Buy 1 bedroom or 2 bedrooms condo as investment properties in Oak Park? (Chicago: fit in, real estate)

[hhe1982]

We are looking to buy a investment property in Oak Park. We can afford condo less than $200,000. But should I buy 1 bedroom or 2 bedrooms condo? Which one can have better chance to rent it out, and better resell value?

[chet everett]

The projected returns on condos used as rentals tend to be far less predictable in older towns like Oak Park due to the potential for very large changes in assessments for deferred maintenance. Further, when evaluating the resale potential of condos in the present market conditions it is hard to estimator the impact of non-owner occupied units for future buyers to obtain financing. For these reasons, as well as others that involve the relative glut of condos that exisit, it may be better to consider single family homes for both their potential as rental units and short / medium term resale.

While $200k might seem fairly afforbable in a regional sense, I would worry about the true affordability of such a home on a broad basis. The Chicago region remains among the least affordable metro areas, and job creation / overall economic growth are unlikely to jump anytime soon...



If you look at alternatives to a direct real estate purchase you might find the ongoing outlays would rapidly eat on potential for profit with most rentals in the current conditions and handsome dividends could be had with many low risk stocks...

[Oak Parker]

The condo market in OP is suffering, you could certainly buy a 1-2 BR. There are more renters on the market now and OP is a hub, situated btw many hospitals with med students/residents/fellows within a short commute to downtown. That being said it may take you 10-15 years to see much of a profit. They say real estate is Location, Location, Location... I think you could spend about the same amount in bucktown or wicker park, have a similar pool of renters but turn a much higher profit in 10 years.