New Member in Chicago, IL

[Jonathan Pliszka]

Hi BP! I've been a long time lurker and just realized I've never formally introduced myself! I'm 26 years old, grew up in Hartford, CT and am now based in Chicago, IL. I began my investing career just shy of my 24th birthday when my sister and her fiance moved to Charlotte, NC. I purchased a foreclosed condo for them to live in and they've been my renters ever since. Granted it was a small deal, I was hooked. After much research and conversation, I determined that my next course of action was to purchase an income property and live as close to free as possible. I researched Chicago neighborhoods with my goal being cash flow, safety, and long-term appreciation potential. In December 2012, I purchased a short sale for $165,000 on a property that sold for $410,000 in 2004. Currently, I have a few hundred dollars a month in expenses for my personal utilities, but my PITI is covered thanks to my tenants.

While I’m currently sitting on the sidelines building capital for my next deal, I took the advice of the BP community and became a licensed broker. Now that my peers are beginning to think about purchasing, I no longer have to hand off leads to other brokers as I did in the past. Furthermore, my managing broker does a lot with rentals, so in my spare time I’m able to show rental units for other landlords & property management companies, which has allowed me to network further.

I look forward to continue learning as much I can from BP and making valuable connections. Cheers!

All the best,
Jonathan