All Forum Posts by: Joshua Zajac

I was looking at this same property and drove by a few times and look on the outside.  If your putting in sweet equity then your 20K for rehab might by ok.  If your hiring out, I would agree that is on the low end.  Just from the outside I noticed it might need a new roof and thought there were issues with the front porch.  The taxes in Dekalb co. are really high compared to surrounding counties.

Good Luck.

Rick welcome to BiggerPockets I'm also located in Westmont . There is a real estate group that is meeting up in Downers Grove at Emmett's Brewery on Main Street towards the end of next month I believe their name is call DuPage County investors perhaps that may help

Looking forward to meeting some new faces.  This will be my first MeetUp Event.

So I've given some deep thought and after speaking with family and friends and others on BP.  I've decided that for my investment property I'm going to set a driving limit of 1 hour from my home to my first property.  With that criteria set now that would put me just a little west of DeKalb.  Although some of the prices out in Dixon and Sterling looked enticing, I wrote out what it would cost in fuel and travel time to those areas and determined I could take those savings and spend a bit more on a property that is a 45 minutes closer.  Additionally, I've was out driving for dollars today in Dekalb/Sycamore and timed my drive from Peace Rd/I88 to my exit at Maple/I355 and took 30 minutes.  I feel a bit more confident now knowing that the drive would not be unrealistic should I have to make multiple trips per week.

Thank you all for your comments,  they really did help and I'm very appreciative

@Len Roche, Just saw your post and I'm curious which property did you end up choosing? I was just in DeKalb and Sycamore today and spent 2 1/12 hours driving for dollars today. In fact now that I think about it I might have past that Hillcrest home as I was looking at a SFR on Fairmont Dr just on the other side of the river.

@Andrew Johnson Good advise and point taken. The amount of renovations will have to be taken into consideration. I know driving 3 hours round trip is not ideal and I am ruling out some portions of this depending on the time-frame. Also, when I run my numbers I always including about 8% for PM. I figured if I am driving 3 hours round trip and putting in work I should pay myself. I think my thought process for wanting to manage in the beginning is simply to gain the experience. My plan was to always hire a PM after 1 year, be it my business partner or a local company (with proper vetting of course). Your right about getting too emotional about the first deal and having it turn out bad. I'm gratefully for BP here to get some unbiased opinions. I have been running the numbers off of some properties that I've found off of the MLS to gain a level of comfort. I have a few more minor debts to take care of by the end of the month and after that will be in a position to move forward into investing.

@John White I had the same problem trying to find comps in Dixon. I don't have access to the MLS just use the information from zillow, trulia, and the Lee County site. I found it was challenging getting a good idea what duplex's comp out at in Dixon but will keep doing my research. I plan on going out to Dixon next month maybe we could get together and have a beer (or coffee if that's your thing).

@Devin Deswert,  I hear your and agree with some of your points.  I would argue that some people are not in the position to purchase home that would not qualify for a conventional mortgage or are unwilling to put in the sweet equity to make it nice.  Hence is where I would come in.  I know you run the risk of challenging tenants but believe you can mitigated this with proper training and a solid lease agreement.  Also, I might view this market not as long term but as a low risk way to enter into investing and getting that education of the first deal made.  

@John Warren Dont get me wrong I am will to purchased near me.  I know being the first time that would be ideal.  However I do have a friend who lives in the area where I want to invest and he is willing to keep an eye on the place day to day. 

@Marian Smith I just finished renovations on my current house and my wife would like to enjoy the fruits of my labor for a few years before we sell. Plus we really like where we live. That's why the HELOC we thought was the best option and then would refinance after 6 months to pay off the HELOC or roll it into another project.