Brown field is approved for a many year upgrade with a very large total budget.

We don’t quite have the time/resources to do a total renovation, but we were always hoping to house hack in a decent multifamily that we could do some cosmetic upgrades on and could hold and sell down the line after he moves from Ft.

I painted it, redid the floors, put on new doors and hardware, fixed all the existing issues (leaks in roof, toilets not working, sinks leaking, water damage on exterior and upgraded the panel to a 220V) What was the outcome?

This is where I think it's important to improve condition and curb appeal, because that condition/upgrade premium could be used as support for an asking rent that is closer to the payment standard if nearby comps are lower quality and have lower rents.

@Jose N. you can do maintenance with band-aids or replace/upgrade the problem.Often cheaper overall to use band-aids to get as much "life" out of a system.Roofs for example.

Minor cosmetic and efficiency upgrades over four and a half years.

Is it worth it to upgrade it?

Invested around $35,000 in value-add upgrades and did most of the labor ourselves.

On the flip side, mass transit can help with the car issue and water/sewer upgrades can help with the utility usage.As far as single family versus multifamily, usually multifamily is taxed higher.

The short answer is yes utilize a heloq if the numbers work.I would get the heloq to have available but use your cash for now do you aren't paying 8% or so for the heloq money.Then if you need cash you can tap the heloq only then.This will save you a lot on interest.You can't deduct the interest on upgrades to your primary residence until it becomes an investment property.