House Hack In Chicago!

[Bryan Bokowy]

Hey everyone! I'm currently in the process of purchasing my first 4 unit multifamily property in Chicago.  I want to make sure the numbers I have in my pro forma are as accurate as possible before moving forward.  I have a few questions below that I'm hoping I can get some help with.

1) Taxes - I have the annual taxes that I took off Redfin.com from 2016.  I'm sure they've increased since then, what the best way to estimate my current taxes?  Also, would taxes be lower as I'll be living in one of these units? 

2) There is currently laundry on-site in the basement for the four units. I have around $2k built in for water/sewer/garbage.  Is that realistic?  A friend of mine invests just outside the city and his water/sewer/garbage pushes nearly $3k and that's for a 3 unit property.  Also, I'm told that adding washer/dryer in each unit would increase rents.  Has anyone done this?  I just had an inspection done and the inspector advised against it.  He said all it takes is one leak (which is inevitable) from the second floor to cause a ton of damage.  If anyone has put washer/dryer in units for additional rent, what has your experience been like?

3) Rents - I've been looking on Craigslist and Trulia, etc. for comps on what I can get for rent.  However, there is such a huge range that it's hard to tell what is realistic.  Does anyone recommend other avenues?

Thanks! Any help would be greatly appreciated!