All Forum Posts by: Michael Fortier

@Jake Fugman Appreciate the insight and the honesty, I certainly didn't forget about principal pay down and appreciation, that seems to be more of the play in the current state. My main concern with a break even would be having the reserves for any capx items that may come about after purchase of the property. If being in construction for a living has taught me anything its that there will almost always be something that doesn't go as planned and you're in much better shape when you plan ahead and have the financial reserves to resolve the issue with little headache.

I have done some research in 203K loans, not sure if that's something you typically see, but I think I'd be running into a similar issue after it's all said and done unless it's something distressed in a very desirable location.

It seems its a tough time to get in without having a large down payment right now, not saying that's going to stop me though, just something to navigate and make a calculated decision on!

Hi All,

I've not only been a long time fan and consumer of BP, but I've had a goal of house hacking a 2-3 unit multifamily property for a couple years now to help facilitate not only an increase in savings from my W2 but also start a path to financial freedom for my significant other and I. Recently we've been talking almost daily about moving on from being renters and buying our first property together whether that be single family or a multifamily property. My better half hasn't always been completely on-board with a multifamily property, mostly due to terribly loud neighbors the last couple places we've rented and wanting a space for ourselves. With all that said, due to the high interest rates and increasing cost of single family homes no matter the area here in Chicago, I think we're both in agreement that a short term sacrifice is well worth the savings and wealth growth if we can find something that makes sense.

My question for the community, specifically investors here in the Chicago market, is are you seeing deals that still produce cash flow using FHA financing or are those deals few and far between right now? I should also add that because this would be a house hack, I'm looking for something in an area that would probably be considered less risky. I know a lot of this is very vague and there's several other factors that need to be considered here i.e. what we're capable of putting down, specific location, etc. but high level I'm trying to determine if it even makes sense in this market to pursue a 2-3 unit, because at the end of the day if it doesn't cash flow after I move out, I'm only getting further from our ultimate goal of financial freedom.

My thought is if the math doesn't make sense in the current conditions, it may be more beneficial for us to do something more geared towards a live and flip. I'm a project manager for a large GC in the area and could leverage that skill-set.

Our lease ends at the end of summer, so one way or another we're moving forward but any thoughts or advise would be really appreciated!

Thanks!

Hi All,

I am a construction project manager that lives in the Chicago area but will soon be placed on a team to help manage a large commercial project full time in Columbus Ohio. Based on the initial project schedule I will be there full time during the week (Mon-Fri) for a year to a year and a half, and am looking into buying a small multifamily property to live in while I'm there.

Really at this point in time I'm just looking for some local insight and feel into what the market is currently like for small multi-family in Columbus and maybe some recommendations from local investors on locations, agents, lenders, etc. Based on what I can see on sites like Zillow and Redfin it seems things are super competitive, like in most areas, but that small multifamily is rare once you get out into the suburbs.

I plan to start making flights out to Columbus in early February for pre-construction and to meet the team and look forward to doing a little driving in different parts of the city in my spare time.

Any help or insights you guys have on Columbus would be helpful! As a last note, the long term goal would be to keep the property as a buy and hold after the project is completed and I return to the Chicago area. I would then manage it long distance and/or get a PM.

Thanks in advance!

Hi All,

I am a construction project manager that lives in the Chicago area but will soon be placed on a team to help manage a large commercial project full time in Columbus Ohio. Based on the initial project schedule I will be there full time during the week (Mon-Fri) for a year to a year and a half, and am looking into buying a small multifamily property to live in while I'm there.

Really at this point in time I'm just looking for some local insight and feel into what the market is currently like for small multi-family in Columbus and maybe some recommendations from local investors on locations, agents, lenders, etc. Based on what I can see on sites like Zillow and Redfin it seems things are super competitive, like in most areas, but that small multifamily is rare once you get out into the suburbs.

I plan to start making flights out to Columbus in early February for pre-construction and to meet the team and look forward to doing a little driving in different parts of the city in my spare time.

Any help or insights you guys have on Columbus would be helpful! As a last note, the long term goal would be to keep the property as a buy and hold after the project is completed and I return to the Chicago area. I would then manage it long distance and/or get a PM.

Thanks in advance!

@Michael J Scanlon Thanks for reaching out and providing some input. I’m certainly not opposed to looking in the suburbs or even NW Indiana if the property and numbers make sense. These are all things I’ve been considering so it’s nice to hear I’m on the right path.

In your experience does narrowing down a certain area or two help make it easier on both the agent and client or is it more about pin pointing the bed/bathrooms and price point?

@Paul De Luca Thanks for providing some areas to consider based on the current market and then additional information on the gross rent needing to be at least 75% of the PITI. Is that Illinois specific or something that's commonplace in 3-4 unit properties around the US?

@Tom Casey Thanks for the mentions and getting other people involved in the conversation, it’s much appreciated!

I know you said you're also new in REI, do you own any properties and if so what would you say was your biggest obstacle getting started?

Thanks again and I’m all ears to talk real estate in the future!

Hi All,

I just recently relocated to the Chicago area for work and will be here for the foreseeable future. I've been interested in real estate for many years now but due to my constant relocation never fully took the leap. I'm now at a point where I'm done sitting on the sideline and intend to purchase a house hack in the Chicagoland area, minimize living expenses, and open some more money up to additional real estate investments.

Ideally I would like a 3 bedroom 2 bathroom duplex or triplex right around the $400,000 price point, but I have flexibility if the right opportunity presented itself. My biggest hangup at the moment is not knowing each of Chicago's many neighborhoods and suburbs and I'm hoping the BiggerPockets community can provide some insight here.

Being new to the area and starting the process of getting into REI I would love some insight from some local investors, agents, etc. on the current market for small multifamily and the areas that would make most sense given my criteria. Cant wait to make some connections here guys and get this thing going so thanks in advance!

@Nicole Heasley Beitenman Thanks for the input, this is helping confirm a lot of the literature I've read to this point and much of my own personal opinion. There's definitely a correlation between the quality of tenant and the required time and resources needed to manage that tenant and the property. The better the tenant the less time and money required to manage the property in a general sense.

Something I did not mention in the original post was setting up a lease, my guess is that the best bet is to find a boiler plate for the state you reside and then consult with a lawyer to custom fit it to your needs? Any thoughts or suggestions when it comes to that, I know BP Pro includes access to boiler plate lease's for each state.

@Chris Freeburg Thanks for sharing, again that's the way I'm leaning towards as I've always been a firm believer the best way to learn is by doing. That's not to say somewhere down the line a property manager wont turn into the better option, but in my opinion I'd have a better idea of what qualities are important when choosing a PM if you've been there done that yourself.

I am a project manager for a general contractor so hiring and managing people to build or fix things is in my comfort zone. In that same breath, I've never had to vet a tenant. I wouldn't mind hearing your take on how comprehensive you feel you should get and why you ask the questions that you have in the past