5 steps renting_apartment

To Renting An Apartment In Chicago…

By: Jerome Bressert

Jerome Bressert American Realty Pros

2922 N Clark, Chicago, IL 60657 312-480-0330

www.312Rent.com

http://www.312rent.com/

Introduction

Chapter 1: How to decide to move?...............................................................Page 2

Chapter 2: When to start looking ?................................................................Page 3

Chapter 3: How to determine your budget?....................................................Page 6

Chapter 4: Use your budget & determine what you can get in a rental.............Page 7

Chapter 5: Where to find apartments & how to schedule appointments? .........Page 9

Showing Sheet Score Card....................................................................................Page 11

Conclusion ?.........................................................................................................Page 13

Q & A? ?..............................................................................................................Page 14

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

5 Easy Steps To Renting an Apartment in Chicago

www.312Rent.com

Jerome Bressert - 312-480-0330 - [email protected]


mailto:[email protected]

Jerome Bressert came to Chicago in 1993 as a commodity trader. In 2003, he got involved in real estate as an investor. After the bubble in 2007-08, he took a year off to examine what market would be the next big move. After careful review of the banks and dropping real estate prices, Jerome decided that the rental market was the next big market to master. He joined American Realty Pros in 2009 and quickly climbed to be their #1 agent nearly every month since he started. He quickly learned how to help clients find the best deal. Jerome went the extra mile to find these deals when he designed and built computer systems called Total Access to grab price data instantly each day to find his client’s the best deals. He takes this business to heart and quickly learned the tricks of the trade of how to get the best deals in the Chicago downtown rental market, and today, he is sharing these ideas with you.

About Jerome Bressert

Copyright © Jerome Bressert 2012All Rights Reserved. No part of this eBook may be reproduced without Jerome Bressert’s express consent.

Location # Bedrooms Close to work Granite Counters W/D In Unit Balcony H/W Floors View Doorman Near Transportation Gym Parking Available Business Center Friends Close By

Rental Price $

Look for the “Deals”

It’s always what you GET for what you GIVE UP($)

…for the experience

$1750

$1650

Pick what you want

I have worked with thousands of client requests in helping them find an apartment

for the experience they wanted within their budget. It has given me great insight on

how to help clients get prepared before they try to find a new apartment that they

can offord.

Today, I am going to share this inside story with you .

My passion is helping clients learn how to find these great value added apartments

that they feel good about and can call home for the next 12 to 24 months.

Introduction

// Page 1 Introduction

What really is an apartment?

When you really think about an apartment, they all have the same thing:

a front door

a ceiling

a floor,

a window,

a bathroom,

a kitchen

a bedroom (studio of course do not)…

So… what makes one apartment better to rent over another?

It’s the experience for the price you pay for what you get

compared to others to determine value.

There are 2 types of clients that move:

1. Clients moving here for a job… this is easy, you have to move… let’s roll and get you

a new apartment in the area you want at the price you can afford for that first Chicago

experience.

2. Clients that already are living here… this is the part we will cover in this chapter. Do

you have to move, or do you want to move? As the city becomes more and more

expensive and fewer deals available, the idea of moving becomes more difficult than

before.

Number of possible reasons clients may move if they already live here:

1. Moving in with a roommate, (friends, relationship, etc) Save money!

2. Moving out of a roommate situation to be on their own.

3. The rental price has increased in current place outside your budget.

4. To be closer to work, more convenient.

5. To get out of a bad area to feel safer.

6. To get a better deal offered by the buildings elsewhere. Save Money.

7. Moving for a different Chicago neighborhood for a different experience, tired of the same

place.

8. Moving into a nicer building because they got the raise they wanted.


// Page 2 Chapter 1: Why decide to move?

CHAPTER 1: Why Decide To Move?

Basically, my clients move to get a better deal other than they have now, if it’s

price, location, or feeling safer, there is a reason to get a person to pack it up, move, and

unpack. It’s not an easy task, but people in Chicago move and they move a lot.

Getting started too early isn’t always the best answer…

The timing of when to start to looking can be critical on if you find the best deal or not. In

fact, timing is probably 50% of this game strategy. Getting started too early won’t help you

like you might thing it would… but waiting too long can cause you to miss a great place.

