Here are my expenses for year 1: Mortgage Rate 5.00% Length of Mortgage in years 30 Monthly Mortgage payment $3,105.78 Taxes $416.67 Sewer and Water $- Trash $- Heat/Utilities $- HOA $- Cap Ex and Ops $200.00 Insurance $266.67 Mgmt Fee $- Vacancy $207.00 Total Expenses $4,196.11 Years 2+: Mortgage Rate 5.00% Length of Mortgage in years 30 Monthly Mortgage payment $3,105.78 Taxes $416.67 Sewer and Water $- Trash $- Heat/Utilities $- HOA $- Cap Ex and Ops $200.00 Insurance $266.67 Mgmt Fee $600.00 Vacancy $360.00 Total Expenses $4,949.11

That would seem difficult to prove the temperatures went below a certain threshold even if something froze.

I hope it was mostly labor and a difficult situation.

At $900 per month and a 50% expense ratio you have a cap rate of 6.75.

I've been browsing listings yesterday and today and it seems like it may be difficult in my area to find a duplex that A) fits my budget, B) is large enough for my wife, daughter, dog, and me to live in, and C) is located in an area I feel comfortable putting my family.

Based on your numbers you have a 8.6 Cap.

I agree worthy investments are getting more and more difficult to find, and if you try to apply many of the rules of thumb espoused here on BP (1%, 2%) to most markets in Canada you risk becoming immediately discouraged.

As mentioned by @Robert Adams , Google is constantly changing their algorithm making it extremely difficult to stay on-top of organic rankings.

Depending on the laws in your state and how the agreement is worded you might find yourself in a difficult situation if they fall behind on payments.

Any MF investment is driven by cap rates.