All Forum Posts by: Seth Williams

@Seth Williams - You nailed a ton of Chicago's best spots.  I was wondering if you might be able to provide a little bit more context around your purchase price, location preference, and end goal?

I know for me, when I was looking for a house hack, the location was my top priority, followed by price, and then my strategy has always just been to buy for long-term wealth (aka appreciation) in highly desirable neighborhoods near transit.  Transit really helps on the long-term appreciation side.

I tend to agree with you regarding Back of the Yards having less appreciation compared to those off the blue line that you mentioned above.  I personally recommend maybe just looking for a 2 unit instead of 3-4 so you don't have to meet the self-sufficiency test.

Also just curious, are you doing a 1031 exchange with your condo or have you lived there 2 out of the last 5 years?

@Seth Williams, exciting times my friend, best of luck with your journey! FHA has a really interesting rule for 3-4 unit buildings, called the self sufficiency test. Basically the rents need to cover the PITI for the whole building. We have a credit union product for 2-4 units that avoids this test, and also doesn't require any PMI. Let me know if you have more financing questions.

Hello fellow house hacker! Love the plan for a 3-flat, you can find some great deals. I recently did one in Berwyn and it cash flows great. Personally I like suburbs like Berwyn, Oak Park, and Forest Park. The areas you mentioned are good, people talked about Back of the Yards being up and coming 5 years ago. Still waiting for it to up a bit more for me.

@Seth Williams Hey Seth - That depends a lot on your budget and financing plans. If you need to conform to FHA loan limits/SST you may be limited so areas that have inventory in your range. All the locations you mentioned do have solid inventory of 2-4 units around $150-250k/unit so you likely have a solid start. I would consider a couple of other areas closer to the lake as contenders as well - E. Woodlawn or Rogers Park also have similar priced inventory.

Im a fan of Marshall Square (east Little Village) in general.  Close to pink line and rents are going up quickly in the area. Up to $1300/mo for updated 2 bed VS only 3-4 yrs ago about $900/mo for similar.   If you stay east of California and north of 23rd you will find a few blocks with new construction - always a good sign. 

Good luck! 

I'm always looking for great staging companies. Please add me to your list! Thanks!