All Forum Posts by: Jim Bryant

@Anthony Bellesbach  Oh ok, a real bad neighbor!  Never had that one happen before, usually non payment, but hard to be THAT bad in DePue ;).  We use USAA my smart move for our background checks, but we make sure to call those past landlords, they've  helped us sidestep some landmines that's  for sure!   Facebook marketplace is awesome though, we use  it exclusively.  Well good luck, like I said, in our experience once you post the notice  on their door or deliver it, they'll usually beat feet on their own.  Also, forget about getting money from them for whatever (other than the deposit).  I did a "it's the principle of the thing" and all I got was a larger bill from the attorney.

@Diana Dorantes  Oh you guys have a property manager?  We weren't  able to find a real property manager in the Illinois Valley!

Sorry to hear that, I guess they went rotten right from the start!  Well for sure, don't use Eric May, we used him and he totally sucked.  You could  try to file for eviction yourself, that our plan next time someone doesn't pay up for a while.  It's really just a form that will cost you 200 dollars to file with the courthouse.   Look up the timelines, but if you present them with an eviction notice, they'll generally leave on their own.  That's how it turned out every time we evicted someone.

If you don't mind me asking, how did you find these schlubs?   When we started off in the business we didn't really do much vetting but after we started doing references, credit checks and all that we haven't had to boot anyone out.

So folks I just bought my first multi-family.  It's a 3 unit, but has an odd utility setup.  It has 2 furnaces and 2 water heaters and an odd set up.  So Apartment A is on its own system and they pay everything themselves.  Apartments B and C share the same grid and the old landlord was splitting the electricity bill 2/3 and 1/3 between them and paying their water bill.  

This system seems hopelessly involved and given the fact that we don't live locally puts too much active involvement on our shoulders as well as "check-writing" which is always a mess (we use  an online service to collect rent).  Water as well, we've never  paid water, but I imagine that it can cut into profits pretty well.  I suppose we'll have to request the average cost to see if it's worth worrying about.  

So has anyone ever had meters put in?  How much did it cost?  I imagine having meters installed, for water as well, will save money over the long term.  I guess I'll have to keep with the legacy "system" for at least the first few months.  

I have also read about "submeters", does anyone have experience with using them?  Do they work pretty well?

Well little update on our adventures in the Illinois Valley.  We were able to get a renter in our best house in DePue for 900.  I did have a few people on facebook who took the time to tell me how I was crazy to ask 900 in DePue (I was even told to "get real", very 80-ish!).  In the end we had a few good prospects, although many no-shows for showings.  I feel like when I go back to my roots, people are just so unreliable and nonchalant about life.  

During the crisis we've been looking for multi-units.  Finally we found some better deals in Henry, LaSalle and Spring Valley.  Our offer for a 3 unit in Spring Valley was accepted and  now we are just going through the process, loan and all that.  The main issue we have is for the three unit there are only 2 furnaces and water heaters.  The landlord was paying water before, but I don't want to do  that, so I'll have to figure something out.  Maybe I'll just get another furnace and water heater.  Might cost a bit more now, but I'm sure it will save all sorts of money.

Nice!  I'm  impressed.  Let me know how things turn out with the renters.  I've  been able to find good renters in DePue and  that has a bad reputation in the area (maybe not as bad as Streator though).  Let me know how it goes down for you, maybe we need to rethink our strategy.  There  were some beautiful homes in Streator  that you can tell used to be super luxurious and just needed some fixing up, but my wife was turned off by the large amount of other, neglected homes around them.

Well let us know, we avoided Streator but maybe we were too hasty if you are getting 950 for rent.  What's the taxes like?

So a few new things I've learned about the area in the past few months.  

Ladd has crazy taxes.  I'm not sure why I've got a 2bd/2bth (spare room also use as a bedroom) that I bought for 59k and they are charging me 3800 for taxes!  I can still make a profit, but it's still taking a bite out of me.

My renters are closing on a house and moving out of our DePue "prestige" home (4bd/2th, real pretty).  I wanted to ask 900 last time, but my wife made me chicken out and ask 800. This time, I told her we're asking 900 since we have about a month before our renters can move in to their new home.  I have been getting good responses and candidates (except for one person on facebook who messaged me just to tell me I was an "*******" and a "*****" for asking that much rent in DePue).  So  not  confirmed yet, but looks like you CAN get 900 for rent in DePue with the right house.

We looked at a few houses in Streator and to be honest I've never really hung around it.  But it has a lousy reputation (even worse than DePue).  My wife noted that there were lots of grand houses in need of some love but next to abandoned buildings and seedy neighborhoods.  So we've chosen to avoid Streator altogether. 

Well I wouldn't say I have an exact strategy.  I like to buy stuff that is crappy enough to scare away a regular buyer, but not too hard to fix up.  Flooring, painting, roof, that sort of thing. 

I know what you mean about financing.  Some local banks in the area will finance a mortgage that low, although I do like to pay cash when I can.  I'm a really big debt-coward, so I try to pay them off quickly to save on the interest.  

The Illinois Valley isn't too bad for investing, but it can be hard finding any multi-family, I've been looking for a while, it's mostly overpriced and rundown.  Taxes are high as well.  There is a triplex available in Dalzell for only 79k, and could pull in something like 1800 all rented (big money for the area), buuuuuut I've been told it's so lousy with mold, that you have to sign a waiver to view it!  

The way things are now, I suspect that we'll see a big drop in housing prices in the near future, I certainly think they were inflated before that point.  

Let me know if there's anything I can help you with, I'm keeping a close eye on the Illinois Valley these days!  Since I get paid by Uncle Sam, I've been able to maintain a pretty good position and my houses have stayed rented.