Episode 26: Neal Bawa's Thoughts on Chicago, Opportunity Zones, and Current Economic Conditions

Neal Bawa, the founder of Grocapitus, has built an immense empire of 3,000 units with nearly 40,000 students studying his data driven approach. On today's episode, Neal dives into the key advantages and disadvantages of investing in Chicago compared to other major metros. He also provides his thoughts on opportunity zones, including the major benefits of OZs and why some are destined to fail. Being centered on data, he gives a deep dive into economic factors influencing Chicago, the individual investor, and the real estate market as a whole. Lastly, Neal explains how "churn" is the hidden expense you need to be accounting for. If you enjoy today's episode with Neal, please give us a 5 star review and join our Facebook Group! The group is linked here, and our community is growing - https://www.facebook.com/groups/3265227216848263 ----------------- Connect with Mark and Tom: StraightUpChicagoInvestor.com Email the Show: [email protected] Guest: Neal Bawa of Grocapitus Investments Link: Grocapitus Website | Opportunity Zones   Link: Multifamily University | Free eBook: Location Magic | Join Our Investor Club Link: Tim Ferriss' Blog   Link: Chris Jackson on LinkedIn ----------------- Guest Questions Landlord tip of the week 2:00 Guest intro 5:18 Is Chicago a market people should avoid because it doesn't always look good in macro charts? 6:30 What is an opportunity zone and what are some pros/cons of them? 9:45 Is there a benefit to setting up a QOF if you're in a small project? 17:04 What does a $4 Trillion dollar stimulus package do for an investor? 20:00 What could a downturn look like in the modern world run by banks? 26:00 As an investor, what makes sense as a project to do right now? 28:40 How do you account for churn in your investments? 32:20   Wrap Up Questions What is your competitive advantage? 39:00 What is one piece of advice you'd give a new investor? 40:15 What do you do for fun? 41:10 Name a good self development activity you'd recommend. 42:20 Who would you recommend as a quality resource in your network? 43:40 How can we learn more about you? 44:00   That's our show, thank you so much for listening! ----------------- Production House: Flint Stone Media Copyright of Straight Up Chicago Investor 2020.