@Raymond Slater - A HELOC would probably be your best bet.....

And I bet it is retroactive to day-one, so you better be ready to pay them off before they mature.

If somebody wants to live in that immediate area, there are only so many choices. 

I'll bet you can get it done for less. 

This brings the total price of this townhouse to about $200K, so if you think I was nervous about the $181 price tag, you can bet that I'm groaning to myself at the $200K price tag.So why am I still wanting to move forward?

What was it that made it a non-economical choice?

So here is how I would set this up: Kitchen: Appliances - $6,000 Cabinets - $10,000Countertop - $70-110/sqftSink - $1,500Faucet - $500Cab pulls - $500 (or $6-10/pull) Install - $2,000Flooring: Floor product (unfinished): (expect to pay 4 - 10 dollars per board foot for anything quality) Floor finishing (sanding, coating etc) roughly $3/Sq ft (as long as you are using a standard coating (polyurethane) if you want to go higher end with an oil or stain expect this to jump to 4-5/sq ft Bathrooms:Demo: $/hour x expected hours Underlayment: Schulter Shower System (approx: 500/shower enclosure) Tile/grout/thinset: 6-10 sq/ftInstall: $3-6 sq/ft Lighting and Electric: (pricing includes installation)   Switches: approx $30/switch  (this assumes a mid range Leviton 3-way dimmer) Outlets: $10 (TR Leviton duplex, GFI where needed and duplex/USB combo in Kitchen Island and a few choice locations) Lighting:Surface mount approx $150/fixtureCan: approx. $250/fixture (assuming old work install by electrician)A little more on why I do it this way: Kitchen: You can figure out exactly how much your kitchen is going to cost before you start.

Postlets.com and CL are your best bet! 

I do not have a home and I currently rent an apartment so it seems that my best choice would be do buy a multi-family unit.

@Josh Caldwell - without looking at the data, I bet that rents in Ames, Iowa were really low and that 22% increase is something like median rents going from $400 => $500.