All Forum Posts by: Tracy Scanlon

It needs to be a sublease agreement, and unfortunately there is no one size fits all option from the Chicago Association of Realtors.  I'm not a lawyer, and all contracts should be reviewed by one before you enter into them.

I agree wholeheartedly with @Mark Ainley that this gets messy, as it requires the sublettor to ensure all rents from the new tenant make it to the management company by the first of the month.  I'm sure you've already checked the original lease to make sure you are allowed to use the rental as an AirBnB or short term rental.  

Most management companies have a clause in their leases that require all subtenants to be approved by the management company.  I could see this getting complicated if you are doing a less than 3 month sublease.

Hi Joey, 

It all depends on what your property management company does for you.  10% is steep in my area, which is between 6-8% depending on the buildings, number of units, etc.  If they’re taking care of routine maintenance in that 10% it could be a great deal.  

This is what you generally get with a property manager:

- a licensed professional who completes ongoing education and stays on top of new laws

- Someone to handle all maintenance requests, complaints, tenant-tenant issues, and communications

- A routine inspection ensuring the building is up to code

- A quarterly report showing the life cycle of all assets, roof, bricks, windows, a/c, heating, etc.

- Troubleshooting any maintenance issues or building upkeep, gathering estimates from multiple vendors when there is a larger repair to be made

- Following up on all repairs & maintenance that was done to ensure it was handled properly.  

- Following up with tenants so they understand and are happy with the repairs that were done

- Staying on top of the market, knowing where to price rents, renewals, etc.

- Lease renewal offers, negotiations, and signing, along with any addendums

Each housing provider needs to determine for themselves whether they want to spend this time, or if they want to spend money.  Shop around, get quotes from some other companies.  See who your neighbors use, and ask if they’re happy with their managers.

Good Luck!

Thanks @David Bey! I ended up taking videos, editing them and posting them on Youtube. My business has exploded, and I’m now able to do more tours in an hour than I ever thought possible.  Even through the shelter in place order my vacancy rates have actually gone down. 

Thanks!  I have an issue with Facetime in my buildings.  The internet bandwidth isn't strong enough for me to do real time showings.  My options are videos, matterhorn, photos, and plain emails describing the units.  I can do a version of all of them.

There is talk of a lock down looming in my city, and summertime is when I rent 75% of my units.  I can't let this season fly past me.  

I have a few short term rentals, and they are incredibly popular. I advertise them as furnished apartments with a minimum Lease term of 4 months. I have lots of medical residents and visiting professors rent them. That being said, I've already had one cancellation for this summer, an Italian professor.

Due to social distancing, we have suspended in-person tours for our occupied apartments.   I still need to make money and get heads in beds. 

Has anyone tried virtual tours or videos?  I was going to use an app like movavi or imovie to create a video I could send to the potential applicant.  Matterhorn costs more than I want to spend.

Has anyone had experience with this?  Any tips or tricks?

Here is some information from NAA-

Small Business Administration Will Provide Disaster Assistance Loans
SBA's Economic Injury Disaster Loans offer up to $2 million in assistance for a small business. These loans can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing. Further resources can be found here and on SBA's websites: www.SBA.gov/coronavirus and www.SBA.gov/disaster.

DOL Announces New Guidance on Unemployment Insurance Flexibilities
DOL announced new guidance outlining flexilibilites that states have in administering their unemployment insurance (UI) programs to assist Americans affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Department of Energy Coronavirus Resources
DOE is coordinating closely with the White House and its interagency partners in the unified response to the Coronavirus. DOE leadership will be issuing further guidance as the situation evolves.

I manage around 500 doors, and I have several college students who will be returning home for the semester.  None of them have asked for lease terminations.  A few of them prepaid their rents for the next 3 months, and one asked if she could mail me her rent checks from her home state.

The issue will be with my residents who work in the service industry.  That is around 20% of my tenant base, if you include substitute teachers, restaurant, retail and service workers. Some have reached out to me already to let me know they are uncertain about their ability to pay the rent for next month.  

IL is preparing to offset the cost of living losses incurred by people out of work, and I am willing to work with them until this support arrives.  

I invest solely in Chicago, and it has been incredibly profitable for me.  I'm currently on the north side, but Little Village, Lawndale, some areas of Englewood near Kennedy King college are heating up.  Are you looking to do a full rehab or just slap some paint on?  Humbolt is starting to see some real upswings, and that's also an area where the homeowners are aging out of their single family or 2 flat buildings.  

I was able to start out with $30,000 in capital 10 years ago, and now I have a large enough portfolio that I could retire now.  Retirement sounds dull, besides, I love what I do and the city I do it in.  I just bought another building in Chicago last year and it is a sweet and easy money maker. Feel free to pm me if you want to chat.  

From what I hear in Chicago, Hammond is still a strong community to invest in.  While there may be a downturn, it could just be cyclical.  I know that the Indiana Dunes were just declared a National Park, and land will no longer be available to develop there.  That makes Hammond, Gary & Miller Beach ripe for a real estate upswing.  

If I were in your shoes, I would keep an eye on how long it takes to lease your current rentals, and if you are able to diversify, then do it.  Good luck!