C-class Landlord friendly Bank in Chicagoland?

Question

Hi all,

We are shopping around for a new bank, hoping to find a better fit than our current relationship with BMO Harris.

Was hoping some of you local landlords can point me in the direction of some banks that will be a good fit for a C-class landlord like us? Most of our properties are 1-4 units with a smattering of commercial as well almost entirely in South and West Sides (no suburbs).

I don't really care about the size of the bank but, ideally, we would find a bank that has:

• - Great customer service
• - Competitive fees
• - Highly functional online platform (and services that can help reduce overhead, like remote check deposit)
• - A willingness to at least entertain lending to an operation like ours (long term financing and potentially some operating lines)
•

Any ideas/intro's would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

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John Warren · Answer

@Jake C. are you trying to find a bank that does both your lending and your ongoing banking? I personally have separated these out a bit in some businesses as I have found a lot of the smaller lenders don't have the best online platforms. One small local bank that I used for a commercial deal in Berwyn was able to implement online check deposits for me only even though their business banking does not offer this feature. I asked the VP, and he figured it out for me! You might go back to your current bank and ask for some individualized help. You will be surprised what the smaller banks will do. They really tend to care more about their customers, and even though they aren't corporate giants with shiny websites, they may be able to take care of you.

Joseph Konney · Answer

Feel free to PM for a referral. I am similarly investing.