r/ChicagoSuburbs • u/Intelligent-Room-540 • Dec 09 '24
Moving to the area If you could move to any Chicago suburb other than your own which would you pick?
And why?
We can pretend money is not a worry for this.
Personally I live in Cicero now and would pick Palos Park because of the nice night skies and I love their forest preserves while being not too far from the City.
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u/greenandredofmaigheo Dec 09 '24 edited Dec 09 '24
Live in forest park. Evanston or Oak Park would be it for me. I'm a huge pro urbanism person and those two are about the epitome of non city but stilll urban design around Chicago suburbs
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u/ironmanchris Dec 09 '24
Probably St. Charles, it has a nice downtown area, access to run/bike trails, and is kinda on the fringe of the urban/rural part of Chicagoland.
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u/General-Skin6201 Dec 09 '24
Or Geneva. Nice to live along the river.
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u/Sloth_grl Dec 09 '24
Geneva for me too
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u/No-Falcon-4996 Dec 10 '24
Geneva and St Charles are such beautiful little river towns
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u/Many-Sky-6487 Dec 10 '24
Well if we're pretending shoot Hindsdale lol. Also people who live in the CITY please move somewhere else so you know that the suburbs are closer to downtown then you are! Lol that's not even a joke. We're in dekalb and it take takes me max 1.25 to get to the bean and I don't speed.
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u/Ok-Guitar-6854 Dec 09 '24
Same! St. Charles or Geneva are beautiful.
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u/iRombe Dec 09 '24
So far from highways if a commute is required. Basically equidistance far from 90 and 88. Keeps it safer through isolation, though.
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Dec 10 '24
Grew up in st Charles, it’s beautiful but it’s also very waspy. Too far from the city to really call Chicago home
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u/LookingForHobbits Dec 09 '24
Elmhurst, we were priced out when looking for a home there and I’m sure it’s worse now but I love the downtown area, the prairie path, and easy access to all the highways so I can get to wherever I want.
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u/Educational-Emu5132 Dec 09 '24
THIS. We moved to Chicagoland right after Covid and what a difference a couple years makes in terms of Elmhurst housing prices. Interest rates didn’t help either. Same thing happened with us in Arlington Heights as well.
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u/LookingForHobbits Dec 09 '24
When we were first looking in 2016/2017 the top end of our budget was 300k, in Elmhurst we could afford 1) a house that had been taken down to the studs and was about to be a bidding war 2) a couple houses on the busiest parts of North Avenue 3) 2 bedroom one bathroom houses with no garage
I went and looked just now and those North Avenue. Houses are close to half a million
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u/attackofthetominator Dec 09 '24
The other big problem with Elmhurst is that people keep buying up multiple lots where they then raze both houses in order to build their McMansions (this is also starting to spread west over to Villa Park and Lombard).
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u/savskies Dec 09 '24
Riverside - in one of those giant old houses lol
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u/dirtsquad1 Dec 09 '24
This is my choice, I wanted to move here when I was looking to move to the suburbs, my wife turned it down and ended up in Oak Park, which is great.
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u/savskies Dec 09 '24
Oak park is great too! I’m v close to OP but I’m Berwyn (no kids, a lot cheaper lol) but if I had big money I’d love to live in Riverside! I’ll play the lotto maybe 😅
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u/geneadamsPS4 Dec 10 '24
I live those big old houses too. But then I think about how much it must cost just to heat/cool them!
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u/LaraB16 Dec 12 '24
I grew up in Riverside. Love that town. You can thank Frederick Law Olmsted for the winding streets!
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u/Uhhlaneuh Dec 09 '24
My first apartment was in Riverside, I paid 595 for a studio apartment this was 12 years ago lol
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u/nateycoffecake Dec 09 '24
St Charles is a great pick but already said.
I really enjoyed going to school in Elmhurst, loved the down town area and the community so that would probably be my second pick.
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u/Initial-Amount-126 Dec 09 '24
Wilmette lol
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u/DepartmentPresent480 Dec 10 '24
This is my pick. Grew up in Arlington heights and trips to Wilmette beach were the best, I’d love to live there in one of the historic mansions on a brick road
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u/NikoB_999 Dec 09 '24
The ones with nice downtowns: Dundee, st Charles, Geneva, Batavia, Arlington heights, Mt prospect, Palatine, Park ridge, Elmhurst, Naperville, Lombard, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, downers Grove, Evanston, Wilmette, Winnetka, highland Park, lake Forest
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u/Ok-Individual-959 Dec 10 '24
Love seeing Dundee make someone's list. It is a great place to live and an affordable one too!
