The garage apartment is mentioned on the tax records, but apparently in this county they do not include this sq footage.The appraisal district has the following comment on the garage apartment in the tax records online: "Living area above detached garage is not included in the square footage living area of the dwelling but is valued separately"

Like many folks on this site and on the podcast, my eyes were opened to the idea of "streams of income" outside of your 9-5 day job through Rich Dad, Poor Dad.

IRR calculations are used to determine what the rate of return is on a stream of cash flows over a period of time.

In this case, the depreciation basis for the property is allocated between the dwelling structure and each appliance.  

So it would seem that when I purchase the new property, the main dwelling must be the rental.

new to real estate investing I hope to make real estate my main stream of income. 

The properties appreciated greatly during this slow time also so networth was continually improving.Eventually you get to a point you have no debt, tons of equity and rental income stream, this could be off of 1 rental or 20 rentals or anything in between it just depends on your plans, but that is how you build net worth which is the only thing that matters.

My early interests are B & C grade single family dwellings and apartment complexes for (Buy and hold) opportunities but with my oldest daughter in University I have discovered there is a real market opportunity is college towns with purchasing homes near campus and renting out  the bedrooms to students who want a little more independence than dormitories offer.

I currently work as a Network Administrator (IT) for a large real estate developer and I'm looking to grow my passive income stream.

The project is based on achieving certain numbers when finished,markets can change fast, and development delays can kill the project mid-stream.