make the bank loan smaller with a bigger down payment from the HELOC?

Other big-ticket items are #1 tuckpointing, #2 exterior decks, #3 Roof, #4 Furnaces/Boilers.

A condo may seem like an easy win: no lawn, no exterior maintenance, outside is always kept up, they have rules to keep tenants in line, etc.In reality, an HOA is only as good as the people running it.

are you talking about an exterior wood deck?

The other (vacant) unit will have to be rehabbed at a cost of $6k, and the exterior needs about $3k of work.

If you are talking exterior porch stairs, then this could get pricey to be honest.