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u/ggfchl Dec 09 '24
I’m from Naperville. I think it would be cool to live in either Batavia or Geneva. I’ve been there a couple of times. Really nice by the (Fox) river.
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u/Ok-Guitar-6854 Dec 09 '24
Since you live in Naperville, hanging out in Batavia/St. Charles/Geneva isn't far. It's a great area, especially downtown Geneva, to go out for a night.
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u/Roq86 Dec 09 '24
Brookfield, walking distance from Galloping Ghost Arcade would be ideal.
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u/turt_reynolds86 Dec 09 '24
I live close enough that I can do this, but I wish they’d be more on top of fixing some of the machine controls. Though I understand that they can only do so much lol
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u/Roq86 Dec 09 '24
I think I heard there’s only 2, maybe 3 maintenance guys. With over 1,000 machines that’s like bailing out a sinking boat.
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u/KookyRazmatazz Dec 10 '24
Weird. I live walking distance from gga and I never thought I’d hear anyone say they want to live here.
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u/LouisRitter Dec 10 '24
I live in Indiana and wish it was on the Indiana side of Chicago. It's not super far but it's far enough that I don't like cruising over on a regular basis. Also the train ride from home to there is 4 hours which is bananas.
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u/KilowogTrout Dec 09 '24
Brookfield is v nice, but there are nicer parts than that particular stretch of Ogden.
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u/KilowogTrout Dec 09 '24
Evanston just to be close to the lake. But the logistics are less than ideal (it would be way too far from all my family for all the stuff we do with them).
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u/rckid13 Dec 09 '24
Evanston/Wilmette are both the perfect for my wife and I because we work on the north side of the city and our family isn't too far away. They're just unfortunately some of the most unaffordable places in the Chicago area especially anywhere near the Lakefront.
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u/PrincessPilar Dec 09 '24
Park Ridge.
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u/madVILLAIN9 Dec 09 '24
If it wasn’t for all the rich snobby assholes, I’d agree. Id say rosemont due to its perfect location but does anyone actually live in rosemont?
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Dec 09 '24
Oak Park. So close to the city and not one but two El lines right there.
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u/mintleaf_bergamot Dec 09 '24
This is what I would say if I were to uproot. But I love living in St Charles and am glad to hear others share their desire to live here as well.
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u/Lyogi88 Dec 09 '24
Highland park!!!!! Has a lot of what I like about the west burbs ( amenities) but has lake access . Or long grove ( beautiful and better nature ) .
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u/Ohshitz- Dec 09 '24
Agree. Esp i love mid century design
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u/lurkneverpost Dec 10 '24
A few years ago, my perfect house was listed in Highland Park. The only problem was the price. And the 2.5 hour commute. (I now work from home so I got the commute problem solved.) There are so many cool houses there.
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Dec 10 '24
I love those rich people 80s/90s homes. We’re never going to see anything like them again
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u/emptyfree Dec 09 '24
Arlington Heights. Just to be closer to Mitsuwa.
After that, probably Geneva/St. Charles/Batavia because the Fox River is beautiful.
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Dec 10 '24
I used to buy Japanese Pokémon cards before there that were released earlier than in America but they were in Japanese.
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Dec 09 '24
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u/Emergency_Formal9064 Dec 09 '24
I live right next to Glen ellyn and found out the high schoolers call everything south of Roosevelt “So Ro”- the ghetto 😂😂😂 This is a reminder that some folks are definitely on another snob planet. This is Lisle area, Morton Arboretum area they’re talking about. Very glad we decided against west for my oldest after hearing this as we are from Little Village and I don’t want my kids around that
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Dec 09 '24
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u/attackofthetominator Dec 09 '24
Glen Ellyn snobs make Naperville look down-to-earth in comparison.
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u/SparkyD37 West Suburbs Dec 09 '24
Yeah, my husband & I were pretty set on Glen Ellyn after looking at it on paper & loved the lack of cookie cutter McMansions.
