Straight rental property buyer Jamilla W. “…this process is a lot smoother than the one I went through when I bought my other house from a different company.”
To provide additional insight into URB, we hired Jody Mabry who is a freelance writer and author to interview clients about their experiences with the company. The following is the transcript of Jody’s interview with Jamilla W., a URB Straight rental property buying client. Respectful of Jamilla’s privacy, her last name and address are not published.
Jamilla W. Oh, yeah. So I found them on Facebook Marketplace and I messaged Emanuel, about the property. And he actually got back to me pretty quickly about it and everything. And he gave me the lap code – not the lap code – he gave me the address and said that he would get in touch with the guy who has the key to unlock the house and let me look around and everything. And it was a good experience because it was kind of later in the day when I was available so they kinda worked with me with my schedule and everything like that. And the whole process of like the closing and then me getting information about the property that I was, you know, not privy to and other questions that I had. He was really good at texting me back on time and everything and answering my phone calls. So, pretty smooth process actually.
Jody Had you ever bought a house like that before?
Jamilla Yes. So the house I live in now I bought as an off-market house, so I would say that this process is a lot smoother than the one I went through when I bought my other house from a different company.
Jody OK. And then why? So why did you look at your URB instead of other companies?
Jamilla Well, the actual house on Facebook marketplace was what got my attention in the first place.
Jody Oh, okay, I see.
Jamilla Yeah. And then from there, I contacted Emanuel and he put me in touch with a guy that could show me the house. And then I called him back. And he explained the process to me and everything. And I was comfortable with everything that he explained to me, and, you know, I think he did, he did, a good job of making me comfortable, I could say. Letting me know, you know, what to expect and everything so I just felt comfortable enough with them to be able to go through with it.
Jody And did you have questions on the agreement at all?
Jamilla Yes. So when I came into the office to actually sign the letter of intent and put the down payment down, I had some questions about, you know, how these payments work and the pay-offs and everything like that. He was good at explaining everything like that and showing me the amortization schedule or [Unknown word] schedule and, you know, showing me that how all the payments by the end of the payment schedule would be able to afford me the house. There’s no like lump sum or anything paid afterward. And I just felt like there was nothing like hidden. Like anything that had a question, he was able to explain it thoroughly.
Jody And then so was it move-in ready when you bought it?
Jamilla Well, I would say yes and no. I say no because it was a situation where, you know, the person’s belongings were still in the house. So right now we’re in the process of getting all the belongings out of the house. But the house isn’t like a total rehab, though, you know, mostly cosmetic. It’s not something that had been sitting, you know, and just kind of rotting, I guess, for years or anything, like it’s something that can like that can be easily fixed and it’s not like I got in over my head or anything.
Jody So Emmanuel mentioned that you… Was it you wanted to rent to either the elderly or disabled?
Jamilla Yes. I’m looking at renting… Yeah marketing to people who are disabled or even elderly that have a hard time getting around their house, because I think that this house is pretty good as far as like the things that are already in it, as far as like the wide door frame for the bathroom and then the bars that are throughout the house and everything so that someone should be able to grab on to kind of help them around. So I just want to kind of deal with how the house is already structured just because, umm… Actually, Brian gave me the idea because he was kind of giving me information on how there’s not a lot of housing for the disabled and everything and just kind of, you know, giving me information to look up and stuff like that. And he’s kind of giving me, you know, tips on what to look for. It starts by getting the house ready for that.
Jody So when you were looking at it, you were going at it as a rental property, right?
Jamilla Yeah. Just as a straight rental property. And then just through like talking to Brian is when I really got the idea for making it something available for the disabled or the elderly.
Jody Then do you know how you’re going to go about rehabbing that part of the home or renovating for that.
Jamilla Yes. So there is a contact for by that Emanuel gave me… Well, actually the guy that I had met that showed me the house. He is a contractor. And he said, you know, if I need help with anything, that I can call him and just see if, you know, I’d be interested in anything like that.So, I called him, we’re supposed to be meeting actually this week on Thursday to see, you know, what he may be able to do and talk about prices and stuff like that. But even beyond him, I also have a friend and family member that one does electricity and then the other one does like little odd jobs. So, yeah, before I meet with him, we’re still doing stuff on our own too.
Jody And then as far as the cost, what did you think about the price?
Jamilla I actually thought that it was pretty good price. I priced other homes in the area that were similar to this one and it fell into the range of what the other homes around their cost. So, you know, I think it was a pretty good deal for the area.
Jody And then with the neighborhood… Which neighborhood was that?
Jamilla Sauk Village.
Jody Are you comfortable with the neighborhood or what do you think about the area?
Jamilla Yeah, I think they are is actually really quiet which I really like. I mean, I know it’s winter, well not really winter yet, but it’s really cold outside now so that a lot of people are not out now anyway. But when I went over there before, when I first started going over there, it was still pretty nice outside. So the area is quiet and everything. And, you know, people seem to keep up with their properties and things over there so that makes me really comfortable that the property value was in our favor as is and may even go up.
Jody So you’re going to do some renovation. When do you think you’re gonna start renting it out?
Jamilla Well, so now that we’re in the process of cleaning the previous owners. Things that are there and quite a lot of stuff. So that probably will take me maybe into the end of November because Thanksgiving and things are coming up. And then in December, I’m planning on just doing the cosmetic work. So I think that we should be able to get it out sometime in January if everything goes smoothly so.
Jody Mabry And then. Would you mind if I call you as kind of a follow-up and I guess in early spring?
Jamilla Oh, yeah, that’s fine.
Jody Just to see how the renovations went and provide a little bit more information to people who haven’t bought from URB Chicago yet.
Jamilla Yes. That’s totally fine, I don’t mind that at all.
Jody Do you have anything else that you wanted to say or any other comments about the process.
Jamilla Like I said, I think that the process was pretty smooth. I mean, like I said, I just got the house and I’m going to renovate and everything like that. I haven’t made my first payment or anything yet. I can’t really come yet on the process of making payments, but just getting the house, I mean, the contact and closing and the process were… it was a good process and a good experience.
Jody And then. So what I’m going to do is I’m going to take our conversation and write it out as a testimonial and it’ll go on their website where I’ve seen it so far, it looks like they’re on the first page of their website. They’ll have a little blurb about it that’ll bring you to another page. Is it okay if I use your first name and last initial?
Jamilla Umm, that’s fine; first name and last initial, yeah.
Jody OK, cool. And then I think that’s all I really need. If you have anything, I’d probably write it up tonight or tomorrow. But if you have anything more than you think of in that time, feel free to text me and I can get back on the phone. So, I really appreciate your time and thank you very much.
Jamilla Thank you.
Jody Thanks. Bye.
