All Forum Posts by: Fred Ewert

I was caught off guard by using the usually accurate Trulia Crime maps which gathers data from Crimereports.com and Spotcrime.com. It showed no blue area (blue meaning crime) in the area of Dolton and Gary, IN. I knew that can't be true for Gary as it is notorious for violent crime. Other sites and anecdotes told me Dolton was terrible. What is happening is that some police departments do not report to these websites and you end up with areas that look crime free.

Which leads my options to finding a realtor that can tell me area by area and block by block which is good or not good. The other option, that I hope exists, are maps created by investors detailing areas they have personally visited and giving the area a letter grade. I've seen nice graded maps for other cities so I am hoping to check out one for the 3rd largest city in the US.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1LXkb5P2IeZkv6FFTKV2P9Z5hBOA&hl=en_US&ll=41.81022839193879%2C-87.68563448292417&z=11 Here is a contribution I found. It is a map of gangs updated for 2018.

@Brian N. @Tom Shallcross

Totally agree about touring the place in person with a local expert realtor. I did this in Indy and got a feel for the neighborhoods first hand.

The $900 maint./capex number was given to me by a PM and overall RE guru in Indy and is based on his actual data, an average of what they see at his company. However, the Chicago homes I'm seeing are a different build style despite being in the same generation. It would be interesting to find Chicago's version of this guy and see what numbers they see on average because I think general percents based on purchase price is a mistake probably. I believe its about how much square footage, year built, and how many doors (how much plumbing, hvac, electrical etc).

@Brian N. Thanks this helps!

1. The tax site is exactly what I was looking for.
2. Looks like I will need to talk to an insurance professional about my specifics. For now I've just been putting $1000 in my analysis spreadsheet. But I will take you up your recommendation as soon as I decide to get serious about Chicago, I would be living there and renting the other units out. I've had my eyes set on Indy for months but had no luck so far. I've been outbid on two houses so far which would only have cash flowed $100 per door. I've never heard any general articles say Chicago was a cash flow town so I assumed it wasn't worth checking out. However, just for fun, one night I searched Chicago and immediately found properties that did $200 per door (in low crime areas according to Trulia, and move in rent ready condition). I still don't believe it but calibrating my analysis spreadsheet numbers is a step in the right direction toward belief.
3. Just to get my math correct, you are saying take 10% of gross rental income for capex + repairs/maintenance? So if my total gross rental income monthly was $2000, my annual capex+maintenance would be $2400? A real estate pro in Indy told me to use $900 per door as a very conservative estimate for this (for pre WW2 homes). I want to be conservative but also realistic.
4. Makes sense.
5. I'll need to call some PMs. I didn't know if 10% was used for duplexes and then maybe 15% for triplex, and so on. But it actually sounds like 10% regardless of how many doors you own.
6. Makes sense.

One thing I forgot to ask in my original post. What do you use to get a feel for crime in an area? I've always used Trulia in combination with a local government crime data website. Is Trulia pretty accurate for Chicago as it is in Indy?

Here is a list of questions that would help me in making an informed real estate decision.

1. What website will allow me to type in an address and it will return the prior tax bill amount?
2. How much is insurance on an 1940-1960's multifamily that might cost between $150-200K?
3. How much is maintenance and preventative maintenance on that sort of house?
4. How much is vacancy as a percent of income? I am looking in areas that rent for $900+ per unit.
5. What percent are you seeing for property management? How does 2 unit, 3 unit, and 4 unit differ in terms of this cost?
6. What percent do you see for closing costs?

Also, do you suggest any Facebook groups that have rules against selling and are more for advice/recommendations? Thank you!

It is hard to figure out vacancy rates on Airbnb because of their design. I've heard people have mixed reviews on the data on Airdna or similar research apps. So I am thinking it comes down to just getting in touch with some Airbnb pros locally to take advice from.

I am not so concerned at this point about the details of how to run an Airbnb, that will come later. I am concerned mostly with "will X location be profitable and have low vacancy" because I am looking for a single family home in a low crime area of Indy for me to live in and house hack through Airbnb.

Maybe we can discuss specifics for a bit on here as well. How would a renovated bungalow do in "West Indianapolis". Area has no crime according to Trulia. Minutes from Tibbs Drive In Theatre. Minutes from downtown and importantly the airport. Guests would have their own private bathroom. It would cost me $500 a month in mortgage payment and my goal would be to recoup that cost in renting out a room. Are you thinking I would struggle to do that, or I would easily do that and then some? There are no current Airbnb listings to compare to in that area.

@Brandon Handel Thanks, I will check on this. There are surely some conventions that happen at Grand Wayne Center that might attract people. Also, things going on at the Coliseum. Too bad there isn't a sports team like Notre Dame there. Though I'm sure many come and stay for IPFW graduation.

@Account Closed  I only say people aren't investing compared to Indy because there are 1,900 posts in the Indy forum vs only 190 in the Fort Wayne forum. I'd love to see more activity there for learning sake. I wonder if a handful of people are doing well there and don't want the secret out?

I am finding that you get more for your money in Fort Wayne, South Bend, Goshen, etc. Why are more people not investing in these smaller cities?

I am keeping an eye out for a live in duplex in all of the cities of Indiana. I would like to know if there are concerns living/investing in these smaller towns.

I am just guessing that people speculate that prices in Little Flower or Irvington will sky rocket in the coming years whereas no neighborhoods in the smaller cities of Indiana would do this?

I've been looking in the Indianapolis area for a duplex to live in and airbnb. But, keeping my options open I was looking at Fort Wayne.

Can someone provide analysis on the supply and demand for short term rental in Fort Wayne?

Also interested in anyone's method of assessing this critical data either via airbnb.com or a 3rd party site. It is very hard when Airbnb doesn't give at least 3 months of historic data.

@Ethan Anderson  I haven't really looked at it like that. I'll take anything I can get but I don't want to live in a war zone. I currently live out in the country in northern Indiana. So maybe any place in Indy is a war zone compared to that ;) But seriously, I'd try to keep to a location good enough that my Airbnb guests wouldn't feel uneasy.

I'm only looking on the MLS via Redfin. Any hints to see what you are seeing off market?

Also, maybe you were asking about how much cash flow I am looking for. As long as it flows a little I'm ok with that. My situation is time sensitive so I am ok with not getting a home run deal. It just can't be a negative cash flow deal.