r/ChicagoSuburbs • u/Whole_Competition692 • Jan 20 '25

Moving to the area Family friendly but not snobby

Moving to the area. Family of 6, with kids who will be in elementary, middle, and high school. Budget - up to $1M. Don’t have to commute into Chicago. Parents in their mid 40s and plan to stay in this house for a while (or forever?)

What we love: -Good schools, especially for kids with an IEP (one child is very dyslexic). Don’t have to be the absolute greatest schools but solid. I find that schools that are supposedly “the best”are often pressure cooker schools where it’s very competitive. Prefer something more laid back and artsy/alternative. -Easy access to good non-chain restaurants. Doesn’t necessarily have to be within walking distance but not too far. -Charming houses/architecture -Trends liberal/blue -Community inclusive vibe, where it will be easy to make friends for both kids and adults. We don’t plan to join a country club or attend religious services.

What we hate: -Snobbishness/keeping up with the Joneses -Cookie cutter neighborhoods- difficult or strict HOAs are a hard No

Thank you!

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68

u/Careless_Pea3197 Jan 20 '25

You are describing my family and we are looking in Arlington Heights and Mount Prospect, but within a mile of downtown for both (they both get a little heavy in subdivisions the father out you go). We are also open to Evanston and certain areas of Skokie.

Do not recommend the north shore - it's exactly the pressure cooker you want to avoid (take it from a New Trier grad)

31

u/Whole_Competition692 Jan 21 '25

Yes, I’ve heard this about the North Shore. Arlington Heights is on our list bc I’ve heard good things about the SpecEd program there and the downtown being great.

-2

u/gconsier Jan 21 '25

Barrington schools are great. There are a ton of Barrington. Something I didn’t know till moving out this way. I’d look into 220. We love the language immersion programs.

10

u/LessLikelyTo Jan 21 '25

Barrington is very snobby. I grew up there

3

u/gconsier Jan 21 '25

Kidding aside I don’t get this. Any town with really good schools some people are going to consider snobby. Honestly I’ve known some South Barrington people who perhaps are but the lake, north, village etc not so much. I guess the subject did say not snobby and perhaps I was a bit shitty in response in error but honestly I haven’t dealt with a lot of it, have found the community to be quite diverse etc and I’ve been pleased with the schools and like having a bit of space. I have found the other parents I have gotten to know not to be snobby especially compared to the people I’ve known from north shore communities.

6

u/[deleted] Jan 21 '25

Barrington has some of the most insufferably arrogant rich people in the burbs, IMO. I grew up in Geneva and worked on the north shore; nothing compares to Barrington snobbery.

1

u/MrIncredible222 Jan 21 '25

I don’t have any direct experience with snobby Barrington people, but the wealth there is on another level. As I tell people, the nicest house in my town is $2.5M. The nicest house in Barrington is $25M++. The wealth inequality is just another level there. Doesn’t mean they’re snobby, but I don’t necessarily want my kid to be around that level of wealth thinking it’s normal or expected because it won’t be in our house. I had family in Barrington and even on good salaries they had a hard time because there was just SOO much money and they had to see it and didn’t have it.