The Forecast On Your Local Real Estate Market In Cook County, IL

To begin, let us first introduce Calli and tell you a bit about how we were lucky enough to find an investor-friendly agent here in Cook County. It was not an easy task and we never took it lightly, however, the rewards for finding the right person to maintain that seat on the Onyx Home’s bus has paid off in strides.

We, at Onyx Homes, love being real estate investors and the market here in Cook County, Illinois. We love even more knowing we have team members that feel the same way we do. We set the bar high for our agents and have high expectations for them. Understanding the local market, networking, marketing skills, and core value alignment just to name a few.

Let’s explain first how we established a flourishing relationship with our awesome agent Calli. We would like to dive into discussing the few skills and qualities that make our real estate agents easier for us to work with, and their value-added proposition for their level of experience.

Finding the Best Agent that Fits Onyx Homes

It takes time to build the right team for a real estate business, and finding an investor-friendly agent is no different. Before we even started searching for the perfect new agent, we understand that the process may involve a little trial and error. However, by putting in the time and thought into building a relationship with a great agent, we could find ourselves at the hands of some excellent deals within the Cook County Market.

We knew the best place to start when searching for an investor-friendly agent was by asking those within our very own network. We met with other investors in the Cook County area or asked our mentors for recommendations. More often than not, we knew they could point us in the direction of some potential options. We also knew we could try searching online for agents who specifically advertise working with certain types of properties, such as commercial or multifamily properties. In some cases, we find agents who had not yet worked with a real estate investor but who were willing to learn the process. We knew we wanted someone with experience but would keep these options in our back pocket, as they could come in handy later on.

We had compiled a list of a few potential agents, we reach out to them and began to get a feel for what working with them would be like. We took this opportunity to narrow down the types of experience we were looking for. By doing this we had a better understanding of what to look out for as we were talking to potential agents. Additionally, we would remember to ask about their communication preferences, work schedule, and the markets they are most comfortable working with. While it would take more than one sit-down to find the right agent, finding the right person to add to our network would be invaluable in the long run.

In our search, one name continued to come up. We found ourselves answering “yes” to all of these questions about a candidate Calli Jones, which indicated to us that there was a good chance we had found an investor-friendly agent. Now for us based on our research and investigating it was clear, that Calli was a great fit but that doesn’t necessarily mean that she was a good agent; only that they meet the basic needs of being investor-friendly. Our investors Onyx Homes wanted to take the time to vet her more thoroughly than simply asking the above questions, and this initial review was a good place to start. When all was said and done, an investor-friendly agent like Calli will not only know the local marketplace inside and out, but they will know how to facilitate all logistics and exercise punctuality. Calli came to us, having extensive knowledge on who we could use for contractors for various projects and an incredible knowledge of the new up-and-coming neighborhoods in Cook County, IL.

The Opportunity of the Core Values

The agent you work with should have their own set of core values. This can vary from agent to agent, but being ethical and having integrity should be high on their list of priorities. It is important to have an honest and upfront conversation with your agent before working together. This conversation is where your agent can tell you what he or she is and isn’t comfortable with. Your agent may tell you he is comfortable with investor lingo because he’s invested in a property before; however, he is not comfortable making low-ball offers consistently. For example, when we began meeting with Calli, the majority of our conversations consisted of talking about things like ROIs, cap rates, 1031 exchanges, cash-on-cash returns, and net present value. These topics should be an indicator to you that your agent knows their stuff. Calli is always taking the time to continue her education and staying on top of the new trends on the market. It’s important to remember that while both investors and agents fall under the industry of real estate, the “lingo” between the two will be varied. When trying to find an agent to meet your needs, it will help find a person who is already familiar with the verbiage involved in closing a rehab, wholesale, or rental deal. When we are meeting with new agents, we asked calculated questions to ensure they know their information. The last thing you want to do is waste your time explaining to your agent what a “cap rate” or “ARV” is and how to calculate those numbers. While these terms are not necessary to know for agents who solely sell residential properties, the agent an investor hires should be at least familiar with the terminology. To put it basically, the agent you work with should have the ability to calculate your return. After all, receiving a high return on your investment is the reason you invest in the first place. If you’re investing in a rental property, can your agent calculate your cash flow? If you’re rehabbing a property, can your agent help estimate your cost of repairs and find your ARV? These items may seem obvious to an investor, but they can be less so for a regular agent. We knew if another agent is unfamiliar with these calculations to start, that it would be okay – so long as we at Onyx Homes were willing to teach and the agent was willing to learn. We know we have to be open to learning. It was discussions and answers from Calli, that made us feel confident that we at Onyx Homes were making the right choice in our partnership together.

