What kind of investment properties should I look for? (Chicago: apartment, foreclosures)

[4122]

I was about to put an offer on a townhome in Highland Park, but someone already made an offer and now it's under contract. I know it's not going to pass the inspection because I already had it inspected. I'm able to fix the issues the townhome has, but I'm on the fence about making a back offer because the cost assessments are higher than expected, but still not too bad.

I looked at other investment opportunities in HP and I haven't found many foreclosures worth investing in? I found a lot of rehab properties. I also found small homes that I could maybe expand. If I bought properties like these, I may just live in the house after I fix it up or expand it instead of renting it out, then selling it like I've been intentionally planning too. The problem is that since these are single family homes, they are more expensive. There's one rehab property that seems like a good deal. It's $320k and it's in a great location. However, the foreclosure I was planning to but was $219k though. The taxes for the rehab property is low which is nice. There's no pictures of the house online, so I won't know what else needs to be fixed until I look at the house. Would these be good investment opportunities or should I stick to looking for foreclosed condos and townhomes?

[Fighting Fungus]

Don't invest in a town home or condo, you are better off buying a 2 flat in Chicago.

[SWAChicago]

2 flats are a great idea, or small apartment buildings. Are you a house flipper, or are you wanting an income property?

[4122]

Originally Posted by SWAChicago

2 flats are a great idea, or small apartment buildings. Are you a house flipper, or are you wanting an income property?

I'm a house flipper. I invested in a small apartment building in the city around 15-20 years ago and made a decent profit. Now, I'm looking to invest in the suburbs; mainly in HP. I'm not sure about investing in the city now, because I would fix it up myself, and it would be hard to get the city to work on the property often enough since I work in the north suburbs.

[ToriaT]

Highland Park does not seem like a community with many apartment buildings for investors. You may want to look at a place like Evanston but properties there are very expensive. It does not really pay to buy a condo or a townhouse for investment as HOA fees will eat up a lot of the profits. I bought a two flat in Berwyn for a relatively good price and rent it out and I have no HOA fees but have to pay for repairs and taxes.