Property Management Blog

By Tim Harstead - Tuesday, August 5, 2025

Addendums to Rental Agreements

A landlord is only as good as the lease they have their tenants sign. Yes, your realtor's standard lease agreement that they get from their association may follow all state and local laws; however, it does not have the additional terms you need to keep your tenants in line wh...

By Tim Harstead - Thursday, July 17, 2025

How to Give Notice of Non-renewal in Chicago

The world was a simpler time before Covid and that includes giving written notice to end a lease agreement in Chicago. During Covid, Lori Lightfoot passed a new law for proper notice needed to end a lease agreement and have your tenant move out. The fair notice ordinance in Chica...

By Tim Harstead - Thursday, July 10, 2025

Fair Housing Laws to Know in Chicago Before You List

You bought your investment property, got it all dolled up, and spent thousands of dollars to get it looking just right. Your photographer came out and took amazing photos, making your significant other jealous that your own home doesn't look as good. You are ready to hop onto...

By Tim Harstead - Tuesday, July 8, 2025

Finding Tenants in Chicago

Finding good tenants in Chicago is the number one job of property managers; if not done right, you'll end up with huge vacancy losses or, worse yet, bad tenants. So, how do you get the right tenant to view your property? I'll talk about screening criteria in other po...

By Tim Harstead - Thursday, June 5, 2025

Investing in Chicago's Bridgeport Neighborhood

As a lifelong White Sox fan, I grew up very familiar with the Bridgeport area, also known as the home of the Chicago White Sox. The main artery of 35th Street is populated with bars and restaurants that fill up before and after White Sox games, and helps to draw in some younger n...

By Tim Harstead - Thursday, May 29, 2025

Investing in the South Side of Chicago

If you are not from the Chicagoland area, you may not understand the uniqueness of the South Side of Chicago. Many investors look at and find Chicago investment property on the southside because of the much lower cost of entry, but then realize that it is harder to find good Chic...

By Tim Harstead - Friday, May 23, 2025

IL Squatter's Law Update

A recent story reported by ABC 7 was about a Tinley Park homeowner who listed his home for sale and was called by his realtor to inform him that he now had a squatter in his home. When the owner called the police, he was shocked to find out that the police officers could not do a...

By Tim Harstead - Tuesday, May 6, 2025

How to Keep Tenants Longer

You put a lot of hard work and money into getting where you are in your investment journey, from saving up for a down payment to rehabbing the unit, finding a tenant who wanted the apartment, screening them, and signing your lease. Now it’s time to recoup your investment an...

By Tim Harstead - Wednesday, April 23, 2025

Cook County Housing Authority Funding Shortfall

With a perfect storm of rising costs of living and funding cuts to HUD programing, the Housing Authority of Cook County (HACC) has released a letter announcing that they will be adjusting payments as of May 1st for new moves and rent increases.The Housing Authority of Cook C...

By Tim Harstead - Tuesday, February 4, 2025

How Section 8 Determines Rent Amount in Cook County

Section 8 housing is often a hot topic for real estate investors. Some investors love it, while others hate it. Frankly, I think that the majority of investors, especially newer ones, just don't understand it so I will be posting several blogs on how to invest in Section 8 re...