I get calls and emails from people all the time and they just got noticed 60 to 90 days before their

current lease expires to sign a new lease or move. I tell them there is almost nothing to show

them. We do not know yet what to show them because nothing has been listed for that time frame

yet. .

Does this sounds familiar?

CHAPTER 2: When to start looking?

// Page 3 Chapter 2: When to start looking?

We Need To Move… When Do I Start Looking?…

“but wait, I just got a notice to move or re-sign my lease and if I don’t, than they are going to re-lease my place out… I need to see places!”

The answer is 35 days or less

The logic behind not having many places to see 60 to 90 days out.


All the renters who’s leases are up in 60 days have to first give notice they are not going to

re-sign… Those are the places get listed for rent. This is usually 2 to 3 weeks after they

first received their notice or roughly 35 days from the available date.

I want to be the first one looking to get the best deal…Will this work?

Not exactly, It’s the opposite of buying an airline ticket. When you buy a airfare, the

furthest out you are from the flight day, the least expensive it is to buy. The closer

you are to the flight date, the more expensive it is. With rentals, it’s the opposite, the

further time you are from your move date, the more time the owners have to get their

rental price. Owners can afford to hold on to get their price.

All renters get the same 60 day notices at the

same time. The city is 98% occupied and

there are few, if any, vacancies to show. .. If

there was, the owner would not hold it for 2

to 3 months waiting for a renter to move in

when he has tons of people still wanting to

rent now.

The rental market is 35 days or less 80% of the time

// Page 4 - Chapter 2: When to start looking?

Outline of the time table before you find a place; Most apartments really

don’t even start to show up until the last 35 days or less. I have seen

many places come on board 3 days or less days before it became

available.

60 to 90 days out: Only 5 to 10% available places on the market. The prices are at

their highest point and they have time to rent the place. No

urgency.

45 to 59 days out: 10 to 22% of available apartments on the market. Some good

deals are out there, but the best is yet to come.

35 to 44 days out: Higher prices still, but possible starting to drop, 40 to 55% of

available apartments on the market.

15 to 34 days out: You can start to see price reductions, or more incentives from

owners with up to 70 to 80% of places available on the market.

1 to 14 days out: Drastic price reduction possible on places that have not rented

with 100% of available places on the market by this time.


// Page 5 - Chapter 2: When to start looking?

// Page 6

CHAPTER 3: How To Determine Your Budget?

Q. How much apartment can I afford?

A. As a general rule of thumb, Landlords require that you make three times the

amount of rent as gross monthly income. Simple Example: To rent a $1000

apartment; a Landlord will require that you make $3000 per month (before taxes).

$1000 x 3 = $3000. If you do not meet the income requirement you should find

someone to co-sign for the apartment with you

Max Rent = 1/3 of your income

30k per year = $850 a month










CHAPTER 4: Decide What You Want..

It’s now time to figure out what rental experience you want and for what price

you are willing to pay compared to other places on the market.

// Page 7 – Decide what you want

At the beginning of this eBook, I mentioned that every place has the same

thing, a front door, a ceiling, a floor, a window, a kitchen, a bathroom and a

bedroom. So, what makes one apartment the place you want to live verses another

apartment?

It’s really just comes down to the experience you want to have and the price

you are willing to pay compared to others listings on the market.

For example: What is around you when you walk out the door? how close are

you to work? What are the people like? What is the building like? Is it

remolded? Is it old? Is there a doorman? Gym? Pool? and don’t forget, where is

Starbucks?

Check List of what you want:

Write down an expectation of value for what you want.

Example: Start with the location, you may pick the Gold Coast, you know you can save 45 min a

day commuting and that is worth $200 a month to you, so put in $200. Then you pick 1 bed,

that is worth $1300 to you over a studio that you give $1000 value, put in $1300 and last you

want a gym in the building and that is worth $50. Add it up and you are looking for a 1 bed

in the Gold Coast for $1550 a month. This is your expected value for what you want. If you

find an apartment below your value and others, than you found it!


Check List Input Answer Input Your Value $

Location: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Studio/1/2/3 beds ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Parking Cost? ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Allows Dogs: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Paid Heat & A/C ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Doorman: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

W/D in unit: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Balcony: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

H/W Floors: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Granite: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

SS Appliances: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Gym: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Business Center: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

View: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Close to Friends: ___________________________________ Value: $_________

Total Expected Price: $___________

www.312Rent.com


// Page 8 – Decide what you want



// Page 9 – Chapter 5 How to find places? Set up showings

CHAPTER 5: How to find places? Set up showings…

Go to 312rent.com There you will find all of Chicago’s

apartments and MLS (private owners) listings in one place.

