Elevations not seen from the street can go either way without spoiling the style.Keep the pocket doors into the kitchen - - just so charming - - and keeping them closed as much as possible allows a full modernization of the kitchen.Vicys have notoriously small rooms, so combining rooms or creating entirely new floor plans is fine, but pay attention to the style details.

We are remodeling a kitchen and decided to buy new cabinetry (different configuration).  

The home is a 1971 split-level that originally had the kitchen and living room separated by a large wall. 

Does option 2 require you to add a kitchen once you know that it will give you a better understanding of your ROI for each choice.

A double will cost more to fix (more kitchens and baths) than a single.An RE investment is all about the numbers.

We've added value a whole lot already with some remodels(kitchen,bath, flooring, landscaping) Edit: however, have not done a refinance. 

What if your tenants flood the kitchen?

I start with demo, foundation and plumbing, then roof and electrical work if needed, paint, kitchen, bathrooms, floors, baseboards, light fixtures, etc.

We said you didn't need it, so there's a good thing there's no payment for it.But, should something come up, be it an investment opportunity, or an emergency beyond how liquid you normally stay, your kitchen just got destroyed but the insurance claim is going to take 2-3 months and your kids are hungry tonight, tenant destroyed the place and you want to turn it over as fast as possible, etc, you can click your mouse 3 times and dump $100k into your checking account, or $20k, or whatever, and only pay interest on the amount you use.Another good use-case for a HELOC is when/if you're about to disqualify yourself from getting a normal 1st position Fannie type loan.In almost all cases where someone is sitting on a bunch of equity, they should at least have a HELOC.

When we bought in 2013 we took out the carpet and installed bamboo flooring; we put $35k into a complete overhaul of the kitchen; and we added impact windows in 2015.