Onyx Homes knew where your priorities were and sought an agent who would ultimately boost our business’ bottom line. We knew our buyers like agents who stretch the rules, so as long as Calli and her clients laid everything out on the table from the start, they will be working together seamlessly. We also took the time to ask Calli a series of questions that we used to confirm whether or not we had found an investor-friendly agent that would uphold our core business values and make us proud in the field:,:

• How punctual has the agent proven to be in the brief time you have gotten to know them?
• Does the agent respond to calls with urgency and show up on time?
• Has the agent demonstrated that they could calculate and understand market values?
• Can the agent drop what they are doing to meet at a home or show a property?
• Do they know how to write a contract and know the answers to simple real estate questions?

Knowledge of the Cook County Market

If you’ve used a real estate agent before to either help you find an investment property you plan to rehab or market an investment property you plan to sell, you know how important it is for that agent to have an expert understanding of the local market. Calli knew the market in Cook County like the back of her hand. From the start of our conversations with Callie, we knew she had a strong grasp of the market trends in her area and what homes would be best for the demographic she was selling to. There are several reasons why this is such a necessity:

• The agent will be able to pull more accurate “comps”
• The agent will have a pulse on what is trending in the marketplace
• The agent will have a better grasp of which properties will meet your needs

If you invest in a city outside of Chicago, it is even more imperative to find an agent who has had experience in the area. Even more, your goal should be to find an agent who specialized in a “micro market” (meaning a specific neighborhood like Skokie, area, county, or a town within a larger market). Why? Because especially in bigger markets, there will be certain areas where flipping a property will be either more beneficial or disadvantageous for whatever reason like we have seen in Chicago the last few years. Let’s say you’re an investor who heard that Chicago, was a primed market for rehab investors. That’s great. However, the right agent will be able to point you to a neighborhood like Hyde Park, perhaps the specific street name, which is an ideal candidate for investing. Remember, if you are new to a certain market, finding those key neighborhoods will be harder than you think without help from an agent like Calli.

Experience is the name of the Game

Calli had been upfront with us about having experience with working with investors before. Now we know that this is not always possible, but we know if your agent has experience working with an investor in the past (or has invested in real estate personally), this can be hugely helpful. This way, you know they have gone through the process already and will be more capable of handling the common issues that arise. This piece of information reassured us that whatever obstacle would come Calli’s way, she would know to handle it and overcome it positively. We had taken the time to reach out to Calli’s previous investors and they all came back saying, she has a great reputation amongst investors (and contractors, and legal representatives, and private lenders, etc.) in the market to begin with.

Finally, an agent with experience like Calli’sis typically more comfortable making offers. We knew by taking Calli on, we would not have to hold her hand through every step of the way. Agents who are used to buying and selling in the residential world usually don’t have to make multiple offers at a time. Investors know that this is a pipe dream. As an investor, you are always trying to find the best possible deal, which means making low-ball offers all day, every day. This type of investment is good for those type of homes that need to be flipped and once they are flipped can return an even greater return for us. It would help if you found an agent who is comfortable with this process so you don’t lose them along the way.

Insomma

Our Working relationship with an investor-friendly agent, Calli has proven to be beneficial in so many ways. For Onyx Homes it is been a great way to find more deals and sell more properties and our bottom line has improved greatly. Having the right agent, like Calli, who was so familiar with different exit strategies and even standard investing terms has paved the way for us to grow and gain further roots in the Cook County area. The know-how process has proven to be invaluable for Calli and Onyx Homes as we grow our future relationship together. We knew it would take some time to find the right real agent for the team, but our business has only greatly benefited from the start.

If you’re looking for a way to grow your real estate company invest the time in finding great realtors in your local area, Get to know, and vet them. Let’s be honest most of us spend more time with our co-workers than families so you would hope to like and respect them. These relationships will allow you both to flourish and gain success. Goodluck