These are the exact same places that you see listed every day on

Craigslist or Hotpad type sites, but 312rent.com has it all in one

location and organized to help stream line your search.

Studios

Jr. 1 beds

1 Beds

2 Beds

Go to the site 312rent.com, or click the links below to see apartments and private owner’s listings

You can schedule showing online for the places you like the best.

http://www.312rent.com/Chicago_Studios.html

http://www.312rent.com/Chicago_Studios.html

http://www.312rent.com/Convertible_Rentals.html

http://www.312rent.com/Convertible_Rentals.html

http://www.312rent.com/Chicago_1_Bedrooms_List_of_Places.html




I found 4 places to view on 312rent.com that match what I want for the price I want to pay…

…“what’s next?”

I will set the appointments for you

I will spread the appointments ½ hour apart and drive you to each one.

I will go over what each building can offer you.

I will help you keep a score for each building so you are clear of the best place

I will answer all your questions about each location

I will help answer questions about the lease.

I will work with the building or private owners on your behalf to get you the “best deal”

At the end of your tour, you will have full awareness of prices, what’s

available so you will be in the position to make an informed decision.

…In other words, I will go to work for you!


Schedule showings:


You can call 312-480-0330 or use the online scheduling

function on each page.

Showing Sheet Keep Score 1-10

Address Score 1 – 10? Comments:

___________________________ __________ ________________________________________


___________________________ __________ ________________________________________


___________________________ __________ ________________________________________


___________________________ __________ ________________________________________


___________________________ __________ ________________________________________


___________________________ __________ ________________________________________


___________________________ __________ ________________________________________

www.312Rent.com


Notes: ________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________




Take a guess of how many professionally managed apartment

buildings there are in the city from the South Loop up to the Gold

Coast in 2012?

Answer: Around 68

Now add in the privately owned condo buildings with the apartments

buildings;

Answer: 125 to 150

Now take the average number of units in each building, say 350 units,

times 220 (both apartment and condo buildings combined)

Answer :77,000 units.

What does this mean?

Answer: There are only 77,000 units which is not a lot

when you consider that 4,000,000 people live in

Chicago.

Apartment Buildings This list is current as of 2012, By 2015, expect another 15 to 20 new being added.


// Page 12 – Chicago Apartments

Conclusion: I appreciate you taking the time to read my eBook. I hope you found it to be useful and

informative.

Let’s conclude the 5 Easy Steps

1. Decide to Move: You have decided to move and given notice or moving

here for a job

2. 45 Days or less from your move date: You are within 45 days or less

from your move date. Ideally 35 days or less.

3. Determined Your Budget: You have determined your budget for a

Studio, 1 Bed, 2 Bed, or 3 Bed roommate situation.

4. Written Down What You Want and Your Expectations: You have

written down what you want in a rental and expectations for price you can

afford.

5. Find Places and Schedule Showing Times: You have used the methods

to find an apartment, you scheduled showings and you are ready to go get

your new place.

Need help? Call me directly and I will go over the current market conditions and availability.

Thanks again & the best of luck…

www.312Rent.com

Jerome Bressert - 312-480-0330

[email protected]


// Page 13 - Conclusion




Questions & Answers

How do I start?

By following the first 4 steps, Decide to move, Determine your

Budget, write down what you want and expected price to pay for this

and now, do your research for what you want.

Where do I look?

You can go on Craigslist, Hot Pads, Zillow, BackPage, Apartment

Guild, access the private listings on the MLS through sites like

www.312rent.com or I highly recommend you use a professional

agent.

Is there a fee for using an agent?

There is no fee for using an agent. The buildings and owners pay

them to bring people to their places once the lease is signed. If you

find a good agent, you will save valuable time and effort. They will

take you to the buildings that match your budget and wants. It took

my 3 years to learn all these buildings in Chicago and I am still

learning. You are not expected to know everything in the short 1 to 2

week search.

What is the MLS? And how can it help me?

The MLS stands for Multiple Listing Service. It’s only for agents and

their clients. I have set up a full MLS access page on

http://www.312rent.com/ that you can view at anytime, In addition,

agents can set you up to receive daily emails of any new listings or

price change of a current listing so you can stay on top of your

search.

