What is a duplex? One building divided into two separate homes, each with its own entrance.
A duplex is a single building containing two separate dwellings, each with its own entrance, kitchen and bathroom. The two halves may be side by side or stacked one over the other. Legally it is normally one property on one parcel with one title, which is what separates it from two attached houses sold separately.
It is the smallest step into owning something that pays you. Live in one half and rent the other and the tenant covers part of the payment, an arrangement lenders recognise: a two-unit building bought as a primary residence is often financed on residential rather than commercial terms, which is a large difference in rate and deposit.
The work is real. Two of everything eventually breaks, a bad tenant is now a neighbour, and the arithmetic only holds if the second unit is actually rentable at the rent assumed. Price it on what it rents for today, not on what it could.
A worked example
A duplex at $480,000 where the owner lives in one half and rents the other at $1,450. The rent covers roughly half the payment, and the lender treated it as a residential purchase because it has two units rather than five.
Questions people ask
Is buying a duplex a good investment?
It is the cheapest way to have a tenant help with the payment, and residential financing terms on a two-unit building are a real advantage. Price it on the rent the second unit gets today rather than the rent it might, and budget for two of everything failing.
What is the difference between a duplex and a townhouse?
A duplex is one building of two dwellings, normally one property on one title, usually with one owner. Townhouses are separately owned attached homes, several in a row, each with its own title.