All Forum Posts by: Forrest Williams

Underqualified or beginning applicants will often use a relative to help secure their application, improving credit score and income. If they don't pay the rent, it's on the co-signer to do it. Couple 1 fit this description perfectly. 1st candidate meets all the qualifications by themselves, so you should be fine.

Hello fellow house hacker! Love the plan for a 3-flat, you can find some great deals. I recently did one in Berwyn and it cash flows great. Personally I like suburbs like Berwyn, Oak Park, and Forest Park. The areas you mentioned are good, people talked about Back of the Yards being up and coming 5 years ago. Still waiting for it to up a bit more for me.

It depends on the Realtor, some may be expired listings, some may be from private groups, and some may be people the Realtor knows personally. It doesn't exclude him from getting commission, but it may need to be worked out another way. That's his job though, not yours. But appreciate that you want him to get paid!

Grill is a good call, private showers and bathrooms would also be nice. 

Hi Byron, I also work in the Chicago area, great place to be. Posting on here is a good start, you may also be interested in going to a real estate meetup. @John Warren hosts a good one. That's a great way to meet other real estate investors and wholesalers too. And yes, google and facebook marketplace are also good solutions. Ask your realtor about off market deals as well.

Does it need more than 23k right now to make it livable? One of the great things about the house hack is you can take your time fixing up the ugly, cosmetic things. Talk to your local bank about a FHA 203k, if it's big they'll have someone who knows about it and if it's small they can direct you to another lender most likely. 

The main barrier to Section 8 is the paperwork to get started. S8 tenants require vouchers, filling out packets, comping the area, lots of back and forth. Some people dislike that or find other reasons to exclude them. There is a perception that these tenants are harder to manage, when in reality they are just like every other tenant pool. Some are good, some are bad, most are fine. The biggest pro is the rent is often as high as you are marketing it, and that money comes in on schedule every time. No paying on the 5th of each month.

If you want more information, I suggest going to the source and calling your local Section 8 office. They'll be able to answer all the questions you have about procedures and the required paperwork.

Hi Erik, I'm a real estate agent in the Chicago area and have done several house hack flips. If you can buy it with cash and pay for the rehab too, I'd say do it. Hard money loans can be hard to get when you're starting out, they are very expensive, and carry a high risk. If you don't have the cash but can get a conventional loan, I would go that route over hard money. Start by talking to your local bank and see what rates they offer. I would also recommend checking out a credit union if you can too. 

Who's the first Sam Zell in Chicago?

To echo what others have said, Chicago's money makers are in 2-4 flats. You can find good SFH in the suburbs, but for Chicago proper, the multi is the way to go.

As a fellow Realtor, if you return my calls in a timely manner and aren't late, I don't care where your tattoos are. I don't have any, but that's because I'm not cool enough.