Investing in Belmont Cragin - Mixed Use Property

[Wonderful Togbey]

Greetings BP family,

I have an accepted offer on a 2-unit residential with a storefront located right on Belmont Ave. All the units including the shop are in need of massive repairs - the seller also runs the shop so they’ll be moving/closing the business after closing.

Does anyone currently do deals in the Belmont Cragin area or knows someone who does that they can refer me to? (Investors, agents or GCs) I realize Chicago can differ widely from area to area, so I’m just doing my due diligence. How do you like this part of town?
What are your thoughts on a commercial unit in the area? Is this an added bonus or makes the deal less desirable? Ideally, I’d like to hold this long term and rent out all units.

With kindness,

Wonderful

[Paul De Luca]

@Wonderful Togbey

Agreed with John. It would probably be a good idea to get connected with a commercial agent to help with or advise on the leasing of the storefront. 

Given the way commercial real estate has been hammered by COVID, particularly office and retail, it may be difficult to get the space rented. Commercial spaces on average can be vacant for much longer periods of time than residential units (more than 6 months or a year) so you should be prepared for that and have a leasing strategy.