Another newbie expense question

[Ron Reed]

Hello All. Thanks for all of the great info that you provide for us newbies and wannabes. I have another question for you that I'm having trouble finding the answers to. Through the forums, videos and education tools on the site I have been able to determine what the expenses are. However, It's difficult to find out what the actual numbers associated with them will be. For example, I understand vacancy, repair, property management etc, are a certain percentage of the monthly rent. But what about things like insurance, garbage, water/sewer, turnover like painting, cleaning, etc? How do you estimate the actual (or close to it) cost of these items? How do you find out how much garbage service is on a SFR or say a 6 unit MF? I have been practicing my analysis of potential properties but I'm not confident in the accuracy of my numbers because I can't find any hard data on these items. Does it just come with experience? Are these numbers drastically different based on location? I think I could probably call a local trash removal service and find out what they charge but what about water? If I call the City of Chicago and ask them what the water bill is for an apartment building by me, I doubt they will give me that info if I'm not the owner. Insurance: How do you shop for/cost analyze insurance? Websites, or local State Farm/Allstate office? How do you find these numbers, once again, if you do not yet own the property? I have searched the forums and the internet for these numbers but I can't seem to find them. Thank you again for the help.