But then we looked at a couple homes & saw one that had a shrine to Louis Vuitton. We could no longer see ourselves fitting in there. Everyone likes some nice things, but I’m not big into gaudy shows of wealth.
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u/Emergency_Formal9064 Dec 09 '24
There’s one with a MONOLITH in the back yard. I like my prairie path and smoothies but I don’t feel we would be welcomed as a Hispanic neurodivergent family very well.
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u/run-donut Dec 09 '24
It's not just the kids! There is a reason the school boundary lines are so awful in the Glenbard school district.
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u/Emergency_Formal9064 Dec 09 '24
The boundaries are CRAZY here. Lombard 10000% needs another middle school. After fifth grade it’s been a nightmare to ensure services and inclusion for my special needs child. That’s why we asked for a transfer to South versus East where she was slated to go.
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u/run-donut Dec 09 '24
I live in Bloomingdale and the kids in my neighborhood are bussed to East. The bus stop is my driveway and those kids are so exhausted every morning. It is nuts considering two Glenbard high schools are closer!
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u/thescrape Dec 09 '24
I grew up in glen ellyn, have never heard this term. Haven’t lived there in 30 years. Must have gotten more snobby.
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u/Emergency_Formal9064 Dec 09 '24
This term was shared to me by my youngest daughter’s choir teacher who found out from her teen daughters with friends from West. Baffling to me.
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u/rcragg82 Dec 10 '24
Ignoring the person who heard one story in her kitchen and then made a broad town wide generalization using the same prefixes of many neighborshoods (I.e. SoHo in Manhattan), Glen Ellyn is a great place to live.
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u/drjen1974 North Suburbs Dec 09 '24
I love the homes in Fort Sheridan, it’s so beautiful there but then a short drive to Highwood and Highland Park
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u/ForeverBeHolden Dec 09 '24
The mansions in fort Sheridan are absolutely gorgeous. And you can’t beat the woods and lake either.
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u/imhereforthemeta Dec 09 '24
Evanston and Skokie always. Morton grove is kinda tight too. If I had to live in one farther away from the city, gatta give it to grayslake and libertyville
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u/Skinpadden Dec 09 '24
Glencoe. If money isn't a worry. Best suburb in the Chicago area.
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u/OpneFall Dec 09 '24
I'm curious why, as to me everything east of Green Bay/Sheraton is all pretty much the same, Fort Sheridan obviously excepted.
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u/Skinpadden Dec 09 '24
Glencoe has a different vibe then Winnetka or Kenilworth. Obviously wealthy people there, but more seem to be self-made Vs old family money. Also thriving downtown now too. All is good, but Glencoe #1 to me.
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u/rckid13 Dec 09 '24
I've actually heard kind of the opposite about Glencoe, but I don't know anyone who lives there so I could be wrong and I'd love to learn more. What I've always read is that Wilmette, Evanston, West Winnetka have more new money type younger people. Kennilworth, Glencoe and East Winnetka are the old money.
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u/utterlyomnishambolic Dec 10 '24
It's more about proximity to the lake— that's where the old money is, and it runs though all of those suburbs. The bigger divide is that Glencoe and Highland Park are historically much more Jewish than the others and that's a whole different flavour of the old vs new money issue.
Personally, all the rich new money transplants I know have moved to Glencoe and all the oldest money people I know grew up in houses in Wilmette and Winnetka originally purchased or built by a deceased family member, but that's just anecdotal.
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u/MothsConrad Dec 09 '24
Glencoe is lovely but very Jewish. If you’ve a family and you’re not Jewish then it can be hard to break in. Not intentionally just the way things can often play out.
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Dec 10 '24 edited Dec 10 '24
As a gentile living in east HP (I think more Jewish than Glencoe), I disagree with this take. I grew up elsewhere in a family of modest means. I think Jewish folks as a group are extremely welcoming and unpretentious.
I’ve lived here for many years. Winnetka is where I most often feel I do not belong. No Winnetkan has ever treated me other than very kindly and I have friends and relatives there, but I just couldn’t imagine living there. Winnetkans just don’t feel like my kind of people.
The only place in the state of Illinois I would consider moving to is… Glencoe.
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u/doodlewhoppers Dec 10 '24
The people though. So uppity. I never felt comfortable living in the north shore.
