Why didn't my house with an ADU or my duplex sell?
Most often, the listing was written for the wrong buyer. At the asking price the rent did not cover an investor's loan at today's rates, and the listing spoke to no one else. In a 2026 Series Homes analysis of Austin, more duplex, triplex and fourplex listings expired or were withdrawn than sold.
WHAT MOST PEOPLE ARE NEVER TOLD
There is a second buyer for a house with an ADU or a duplex. At today's rates, a buyer who will live there needs far less cash than an investor to pay the same price.
An investor with a loan wants the rent to cover the payment. On the median property in that analysis, the rent supported a price about a third below the sale price. A few percent off the asking price does not close a gap that size.
Days on market could not show you this. In that analysis the median was 40 days for these properties and 40 for houses, and it counts only listings that sold. The listing service records your asking price and, if you sell, the closing. It keeps no record of a buyer who ran the numbers and passed.
A buyer who will live in one unit works from their own income. On a Fannie Mae or FHA loan the lender can count 75 percent of the other unit's rent on top. That buyer's listing says three things:
- Which unit they can move into, and when.
- What the other unit rents for, with the lease to show it.
- That a lender may count that rent toward their income.
GOOD TO KNOW
Check two things before you relist. A Fannie Mae or FHA buyer must move in within 60 days of closing, so one unit needs to be open by then. And the price has to hold up against what similar properties sold for, because the buyer's lender orders an appraisal.
Yours is a little different. They all are.
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WHERE THIS COMES FROM
- Series Homes analysis of Austin MLS listings and Travis County deed records, 2026
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.8-02, Rental Income from the Subject Property (09/02/2026)
- HUD Handbook 4000.1 (FHA), Rental Income Received from the Subject Property (pages 240 to 241, revised 8/12/2026)
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B2-1.1-01, Occupancy Types (11/04/2026)
- HUD Handbook 4000.1 (FHA), section II.A.1.b.iii(A)(2)(a), FHA Requirement for Owner Occupancy (page 159, revised 8/12/2026)
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B2-1.2-01, Loan-to-Value (LTV) Ratios (06/01/2022)
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.3-07, Sales Comparison Approach Section of the Appraisal Report (06/04/2025)
Researched and written by Series Homes. Checked against its sources on . Lending rules change. This page is general information, not a loan offer or legal or tax advice.