I seem to be facing a conundrum at the moment. What are the pros and cons of each? Is it harder to rent out a 3br? 2br are the most ideal right for renting out?
That's like asking whether a jetty is better than a boatshed without knowing whether it's deep water frontage or a moat.
Whats the likely demographic in the area? Are there a high percentage of units in the suburb? Is it near a uni so students most likely would be your tenants and they may wish to share to keep costs down, a 3bd unit could work here as well as 2 bds. Often couples have a child and then another , they may wish to up grade to a house. I could be wrong but I would imagine there would be less demand for a 3 bd unit as tenants may up grade to a small house when they can. How does the yield stack up? 2bd would most likely be slightly cheaper with a better yield. All things being equal I would pick the 2bd unit.
so many variables. ask yourself who do you see living there? A 5+ bdr for example doesn't appeal to much more then a large family or college frat house, either way bulk kids or frats destroy houses. But at 2 - 3 bdr not great diff so just balance price to buy vs price to rent. this day and age though even a couple alone like to have an office just like most family's own 2 cars now and want double garages so i lean towards 3 bdr.
Provided 'apartments' are the right style of asset for that particular location and general demographic - whether it is a 2 bedroom or 3 bedroom apartment shouldn't affect the overall capital growth - one won't simply increase in value more or less than the other because it has an extra bedroom or an extra bathroom etc. It will however affect the purchase price - which in turn affects your capital and cash flow commitments.