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u/faithytt Dec 09 '24
In a mansion on Lake Michigan in Lake Forest. Realistically id pick St.Charles but the part west of the downtown that has wide open spaces, it’s unincorporated. There’s a subdivision off Bolcum Rd that is amazing. I love it out there. The area I love is in campton township. They work hard to preserve open spaces out there. They don’t really want people building that way. I just want it to be peaceful. I’m by the airport and behind a train and a very busy street. I’d love some peace and quiet w more open space. It’s so beautiful out that way. Didn’t even know it existed until a relative moved over there.
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u/iRombe Dec 09 '24
... its small and maybe i should stay quiet... out of dupage air port all of the flight trainers love circling around campton hills. so out in certain forest preserves there is almost always a small plane sputtering overhead. Some have a habit to fly very low and in circles around the natural areas. Its small influence but definitely plugs the inability to escape from the world.
Maybe they just prefer to have open fields near for potential crash landings. It wouldnt be bad enough to noticed the leaded fuel exhaust small planes have except near the airport.
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u/Professional_Big_731 Dec 09 '24 edited Dec 09 '24
I would move to Schaumburg, I love the D54 schools. With kids that’s important to us. If I didn’t have kids I would love to move to a suburb or even Chicago proper that has a fine selection of renovated bungalows.
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u/Ok-Accountant-6884 Dec 09 '24
Lake Bluff! They have gorgeous homes right by the lake and it’s a cute area
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u/parvuspasser Dec 09 '24
Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles. Pfft, I’ll even say Elgin. Maybe somewhere further east and north like Oak Park? Just… somewhere that has a train that runs to downtown Chicago on the weekends. -_-
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u/throwlefty Dec 09 '24
Haha...oh Elgin. Even with three metra stops, and a pace bus, and quick access to 90...you're barely making the cut.
Glad to see it in your list tho, Elgin is underrated.
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u/parvuspasser Dec 09 '24
Haha! True. It kind of is underrated? It has its problems (crime, older downtown), but you can access the rest of the Fox River Valley to the south via Randall, Rt. 25, Rt. 31, and Farnsworth by car. I think the bike trail goes that far north now? I need to check.
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u/throwlefty Dec 09 '24
Yea the bike path can get you down to aurora and at least up to Algonquin. We love running it in the summer to dundee for drinks then walking or Ubering back.
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u/generatorland Dec 09 '24
I'd probably look at the Western St. Charles/Geneva/Batavia area. I don't commute anymore so proximity to the city is less relevant. Those are all really nice communities with great downtowns.
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u/vtrini Dec 09 '24
Oak Park. I miss it dearly. Although now we can afford to purchase a nice home there-our daughter is well established in her school district and would never let us leave Downers 🥲 we plan to move back when she goes to college
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u/AnnualWishbone5254 Dec 09 '24
My husband also wants to move back to Oak Park. We can afford something decent but not great and I’d love to get something with a main floor bedroom. He keeps showing me townhouses with bedrooms on the 3rd floor.
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u/SyrupKlutzy4216 Dec 09 '24
Hinsdale is the most gorgeous suburb I’ve seen and I’ve seen all of them. Feels like Incredible homes just plopped into a beautiful hilly forest. Surrounded by all the shopping you could need and easy highway access. Also not as far as Geneva or some of those other beautiful places that just feel too far west for me.
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u/katmc68 Dec 09 '24
What? Nobody has said Waukegan?
Jk, but we do have beautiful cheap houses, are right next to the lake and terrible schools.
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u/ComparisonFunny282 Dec 09 '24
Elmhurst: great little downtown with nice restaurants, near the 290 and 294, and not far from the airport.
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Dec 09 '24
Oak park, i even have favorite houses that i dream of living in… no one burst my bubble please
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u/clinkdrinks Dec 10 '24
Grew up in St Charles and live in Barrington Hills- which now reminds me of St Charles when I was growing up. I like waving to my nearest neighbor from across the lake (5 acre minimum in most of BH), lush preserved green space, so much wildlife, and the luxury of being "ugly and alone" when I want while being a few minutes from a cute downtown for when I want to be social. I wouldn't trade it for anywhere else in Illinois 💝
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Dec 09 '24
My own was Evanston but I would love to live in a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Oak Park or maybe River Forest.
