If the Sacramento county market is making you think about buying an investment property, you would do well to take a look at this report on Sacramento duplexes. In fact, not long ago I came across a very good tip for first-time buyers that are excited about jumping into real estate. Instead of buying a fixer and waiting for it to build equity, a better option - if you want to do it - is to buy a duplex or income property and live in one unit while renting the others. One of the advantage of doing so is that the renters pay the mortgage of the house you live in. The disadvantage is that the renters become not just a financial part of your life, but your social life as well. But the rewards for the brave are well worth it.