All Forum Posts by: Aaron Mikottis

 Gail, our next meetup is November 8th - more info can be found here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521/topics/498082-joliet-investors-meetup-11817?page=1#p3058254

 Undecided! Post a vote - options are Contractors, Deal Analysis, or Other (you pick)

Thanks to everyone who attended last month's meetup.

Date: Wednesday, November 8th at 7:30pm

Location: TBD 

Topic: Vote in the forums between Contractors, Deal Analysis, or Other 

After attending, I will add you to our collaborative google drive where you can get contact info on attendees. You can also check out a copy of my lease and my Joliet Analysis Map, among other things uploaded by us local investors!

There will be no sales pitches at the event, this is purely for local investors to meet up, network, and swap information. Whether you have 1 unit or 100, this is the event for you.

Please RSVP so that I can make sure we have enough space set aside for us.

See you there... looking forward to meeting more local investors.

The Joliet Area Investors Meetup is tomorrow! Thanks to all who have RSVP'd. Very much looking forward to meeting everyone and growing together.

Hi everyone - I'm hosting a meetup on October 11th. You can find the details here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521/topics/48...

I tried to send a message to everyone in this thread but just wanted to toss it out here in case I missed anyone.

Hey @Raul Contreras , I am actually hosting a Joliet area meetup on October 11th. This is not a formal REIA, but it is targeted to our local market with an emphasis on networking. If you're interested, check it out here:

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521/topics/488254-joliet-area-investors-meetup-oct-11th?page=1#p3034221

@Account Closed you are right in that the Bible is not an advocate for hoarding wealth nor is there any substance to the claim that wealthy people are in God's favor. However, just because Jesus was poor that does not mean that it's unethical to achieve financial freedom.

The passage you quoted,  Matthew 19:24 says that it is EASIER for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for someone rich to enter the kingdom of God. It does not say that the rich cannot enter the kingdom.

Also, 1 Timothy 6:10 says that it is THE LOVE of money that is the root of all evil, not money itself.

Consider Matthew 25:14, the parable of the talents. Those who were good stewards of the money given to them were regarded as "good and faithful servants". Proverbs 13:22, already mentioned in this thread, is another example of encouraging wise money management.

"A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous." 

 We see examples of real people in the Bible who were regarded as both wealthy and righteous, too. Cornelius the Centurion in Acts 10 was told by an angel of the Lord, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God." His resources enabled him to send for Peter and that meeting was historic in the foundation of the early church. 

I invite you to join the miserable poor and tell me of the great moral virtue in that social class.

As someone who is a real estate investor because I can't stand having "the man" telling me how to spend my time, I definitely experienced a bit of cognitive dissonance when I realized that I AM "the man" to my tenants. 

Being "the man" doesn't make you inherently evil, however. Just keep in mind that you belong to the "haves" class when you have your landlord hat on and treat people with respect. 

If you were simply kicking out your inherited tenants and immediately replacing  them with new folks paying market rate, I could see your friend's point. Not that I think that's necessarily unethical. 

But the fact that you're fixing up some rental units in your neighborhood and making them available at market rate means that you're providing an upgraded asset to your community. Who is to say that the old families living there needed that housing more than the new folks? I don't think that any of us here could make that call. 

Finally, you could bring up to your friend that these inherited tenants are a bunch of strangers sitting in your property. You have zero history with these people, you didn't approve them based on your objective rental standards, and you possibly don't even have a credit or background check on them. Would your friend invite strangers to stay over at his house, or lend them $800?

As long as you treat people with respect, there is nothing wrong with being a landlord. Investing is not being greedy, it's being a wise steward of your resources. 

If all Christians submitted themselves to a life of poverty, what capacity would they have to help others? 

Check out your county tax assessor website and enter in the addresses. That should give you the name of the owner along with a mailing address. You can send them a letter or do some Google research to find a phone number. Best of luck. 

Hi everyone,

I've seen a lot of interest over time for a Joliet specific real estate investors meetup, but nothing exists currently. Let's work together to change that.

Date: Wednesday, October 11th at 7:30pm

Location: Skooter's Roadhouse at 700 W Jefferson St, Shorewood, IL 60404

Topic: Landlord - Tenant Relations

I've got a section of tables reserved in a back corner. They'll put it together for more of a round table setup and I will host an organized discussion on the topic around 8 o'clock. This will last for about half an hour and then the rest of the time will be informal. Feel free to filter out as you please.

There will be no sales pitches at the event, this is purely for local investors to meet up, network, and swap information. Whether you have 1 unit or 100, this is the event for you!

Please RSVP so that I can make sure we have enough space set aside for us.

See you there... looking forward to meeting more local investors!