All Forum Posts by: Jennie Berger

I agree! Encouraging people to break the law is not only unethical but kinda dumb, especially on a public forum, don't ya think? ;) I'm not sure what you're trying to accomplish by your comment. But I assure you that I was not encouraging anyone to do anything illegal. I mentioned it in my post for that very reason, so that wholesalers (or aspiring ones) in Illinois would know it's required. The intention of my post was NOT to harp on the legalities of wholesaling in IL, however. It was to provide value & insight from the perspective of their end buyers, ie, us. The investors. And also from the perspective of a general contractor. And how they can connect with us more meaningfully, intentionally, and well-informed. 

 Additionally, this is not really a newly passed law. It's been around for well over a year now.

@Michael E Talamante Glad you found it helpful! Happy to answer any questions you may have. :)

@Dana Sample I'm so glad you found it helpful!🙏

Hey Kamil-

We are mid-way through a new construction project near Ravenswood Manor. Medium-high end but nothing like Winnetka so take this with a grain of salt. Our finishes are very nice but I wouldn't say high end. The house is about 3600 SF and we are around $135/SF. *Note that we are also working on a gut rehab right next door and hired the same GC for both projects, so we were able to get a 'discount' price for each. We are also GCs so we oversee everything and purchase all of our own finishes and fixtures. Good luck and please let me know if we can be of any further help!

Great event! Thanks for setting it up and I look forward to next month!🙏

Hi @Melanie Stephens! 

We drive a pickup truck around town with vinyl wrapping on it, advertising our company. A gentleman saw our truck and called us first to see if we'd like to buy his uncle's home. His uncle had become ill and hadn't been living in the house for quite some time. He was sick of taking care of it, and his uncle was sick of paying the bills just to hold on to it. 

It was an adorable four square style home with 3.5 levels of living on the NW side of Chicago, on a somewhat historic block, right near a rapidly developing area. I adored the block, the area, and the house, despite the fact that the house was full of isht. Literally. Full. Of. ISHT. Cat poop. Everywhere. The house stunk! We're used to buying distressed properties so it wasn't a huge deal, but, ya know. Still not the most pleasant house to walk around, if you know what I mean. (watch that landmine over there ;)

The house had good bones and we didn't need to tear it down. Though, in this area, a tear down might have been justified as well. My partner and I decided we could pay a specialty cleaning company to clean out the mess and odors, then turn around and resell it on the market to other investors as a gut rehab or tear down. We stay conservative with our numbers so our projected re-sale price to investors was 265k. Thus, we offered 180k, thinking we'd spend about 5k to clean it up, plus several thousands in buying/re-selling costs. (Our selling costs in Chicago are OUTRAGEOUS) The hope was we could turn around and maybe make 30-40k...

Well, we got outbid by another 'cash buyer' that the gentleman spoke to after us. Turns out they offered him around 215k. Less than a month, later I saw the house listed on the MLS for sale at 314k. It ended up closing at over 320k. And boy, did I feel like a dummy.

WELP. That's all she wrote. :/ If you'd like more info please feel free to get in touch with me! I will also email this to you directly. 

And I meant Bob, not Mike.🤦‍♀️😁

@Dana Sample I realize this never got a response and for that I apologize. I believe you asked Mike but I'm happy to share our feedback.

The best way to get accurate repair estimates is to have a qualified contractor walk the property with you. Do that enough and you'll get the hang of it.

Are you using some kind of repair estimator spreadsheet or software? If you have a template that can be used over and over, the more you walk through properties, the easier it is to know how much something costs. We use a pre filled spreadsheet where we just check certain boxes and the numbers are automatically calculated. These figures are ballparks for our areas, and you'd of course need to tweak the #s to fit your market(s).

(*Note: Every estimate from a contractor or spreadsheet is a just that. And estimate. A ballpark figure until you have an actual complete scope of work and/or full architectural plans, if applicable. Even the best contractor won't be able to get you exact numbers without those two items above.)

As rehabbers/builders, we tend to stick to a few particular zip codes and styles of house. This may not be your M.O. By doing this it's easy for us to walk through a new property, estimate repairs in about 15 mins (because we walk the same types of properties in similar areas, over and over again), and know the ARV. If that's possible in your market, that is one way to gain true expertise.

Let me know if I can clarify or explain anything better. I hope this was helpful!

So much great info here--thank you! A few questions IN CAPS:

A few things good advisors do to justify the costs:

• Low cost well diversified investing
• Ongoing tax planning and reviewing tax returns annually- FIDUCIARIES DO THIS? IS THIS NOT FOR A CPA TO DO? 
• Reviewing your financing options and giving recommendations- FINANCING OPTIONS..MEANING, FINANCING FOR REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS AND THE SUCH?
• Reviewing insurance policies periodically to make sure you have adequate coverage at a reasonable cost- NEVER WOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THIS BUT I WILL FIND OUT ABOUT IT
• Make sure you have an estate plan and it stays current- THE FIDUCIARY DOES THIS? I THOUGHT I AM RESPONSIBLE TO HIRE AN ATTORNEY TO DO THIS.
• Help you analyze you properties and determine what your rates of return are- HMMMMM...THIS SOUNDS LIKE SOMEONE WHO IS PART OF MY REAL ESTATE BUSINESS. WHY WOULD A FINANCIAL ADVISOR/INDEPENDENT FIDUCIARY DO THIS? HOW WOULD THEY HAVE THE EXPERTISE TO DO THIS UNLESS THEY ARE INTO REAL ESTATE THEMSELVES?
• Review employee benefits and stock options to make sure you're taking advantage of whatever is offered- I'M NOT UNDERSTANDING THIS ONE. I OWN MY OWN COMPANY...CAN YOU CLARIFY?
• Analyzing pension benefit options and Social Security options- THIS ONE IS ALSO ESCAPING ME. CAN YOU CLARIFY?
• Retirement planning, college planning, charitable planning, etc.

If an advisor is only managing investments, 1-1.5% is high. If they are doing some of the other things I mentioned, a 1% or 1.5% fee can be reasonable.