All Forum Posts by: Ryan Redenius

I have a tenant of two years who wants me to fumigate the apartment after she killed one roach in her unit this morning.  She keeps her unit very clean, so I want to keep her as a tenant, but she does tend to overreact and ask for a lot.  I get not wanting to live in a unit with roaches, but my immediate reaction is that one roach in 2 years doesn't signify a larger infestation that requires action on my part.  She is on a standard city of Chicago lease.

The unit above her is clean as well.  There is a garden unit below that is a little more buggy, but I think that most garden units are due to moisture.  I've never had any other complaints from tenants.

She wants me to take action before this becomes a larger problem, but I don't think it's justified today.  Who is right?  Appreciate any advice as to how you all would address this.  Thanks.

Thank you @Eudith Vacio & @Kyle D Birch.  I wasn't aware there was an exemption - this is just a 3 unit building.

I have two tenants who are both up for renewal.  I took security deposits equivalent to one months rent.  The security deposit interest rate in Chicago is .01%.  My question is about how I go about paying out the interest earned.  Do I need to actually pay my tenant every year, or do I just include the accrued interest with the security deposit (minus any expenses for damages) at the time the tenant moves out?  

I could be reading way too much into this, but I know the consequences of not doing this correctly could be costly if the tenant decided to take legal action, so I want to make sure I get it right.

Thanks in advance for the help.

I noticed inside my windows that there's a pretty significant amount of ice (see pic below).  Granted, this was taken last week when Chicago was insanely cold, but I also had a tenant complain about the same thing a couple weeks ago and mention that the window was really drafty.

I have tried using weather stripping but it doesn't completely solve the problem.  I would really like to avoid replacing these windows but am looking for solutions to improve the insulation.  Anyone have any advice?  

Thanks in advance!

I recently purchased a 3 unit building in Chicago.  I'm occupying the basement unit, and in my unit along an exterior facing wall are all of my pipes controlling water for the 3 units as well as the main.  These pipes are all type M copper, which has already resulted in a pipe burst last week, and I'm getting them replaced with type L copper along this wall.

Upon opening the wall I realized there's zero insulation, which makes sense because it's always cold in the living room.  Since I'm doing repairs after the pipe burst and need to open up this wall anyway, I want to add insulation to it.  However, I've read to proceed with caution when adding insulation to old brick building (100+ years in my case) because it can result in freeze/thaw damage due to increased moisture, rotting joists and beams that are embedded into the wall, etc.

I believe one of my upstairs units along the same wall is lacking insulation as well, which has resulted in frost in the drywall on really cold days (see attached pics).  I want to get this fixed, as I'm sure it's driving up my tenants heating bills and could lead to increased vacancy in the future if they're too high.  I am told that upgrading the pipes in my unit along the exterior wall will help a lot against future pipe bursts, but it's extremely drafty inside the wall, so I'd feel a lot better adding insulation.  Does anyone have advice on the best way to go about this?

Thanks in advance.

Hey all,

For those investing in Chicago, I'm curious what your thoughts are on the Illinois Medical District area.  Most deals I've looked at & offered on are on the North side so I'm not hugely familiar with the area, but there looks to be a lot of investment pouring into it (The Gateway project, Cook County Hospital redevelopment, etc.) and rents seem pretty strong.  Does anyone have experience investing here?  Any feedback on vacancy rates & tenant class?  I think it could be a good area to invest in but would love some insight from those more familiar with the area.

Thanks in advance.

Congrats - looks great!  Were you able to walk through the property w/ your GC prior to the auction? 

Looks awesome!  Would love to hear about the numbers if you're open to sharing.

Hey all - 

I'm looking to do my first investment in a 3-4 unit multi-family in Chicago.  Due to circumstances, I don't anticipate being able to occupy the building - so I'm prepared to put 25% down.

However, I spoke with a lender today and they informed me that no borrowed or gift funds would be approved for the 25% down payment.  I'm partnering with someone who is loaning me the money for the down payment, so it's by no means a gift, but I was told it doesn't make a difference. 

There is a work-around if I wait over 2 months since they won't check back that far in my account history, but I'm wondering what other options I have.  I know that investors use other people's money all the time so clearly I must be missing something...

Thanks in advance!

Thanks @Jon Crocilla.  And no, I'm not licensed.