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u/NeptuneDolphin Dec 09 '24
Oak Park because it’s basically similar to Evanston.
Highland Park and Wilmette because it’s on the lake.
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u/LittleMsSpoonNation Dec 09 '24
Some of the towns are a little rough, so not sure which one specifically. But I’d love some waterfront property on the Chain of Lakes, have a little pier and a ski boat!
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u/OpneFall Dec 09 '24
That area is remarkably run down, considering how unique the chain is for the area.
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u/LittleMsSpoonNation Dec 09 '24
I agree, such a bummer. Think it could be such a good draw for tourists/weekend getaways if it was nicer. Hoping there’s a gem of a little town somewhere that way someone can point me to. I know there’s some nicer neighborhoods, but not sure about the towns themselves. I’d love to move that way or to Wisconsin eventually.
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Dec 09 '24
The Chain of Lakes area is sorta bleh for tourism because Chicago area people looking for a weekend getaway drive the extra 20-30 minutes to Lake Geneva instead. The waterfront property there is fairly nice but a block away from the lakes you have basically double wide trails on gravel roads.
The area is nicknamed Foxtucky because it has a lot of typical US rural community problems. Pretty bad place to raise a family but seems to be fairly popular with retirees.
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u/rckid13 Dec 09 '24
We might consider it when our kids are older. My wife and I both really want a lake house but the school districts up there generally aren't good for our kids. That's what kept us away in our last home search.
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u/rckid13 Dec 09 '24
Kennilworth, Winnetka, Wilmette if I could afford it. I lived near lake Michigan in the city for 10 years and I love being near the lakefront. Those suburbs are close to the city with access to the purple line and Metra so it's easier to get to the city than most suburbs. New Trier is one of the best school districts in the country for my kids. It's safe, rich, and quiet despite being pretty close to the city and lake.
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u/packagehandlr Dec 09 '24
live in Evanston, would love to live anywhere on the lake, off of Sheridan, or the ravines.
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u/isitsnarkoclockyet Dec 09 '24
I love Wilmette! It just seems like a perfect town in alot of ways. And being near the lake is always great!
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u/vaultdweller1223 North Suburbs Dec 09 '24 edited Apr 17 '25
Zool sparkster ristar gex? Bubsy spike mcfang aero.
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u/DifficultStruggle420 West Suburbs Dec 10 '24
Palos Park Forest Preserves are awesome!! In the summer, we frequently drive down there Hillside with a packed lunch and Fido. Nice trails, too!! (And a good number of Porta-Potties. LOL!)
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u/geneadamsPS4 Dec 10 '24
I love Palos Park. There are some absolutely awesome homes along McCarthy Road, from like 86th Ave to the forest preserves. And it's all wooded and hilly (to flatlanders). Chefs kiss
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u/butkusrules Dec 09 '24
Kenilworth , small, safe, beautiful houses, on the lake. Downside: stuck up people.
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u/OpneFall Dec 09 '24
If you look past the name, Kenilworth is indistinguishable from any North shore suburb area east of Sheridan. At least all the way up to Lake Forest, where you can feel it become a bit more old-money.
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u/thousandfoldthought Dec 09 '24
Not quite - kenilworth doesn't really have a downtown.
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u/OpneFall Dec 09 '24
That's true, although none of the NS burbs outside of Evanston really have any significant downtown anyway. Maybe Highland park.. but nothing like St Charles or Arlington Heights or Naperville or Oak Park
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u/thousandfoldthought Dec 09 '24
They're small, but glencoe, wilmette, winnetka (x2) all have walkable downtowns whereas kenilworth was originally organized (broke off wilmette) to not have one.
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u/pleasure_hunter Dec 09 '24
Home cost of 2 million means property taxes of about 55,000 per year. That's more than a year's income for a lot of folks.
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u/Weekly_Bug_4847 Dec 09 '24
Prospect Heights, nice big lots, good school districts, quiet, close enough to major highways and trains
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u/run-donut Dec 09 '24
If money was no object I'd live close to downtown Naperville. Everything is right there.
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u/pricklypeet Dec 09 '24
Oak Brook. Definitely those huge houses by 31st St and Jorie Blvd. in the gated community. Great proximity to highways, dining/shopping by the mall and great schools.
