Relocation Help

Two ideas would be Naperville or Schaumburg. Both have plenty of young couples, both have a fair share of nice restaurants & things to do. Can easily get into the city proper within 45 minutes from either location (by car, or by train). Depending on what you want house-wise, you can certainly find something at or well below your budget that would be a fairly easy resale if needed in the future.

Me? I live in Hanover Park - which is kinda between Schaumburg & Naperville on a North/South basis. Not quite as upscale as either, but MUCH nicer as far as traffic patterns & ease of getting to/from a lot of other places. Homes are quite a bit less expensive. Plus... I just walk across the street, through the huge park, and I come to lakes like this not 5 minutes from my door...
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Have you considered condo living in the city? You wont find a single family in the city for 500, but there are plenty of nice 2 bedroom condos in that range. my wife and I are in our 30's with 3 kids and refuse to leave the city....the nightlife, dining, ease of living and just pure fun make it worth the added expense. Also, if you live in the city you have the added benefit of train service to and from the airports if that is your thing.

 

I would have to agree on the condo living on the city. The transportation system is fair and somewhat dependable. $1.75 will get you to any airport in under 45 minutes. Somethings to consider also, the city of chicago charges for city sticker(90 per car)lic plates 75 per car, parking permits if you live on a permit activated street, usually around sports arenas or neighboorhoods that ***** enough about parking. If you come into the city try to work out usuing only one car, parking is a premium but nothing like New York. The buses,

Some area to look up on internet or request from chamber of commerce.

River North( art and gallery district)
River West( industrial up and coming)
South Loop( city life and industrial)
Gold Coast(trendy, hip, shopping) you have to do some investigating to stay in your price range.
Wrigleyville(post college, Cubs Area( I am a sox fan so this is farther down the list) nice areas, parks, in the city but really not, but a 10 minute train ride to the downtown area.

pm me if you want my real estate brokers phone number. Young guy helped me buy some commercial properties but I am sure he could help you out.

Jon

 

Where will you primarily be working while in Chicago? If you are in one of the suburbs than it might not make sense to live in the city. However, if you are working primarily in the city than living in the city would be ideal. Further, if you plan on traveling a lot than your options open up a bit to either the city or maybe one of the northwest suburbs for easy access to O'hare.

If you have children in school, than I think your best bet is to stay located in one of the suburbs because the transition to a city school and getting them to school each morning would be significantly different.

If you are dead set on living in a suburb than I would suggest the Northwest suburbs such as Niles, Deerfield, Arlington Heights, Shaumburg over the Southwest suburbs such as Naperville, Plainfield, Bolingbrook. The Southwest suburbs are nice, no doubt...but you will definitely feel isolated from the rest of the city. But lets face it guys, these days the traffic in some of the suburbs these days can be as bad as the city!

However, if it is just you and your wife there really is no better experience than living within the city of Chicago. I lived in Naperville for 3 years while a teenager and now have lived in the city for three years as an adult and simply put, I could never see myself leaving the city. There is simply too much to do and short of children, no reason to leave. I am especially fond of my area too. I live in a quiet little pocket of northeast Wrigleyville and I am 15-20 minute busride from downtown, a 25 minute train ride from downtown. Can be on Lake Shore Drive in less than 2 minutes to get in and out of the city. I can be to Ohare in 45 minutes using public transportation and 30 minutes using a cab. Anything further south of where I live and the traffic is too congested for my tastes if you are using the car a lot. Another problem with the city is that you and your wife might get to like it so much that you won't ever want to leave.

But that is really the beauty of the city. I find myself using public transportation everywhere. It is so cheap and convenient. It can be a pain during rush hour at times, but I simply have it down now where I go in early and leave early or vice versa and I rarely have an issue. The best part? I put on less than 2k miles on my car last year and 1k of that was driving back and forth 2 and a half hours to visit my folks who live down south.

My only rant against city living is that it is no doubt an adjustment, and it can be too big of an adjustment for single person, let alone a couple who is used to living outside of a city. For the first 6 months to a year I didn't see myself living here for more than a year or two before venturing out to the suburbs. But once I had been here a year my attitude changed and now I love it and don't see myself leaving. Trips to the movies, trips to the grocery store, and other errands become a bit more strategic due to all of the traffic. Going out at night to dinner requires more strategy as well (Do we take a cab, park valet, take the train, etc?) Getting used to the traffic, the congestion, the neighborhood setups, the streets, etc all require an adjustment and if you and your wife don't have much sense of adventure than you are probably better off staying in a suburb.

If you have any questions at all let me know and you can PM me. You'll have to stop by and see my ants sometime

 

Luke, Check your PM...

Tod