Rehabing a fixer upper with 3 apartments in Ontario may cost 150K if you hire a contractor to do the whole work and management, including all electrical and plumbing.I can do a Rehab for around 35K if I don't need to redo all electrical and plumbing (3 brand new kitchens and baths), but I have to hire contractors by the hour, be there every day and tell them what to do and not to do.You also have to know what the tenants like or not and what they are willing to accept.Filipe

Right around the time I started REI, my contracting company (it's an employee owned company, I am one of the founders), hit a cash crunch, so I quickly learned the advantage of cash flow vs. equity.

p.s.If you haven't really looked at the unit yet, he can also do an inspection of all the under sink / bathroom areas, caulking, any plumbing or electrical issues, or any other little fixes/tweaks it might need to get it tenant ready.

Estimated Income and Expense:Rental Income:1st Floor 2 beds with finished basement and extended kitchen 1,300.002nd Floor 2 beds 1,100.001 Car Garage 125.00 Monthly Income $ 2,525.00 Yearly Income: $ 30,300.00 Yearly Expenses: Real Estate Taxes $ 8, 187.00 (these taxes can and should be appealed for a lower Assessment an estimated lower assessment should be about 300,000.00 which would reduce the annual taxes to $ 6,768.00.)Homeowners Insurance 1,200.00 TOTAL YEARLY EXPENSES: $ 9,387.00The water and sewer will have to be divided between the 2 apartments, the gas and electric are already separated.

This was for appliances, ac, electric and other cosmetic stuff.

Thanks for helping me realize that even though my first deal may not go as planned it's a great way to hit the ground and began running!

Man I'm almost to the finish line with my 2014 first project and kitchen cabinets are a week behind and then today we are hit hard by a snow storm here in Maryland.

It is my understanding you do not use rate of income until you hit 5 units and it becomes considered as commercial property.

Also, if an association can gather enough owners to vote for it, they can change rules even after you buy (changing from allowing renters to owner-occupant only) and hit you with special assessments, so associations are scary.

If you are really going to hold forever and you really want to pass this on to your heirs...Get a good estate planning attorney NOW because you want to get these assets into protected structures that can increase in value without ever hitting the estate tax exemption limit.Over the years, I systematically moved income producing real estate into GRITs, GRATs and GRUTs and now no matter what happens it is all out of reach of the estate tax man and creditors.