(decent deal in a HOT Chicago market) but the home comes with some violations from the prior owner, they are 10 and 5-year-old violations, my attorney believes should not hold up closing, my mortgage broker has a different opinion. the total to cure violations is about ~30k-40kMy lender misleads me from the beginning of the transaction, leading me to believe I can purchase the property with conventional financing and 10% down, he knew the property had violations.

In my opinion, you can only read so much before you need to just jump in!  

Does anyone have an opinion on Equity Pro?

You will most likely change your opinion on S8 investing.

Most important thing to do, in my opinion, is to structure the partnership agreement. 

What is your opinion on this?

In my opinion the place itself needs some improvements.

For the first rental property umbrella is not necessary in my opinion but as you grow your portfolio you should consider it.

Both of them are offered as value-add plays based on a light reno which is supposed to result in rent increases of $115 to $150 per unit.I have my own thoughts on where I want to be in terms of property quality but I wanted to see if any investors local to the area or knowledgeable about the area could offer any opinion on what class these two neighborhoods/areas are and which of them would be more resilient in an economic downturn.

In fact, my opinion, because of issues with a particular store, is that LOWES SUCKS, but I must use them as Home Depot and my other sources don't have everything I need and QSP deals are just too hard to pass up.