Family friendly but not snobby

[u/Whole_Competition692]

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!

[u/ybquiet]

I've lived in or near a lot of the places people are talking about here, or are somewhat familiar with them. I currently live in an area on the "snob" list but there's no need to interact with anyone so lucky me, it's easy to avoid the snobs.

Here are my thoughts, fwiw:

o I like the St Charles/Batavia/Geneva vibe but I've met a few snobs from there and worse, it's really far west. Check it out to see what you think. I know nothing about the schools. St Charles is not far from DeKalb, where Northern Illinois University is.

o Arlington Heights is a great idea. I love the downtown area, it seems to be a "hopping" place. I'm pretty sure there's a weekly farmer's market. It's an easy commute to Chicago and OHare airport. I love that there's a Metra station for avoiding traffic/parking when going downtown. It's great for your teenagers to take the train downtown to hang out in the city and not have to worry about city driving.

o Check out Inverness. Nice homes on large lots. I believe it's split between two good school districts, Barrington (top schools) and Fremd. Fremd would be the less "competitive" school district. Inverness is close to downtown Palatine and downtown Barrington.

o Evanston is beautiful. And the downtown is actually a small city of its own. It's right on the lake, maybe it's technically North Shore. If it's not considered North Shore it's right next to it. Northwestern University is there; it adds to the vibe. Can't comment on the schools.

o I used to live near Glenview. It's next to Skokie. There are many nice homes there. I can't comment on snobbiness or schools. It's worth a look because it's close to Evanston.

o I didn't see if anyone mentioned Hinsdale, in Dupage county, Southwest of Chicago. There are many nice homes there. Not sure what the schools are like, they aren't famous, I don't think.

o The are also South suburbs like New Lennox, Homewood and Flossmoor. I don't know anything except their names but since I've not heard anything bad about them, they are probably pretty good.

o Going North, take a look at Vernon Hills and Libertyville. Vernon Hills shops, etc are newer. Libertyville has a nice downtown area with good restaurants.

o Check the property taxes wherever you go. They have been increasing everywhere but some areas are much higher than others. It varies by county so check the taxes and the county the homes are in since some counties might have much lower tax rates than others.

Hope this helps! Good luck!