All Forum Posts by: Zach Taylor

Thanks for the replies! I looked into house hacking about a year ago. I talked with an agent and looked at a couple properties and what I discovered was that most properties that make sense financially involve renting out illegal garden units, which I didn't want to be involved in. I'm also married, so renting out rooms to roommates isn't going to work. All that plus the fact that I'm not from Chicago and I'm not committed to living here longer than a couple more years made me decide house hacking probably isn't for me at the moment.

@John Warren thanks for that advice. My background is in math and computer science, so I would probably fit somewhere in the deals/finance area. I'm good with numbers and I like analyzing deals.

It sounds like it's hard to get into flipping without some experience, or at least without enough money of my own to invest. I know someone who has money and might be willing to do this with me, but we'll see. That would take care of the capital part, then I could be the deal/finance person. Sounds like the project manager is my missing piece. Is a project manager and a general contractor the same thing?

Thanks again for the advice, everyone!

Hey everyone. I'm looking to get into house flipping and I'm wondering if anyone has some advice on how to get started in the Chicago area. I could also potentially go outside Chicago, like into the suburbs or northern Indiana or southern Wisconsin. I've heard that buying from wholesalers is usually the way to go for a flip, but I'm not sure how to find a wholesaler. I've also heard that I should go with a hard money lender for a flip, but I don't know any hard money lenders either. I also don't know any general contractors. I'm pretty new to this as you can tell, so if someone could point me in the right direction, that would be super helpful!

@Soh Tanaka

$610,000 purchase price, though my agent thinks we could get it for $600,000. 

3 units, currently being rented for $1800, $1700, and $1100. There is a 2 car garage that could bring in an extra $150.

No repair needed, it would be a turn key property.

Property tax $10,980/yr.

Loan would be 20% down 3.75% interest.

Anything I'm missing?

I'm looking for my first multi family deal, and my market is Chicago. I recently found a property in the southern part of the West Ridge neighborhood on Chicago's north side. My ideal place is Ravenswood/Lincoln Square, but this is pretty close and also a nice area. After running the numbers, it would likely cash flow about $600 per month (6% cash on cash return) if I'm not living there. I plan on house hacking it for a while, and I'd likely pay $450 per month to live there. My agent says we can get better numbers than that in Chicago, but I wanted to get a second opinion. Considering the market I'm looking in, is that a deal worth pursuing? It's definitely not a terrible deal. I would really like to see at least $800 cash flow, but I don't want to let a decent deal pass me by in hopes of finding something that isn't out there or would take another year (hypothetically) to find.

Thanks for all the replies, it really helps a lot!

Thanks for the reply, @Alejandro Calixto. I'm curious, you mentioned finding your property was difficult. What was difficult about it? What methods did you use to find the deal?  This is one of my biggest questions right now. I'm not sure how to go about looking for a property. I've looked around on Redfin, but that's it. I'm very new to the Chicago area, and it's a bit overwhelming since I don't really know which neighborhoods/suburbs are desirable. Do you think an agent could or would want to help me answer all these questions? 

I'm also wondering about lenders. I know there are sites like Better and Quicken Loans, but I could also go to a bank like Chase. Do you think it makes a difference which one I go to? 

I appreciate your time in answering some of my questions. 

I currently live in Chicago and I want to get started with real estate investing, specifically house hacking. Does anyone familiar with the area have any tips on getting started? Mostly I want to know more about how to find a good deal. Would it be better to find a cheap place and fix it up, or should I find a place that's in decent condition already? Once I find a place, what's the best way to find tenants? Any advice would be appreciated!