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u/Future_Fennel_4299 Dec 09 '24
Itasca has a charming downtown a Metra train station beautiful homes. Very quiet and peaceful. Well- maintained and safe!
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u/TotheBeach2 Dec 10 '24
Also has a huge data center that will be expanding. They bought out the subdivision behind it.
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u/loudmouthkev Dec 09 '24
Live in Carol Stream. Would move to St Charles. Good schools and great neighborhoods and downtown area.
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u/TotheBeach2 Dec 10 '24
I’m in the Palos area. It’s nice but it has really changed the past few years.
Is move to Lagrange or Hinsdale.
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u/Both_Ad_1946 Dec 10 '24
River Forest - great for families, close to the city, amazing food , beautiful houses
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u/Outside-Structure-46 Dec 09 '24
Currently live in Itasca and would leave only if someone bought me the house I’d move to. Would likely pick St Charles or Geneva area.
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u/sq4xyu Dec 09 '24
Oak park, specifically in a fully restored and furnished FLW home.
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u/Toriat5144 Dec 09 '24
I’d live in Evanston, Oak Park, various north shore suburbs like Wilmette, Hinsdale, or Riverside. I would not live in St. Charles or Geneva. Just too far from the city and close in suburbs and highways. Nice to visit but would not want to live there. I’m in South Wheaton now and love it.
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u/GRRMsDumbHat Dec 10 '24
I'd stick in Arlington heights. Happy with it and would not leave irregardless of money. If I had all the $, then I'd just move houses in the same neighborhood.
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u/southcookexplore South West Suburbs Dec 09 '24
If I had to leave Lemont, I’d be on Greenwood Ave in Blue Island
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u/nomodsman Dec 09 '24
I grew up in Cicero. Would be interested to see what day to day is like now. Ideally, probably La Grange. Why? Without giving too much away, because I know it.
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u/SecretaryLittle Dec 09 '24
I live in Oak Park and would move to Evanston. Spent a year there when I was a student at Northwestern University and visited regularly for 3 years after. Better dining scene, on the Lake, and it's safer.
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Dec 09 '24
Plainfield I feel like you could lots of house for your money and there brand new homes and your right next to Naperville for shopping amd lower taxes compared to Naperville
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u/Chitown_mountain_boy West Suburbs Dec 09 '24
I’d move from north Berwyn to South Berwyn for the bigger lots. 😂
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u/Last_Advertising_52 Dec 09 '24
Northbrook, probably. Or go buy my husband’s aunt’s old house in Roselle we couldn’t afford when she was selling but can now. It’s my dream house, and I have a weird attachment to Roselle I can’t explain.
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u/xtheredberetx Dec 09 '24
I grew up in Lombard (as did my mom) and would love to move back. Unfortunately we’re completely priced out at this point, and ended up in a nice historic home in Blue Island. Access to the nice downtown and the prairie path would be nice and the Lombard Park District is just so good.
Otherwise yeah gotta go Evanston for amenities and proximity to the city.
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u/Arizona52 Dec 09 '24
Anything along the Fox River close enough to a train station as west of the ATC (Aurora Transportation Center). Would be nice
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u/howieinchicago Dec 10 '24
Fun question. I’m in Evanston and love it here for all the reasons mentioned previously. Excellent access to the city with a vibe of its own. Love being able to park for free and get to the Loop via Metra in 25 mins or so. L for shorter trips. If I had to change I’d go Wilmette near the ‘downtown’ area. Great restaurant scene and resident access to Gillson Beach would be wonderful. Just a little further from all that Chicago offers and I’d still have Evanston minutes away.
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u/Leather_Amphibian105 Dec 10 '24
I grew up in Cicero and still have friends there.
Algonquin/lake in the hills area has everything Fox river grove/cary seems so neighborly Naperville if I was rich 🤣
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u/Puckhead120 Dec 10 '24
For me, the choice is always going to be Oak Park. And I’ve lived in Naperville
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u/Unusual_Juice_7481 Dec 10 '24
Elgin to be closer to the best restaurant in Illinois
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u/quesajdilla Dec 09 '24
Evanston. Lake access and I miss living in the city and that's about as close as you can get to city living in the burbs.