All Forum Posts by: Marco Morales

@Sam R.

No guns in my household.  I live in Chicago, I have been robbed at gunpoint and have friends who are victims of gun violence.  From my own personal experience, gun ownership will only provide a very false sense of security. If I had a gun on me while I was robbed, the outcome would be the same if not worse.  If my friend who is now paralyzed from a drive by had a gun, he still wouldn't be walking today. The good guy with a gun theory is just an armchair Dirty Harry fantasy people make to justify owning a gun for protection. Guns do not make me feel safe and believe it not, there are other ways to defend yourself. 

Back to my initial point, as an investor, I try not intertwine my personal feelings with business. I don't allow firearms on my properties to minimize risk.  Guns like certain breeds of dogs present an additional liability which doesn't fit into my business model. The 2nd amendment gives you the right to gun ownership, but gun owners are not a protected class.  If this offends some people, well it's not my job to protect your feelings, but it is my job to project my assets and more importantly my tenants.  On the subject of keeping my tenants safe, this is something I do take very seriously.   My apartments have security systems, are well lit and monitored. One other safety measure I take is NOT ALLOWING FIREARMS on the property. 

I have a no firearms clause in my lease. It's there the same reason I don't allow certain breeds of dogs, smoking, or charcoal grills on the porch. It has nothing to do with my personal opinions about guns, but strictly to minimize risk.  I do understand a tenant can keep a gun in the home without me knowing, but if an incident were to happen involving that tenant and their firearm; I have the language in the lease which allows me to end it early if necessary. This is in addition to very rigid tenant screenings. 

I see this trend slowly popping up in Chicago and I was curious, does anybody here have experience with co-living apartments? If so, what kind of returns are you getting vs a traditional lease?  I'm thinking about this as a possible strategy for a multi-unit investment. Since it's a rather new concept for me, I'm trying to weigh the pros and cons.  

There's been some resistance from the aldermen near Midway to restrict AirBnB. There have been a number of cases where AirBnB single family rentals are being used at "party houses" . They are restricting new hosts but will allow existing hosts to be grandfathered in.  I would check with your ward's office before proceeding if you are in a multi-unit. 

Could you PM me more info?

Hi all, with the new year approaching I find myself looking for a new CPA in Chicago. I'm sure this has been asked many times here but would appreciate any recommendations you guys might have. 

Thanks!

Greetings fellow BP members! My name is Marco and new here to BP. I live in Chicago and currently own a multi-unit in Pilsen that I'm also living in. Looking to scale my real estate portfolio through BRRR investing and flips. BP has been an amazing source of information and I look forward to meeting fellow investors.