5 Easy Tips To Renting an Apartment in Chicago

// Page 14 – Q&A Page



How do I find places that match what I can afford?

This is the million dollar question. You can see them listed on the Craigslist for

example, but CL is not regulated and people can post what ever they want. The

MLS is regulated and can be more trusted. Each area has just a limited number of

buildings, If you have a budget of $1300 for a studio, and you want to live in the

Gold Coast, that makes it simple, you will have 5 to 8 buildings and depending on

your move date, only 4 to look at. However, if your budget is 1,000 a month, that

eliminated 95% of all places and you will have 1 or 2 chances at getting a place.

How do I keep up with the price changes?

Like I mentioned above, prices change on a daily basis. You really can’t keep up

with daily prices changes unless you area willing to call each building daily and you

have 3 hours to do this a day. I created a software called Total Access and I

automatically pull in the daily price data each day and offer this information to my

clients for free. Other agents get hot sheets each week and can also give you

some weekly insight. Another way is to get on their web sites and see their

updates.

How do I know I’ve seen every place?

Well this is easy, you have 2 choices in seeing places. One is the professionally

managed buildings and the other is the MLS. A possible 3rd, would be a private

owner not using an agent. Pick an area, there is a limited number of buildings. Go

see what you can get for your budget, find it and the search h is over. I use to tell

clients I cannot create what is not there. It’s difficult because you see so many

buildings, but they are full and it is what it is.



Do I do this on my own, or get agents to help me?

My answer is using the professional help of an agent. If you find a good one, than

they will research the market quickly for you, send you 2 to 4 ideas and you will

be that much closer to getting a new place and save hundreds of hours.

Will I get a better deal if I do not use an agent?

Nope! There is no price advantage given out of you go with an agent or go by

yourself. In fact, you may end up with a worst deal. Just the other day, I was able

to negotiate a free parking spot for my clients and reduced rent, plus move their

move in date 1 month out. This would not have happened in my opinion if they

did this themselves. Another client wanted a studio for $1150 and I took them

directly to a building that was $1095 and included wifi, cable and heat. This client

would probably never have found this apartment on their own. When you have

an agent that knows the market, you will be much better off than trying to do this

alone. And the service is FREE!

When do I know I found the place to sign a lease?

I tell clients that you will know within 10 seconds of walking in the place that you

want it. I have people tell me as soon as they walked in, knew the price and say

“I will take it”! They did their research, determined value and the apartment meet

their expectations. The choice was easy.

How about if you are on the fence? If you know what you want and have

the right price expectations in mind. I suggest to keep a score card for each place

you see between 1 and 10. Go see the 3 to 4 places in budget, score the

apartment on what is important to you. Will you ever get a 10? In all my years, I

have had 1 client actually give a 10 to a place. Most people score 6 to 9 and 9.5.

anything over an 8 is a good deal, You will typically not find everything you want

at your price. Get close, than it’s a good deal. Example, the kitchen is too small,

the view is not facing the way you wanted, they garage is too far away, there is

not in unit w/d, the bedroom is not large enough, the heat is not included, etc,

etc. It’s always going to be something and that is perfectly normal and expected.


// Page 16

Q & A:

Why is there so much pressure from saying yes to a new apartment lease?

I wish I knew the exact answer to this? It may be money, fear of change,

expectations for the price have not been met or any number of personal reasons.

My advice to over come this is get in line with what you want and make certain

your budget meets these expectations before you start looking.

What’s the advantage of renting an apartment from a professionally managed

building verses the MLS private owners.

Maintenance: If you have an issue with the apartments, you will have access to

24 hours service, Private owners may take days or weeks to correct the issue.

Deposits: 97% of apartment buildings do not charge a deposit, Private owners

require 1 month deposits

Amenities: Depending on the buildings, most apartment buildings offer better

amenities to attract renters.

MLS can offer better deals or the ability to negotiate a better deal, Apartments

have set prices.

Foreclosures. There are many examples that the owners stop paying the

mortgage and the condo goes into foreclosure. Useless hassle

Cleanliness of the apartment- When you move into an apartment, the rugs have

been replaces, the walls repainted, the appliances cleaned. Not all owners have

the staff to keep up with the condo.



5 steps renting_apartment

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