New investor; question on building a multi family

[John Hagen]

Hello All,

a newbie here..I am contemplating purchasing a piece of land ( a wooded lot that is zoned for multi family construction) in Chicago area..it is priced very low. with the intention of getting a loan to do the construction. Not sure if there are gotchas involved, since the land is very cheap. How is this approach of building a multi family compared to the traditional methods of buying built multifamily homes as investments. I would like to understand if anyone has gone through this type of experience..where should i begin; consult a structural engineer etc..

Thank you in advance

[Sue Hough]

John,

 I agree with the comments of  all of the previous great advise! First things first though, you need to find out what the zoning is on the property and if it is even compatible for multi family residential. Then you need to check into the composition of the soil to see if the property is even buildable, you need to check with a soil engineer.  Then you would want to contact an architect and most definitely partner with somebody on this who has a lot of experience. And multi family ground up construction there can be a lot of pitfalls and you want to avoid as many as possible. 

Good luck,

Sue Hough