All Forum Posts by: Lucas Hammer

@Matthew Olszak Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I just haven't been able to get a hold of anyone over the weekend that can get on my roof. It's about 30 ft off the ground and a bit steeper than I'm comfortable with. I have a few calls out to roofers to get it at least looked at or the flashing checked, but haven't heard back. I'll definitely reach out if/when I get they get around to checking it out if it's a chimney issue though.

@Matthew Olszak, I'm not sure if it's a chimney issue still yet as I'm still waiting to hear back from the couple of contractors I've already called in the last few days just to get it checked out. Do you have any suggestions for someone who could diagnose it first? I just need to stop the water running into my tenant's apartment every time it rains. It's getting caught in the water heater pan and draining, but it puts out the water heater every time.

Maybe once upon a time, but no fireplace there now. Only the water heater venting into it. 

So there is water leaking into my tenant's unit on the first floor and I'm wondering if it could be a chimney cap issue. The roof is really hard to get on top of but I was able to get the attached picture. The water heater vents into the chimney and the chimney has a concrete decorative top, but am I right in assuming that I should be able to see a cap as well here? If so, does anyone recommend a company that could affordably install one for me? I'm on the Southwest side of the city in Little Village. Thanks! 

So I have a two flat that I've owned a little over a year (first property) and we inherited a good tenant and immediately re-signed a lease with him that runs October through September, so it's ending toward the end of next month. His rent is definitely under market, so we have to raise it due to rising expenses, but we don't want to raise it enough for him to leave (unless he's planning on it anyway; we want to have our game plan in place before discussing). Do you guys typically go by percentages or just keep it around market average based on the property? Also, how much notice do you give before raising rent? I know you have to give two months notice if they have to be out, but I couldn't find a specific law about rent increases. Thanks!

I think if you look specifically at City Growth vs Metro Growth in the second chart, it shows that the educated Mellennials are moving to the city vs the suburbs when they come to Chicagoland. Which is great for me if Pilsen keeps pushing the money west.

Edit: The whole page hadn't loaded when I wrote this. I see there's a lot of discussion that I'm not adding to with the above. Looks like I need to be more patient for the site to load before replying.

So I have a 2-flat in Little Village near Cermak and California and the water heater in one of the units has a small leak from the intake pipe. The pilot light has gone out twice in the last week and I think that it's due to the water running down the tank. Anyone have any recommendations for a trustworthy plumber that does the job right and won't cost me an arm and a leg to check it out?

I'm in Little Village and picked up a 2 flat on the high end at 169k. There are cheaper, but I needed some of the things this place had to offer for my personal living situation. Our second property will be cheaper since we won't be living in it. 

100% agree with @Matthew Olszak. I have a 1br/1ba unit right now that's rented for $675 and I could probably up it to $750 if my current tenant moves out, but getting that 4th digit is going to require something that really stands out around here. I don't have the capital to make a wholesale change like that to mine (and it being a 1br wouldn't justify it anyways). I live on the same block as the building at 2649 W 21st Pl (currently listed at over $400k) and they rented the first floor for $1300, but it's an absolutely beautiful unit. Take a look at the pictures to see what it took to get there.

@Steve Vaughan Buy & Hold for at least a few years, then maybe up to commercial, but it really depends on the next few years.