All Forum Posts by: Trey Gartner

Hi @Lynne MacFarlane - 

I decided to go the traditional owner-occupy loan route. I was able to put less than 20% down and got a much better rate. Additionally, PMI drops off after 78% LTV automatically - FHA the PMI (MIP I think they call it) stays on for the life of the loan. Given that rates were so low, I didn't want to have to re-fi to get that additional premium taken off.

Regarding renovations - I ended up just putting less down and using my remaining cash for renovations.

I would definitely recommend doing an owner-occupy for the required 1 year.  It allowed us to work on the place while living there and when we moved out we were able to rent it out for more than I had originally figured into my numbers.  Ended up turning a good deal into a great one.

Hope this helps!

Hi all - Looking for advice on replacing a 3-story wood porch that is badly in need of repair.  Due to Chicago's building code, we would need to tear it down and re-build for it to be permitted.

Has anyone gone the route of installing a steel porch instead of wood?  How much more did you spend?  Was it worth the extra cost?  How has it held up over the years?  

Water/Sewer/Garbage all come on the same bill and would be difficult to separate out. Probably for that reason water is included in rent in most 2-4 unit buildings here in Chi. 

Gas and electrical need their own meters which costs $$$ to put in, so you would have to look at it from a ROI standpoint and make the call.

What we do is take the average of the previous 12 months in gas/electric bills and assess a utility fee on top of the rent. You can get your gas/electric billed in the same way so it is an easy way to pass the cost to the tenant without the added upfront investment of sub-metering. 

@Mark Ainley @John Weidner Thanks for the word of caution.  No additional work being done in the unit, so no issue there.  I will keep this in mind!

@Ann Folan @Ronan M. Thank you both for sharing your experience!  That definitely eases my mind about getting on installed.  Other sources I've read all seem to agree the end result is a lower water bill, so I will be installing soon!

To all my Chicago pros - 

Does the City of Chicago require an inspection for the installation of a water meter?  I want to get one installed on my rental property, but I don't want to invite any prying eyes unnecessarily.

And for those who have had a meter installed - what was your experience like?  Did it save you a significant amount of money?

Thanks

@Jeremy W.  That's a very good point!  I have heard that when it comes to getting good reviews, communication of what your unit has to offer is very highly weighted.  I like the idea of providing a public transit pass.  Seems easy enough to get a dedicated Ventra card and load it with some funds to allow for easy traveling throughout the city.  I would think it is a small cost compared to the amount of good feedback we would receive as a result.  Great thought!

@Federico Gutierrez  Thanks for the input!  My thought is that AirBnB doesn't necessarily tell you exact location, just gives you that circle with the general area, and the circle would almost certainly lay over locations that are within easy walking distance.  Still in my research phase and getting the apartment AirBnB ready, but this is good stuff to know!

@Federico Gutierrez How far is too far from public transit?  I'm kicking around a similar idea with my attic studio unit.  We are just under a mile from the nearest El stop, but buses are all over.

Awesome. Thanks @Brie Schmidt!