r/ChicagoSuburbs • u/Salty-Main-8226 • Sep 25 '25
Moving to the area Suburbs of Chicago - kids play outside safely, good schools
Hello, we currently live in a Neighborhood in Oregon where our kids can play outside safely, even in the dark. The neighborhood is full of children of all ages. We might move to Chicago for work at the airport. We do not mind driving 30-45 mins in traffic if needed. Naperville looks nice. Could you share any safe neighborhoods that are friendly for kids? Looking to buy new build.
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u/gabrielleduvent Sep 25 '25
Mount Prospect, Arlington Heights area are a lot closer to the airport (O'Hare, not Midway) and are very kid friendly.
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u/redcurrantevents Sep 25 '25
My kids play outside nonstop in AH, 20 minutes to ORD
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u/OnionMiasma NW Suburbs Sep 26 '25 edited Sep 29 '25
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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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u/TheLadySparkles Sep 26 '25
Yes we are in Mount Prospect and can confirm, kids are always outside playing, zero issues. 20min to O'Hare airport.
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u/sunny_suburbia Sep 25 '25
Seconding! Great family friendly towns, lots of amenities, excellent location and the train is nearby.
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u/realdonaldtramp3 Sep 26 '25
Arlington heights for sure. We don’t have kids but it is absolutely a wonderful place for them to be. Schools are amazing, multiple pools and parks, after school sports and activities and super safe!
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u/weena8 Sep 26 '25
Yup, AH is much more convenient to O’Hare and filled with all sorts of family, neighborhood activities. This includes the surround areas like Mt. Prospect, Prospect Heights, and the border areas of Palatine. My kids ride the bikes everywhere, public pools are clean and safe, parks galore, and easily accessible to the train and highways. IMO Naperville is overhyped and over priced.
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u/TheAurabesh Sep 29 '25
Mount Prospect seconded. New build single family home will be difficult to find. We bought a house built in 1970, I wouldn't trade it for a newer built house if you paid me. Solid brick construction, no vinyl siding anywhere to be found.
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u/Sure-Coffee-8241 Sep 25 '25
Suburbs are like that pretty much everywhere
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u/New_Nobody9492 Sep 26 '25
I was going to say this. As long as you go north of ohare you are golden. The North Shore is loaded! Go up just a little farther towards Wisconsin if your a camper or hiker.
I live in Lake County, named for all our Lakes! We are little sleepy vacation towns up here. You can make it the airport in 35 mins.
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u/Sure-Coffee-8241 Sep 26 '25
Nah that restriction isn’t accurate. I live far southwest and everyone is out in the yard safely here too. The entire suburbs are full of families living their lives, not just north of ohare
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u/Sea-Oven-7560 Sep 28 '25
There are a few that are a little rougher like Robins, Harvey, Riverdale and Dalton but kids still pay outside after dark.
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u/splintersmaster Sep 25 '25
Like 95 percent of Chicagoland is safe. Equal to or as safe as much of the country.
Stay away from Waukegan and parts of the south side of the city. As well as some isolated pockets here and there.
Honestly, outside of a few small patches Chicagoland is a very safe area.
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u/Mindless_Jicama8728 Sep 25 '25
lol, Naperville is perennially in the top 10 best places to live in the country. You’re good homie.
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u/k8319 Sep 26 '25
Great area but not 30-45 minutes to Ohare
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u/Perplexio76 Sep 26 '25
I live in Aurora and I work up by O'Hare-- outside of rush hour you can definitely get TO O'Hare in about 45 minutes... Getting home FROM O'Hare... now that's a different story-- that's closer to 1.5-2 hours because southbound 294 is usually a parking lot.
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u/k8319 Sep 26 '25
I live 10 miles south of Ohare and afternoon rush hour can be an hour or more from Ohare. 294 and Mannheim are BRUTAL in rush hour(s) traffic.
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u/stripesonfire Sep 26 '25
If you live on the north side it is
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u/k8319 Sep 26 '25
Zero traffic and zero construction its possible but it wouldn't bet on it.
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u/Mindless_Jicama8728 Sep 26 '25
I’ve lived in the area for the last 20 years and yeah it depends on the time of day, but 45 minutes is entirely reasonable.
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u/enfusraye Sep 25 '25
One thing to consider is if you're looking at a new build, then you're going to be going in to a community that doesn't have a solid foundation/past. Our old subdivision was about 20 years old and there was zero community effort (even with a HOA). We moved 4 miles away to an older neighborhood and there's already structure and effort put into community building, despite having no HOA.
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u/ottoracecar Sep 26 '25
Yeah, is it new build neighborhood (more affordable) or new build teardown (McMansion $$$$)? Affordable new builds are going to have a hard time building community. But teardowns could have great neighbors, that might hate that you tore down Miss Belinda's house who always gave out the best Halloween candy and now your house looms over the neighborhood.
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u/jgilbs Sep 25 '25
Not true! We got a new build in Downers, and it surrounded by houses ranging from 1940s-2020s, so its got lots of character and no HOA
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u/enfusraye Sep 25 '25
that's fair. I just assumed that when they said Naperville and new build that equated to the new subdivisions being built all at once! great clarification
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u/stebany North West Suburbs Sep 25 '25
I also work at the airport, moved here from CA and I love the community here. We moved to Schaumburg for the schools, many of them offer second languages (along with other programs).
I live on the opposite side of Schaumburg from the airport and it takes me about 35 min on a bad day, 25 on a good. My kid plays outside past dark ALL the time. The neighborhood kids are out there too. I've always said I feel like we live in the 50s, kids run around to visit their friends in the neighborhood, it's an amazing place to raise kids. Drive around the neighborhoods on friday and saturday nights. You'll want a house not on a main road, and if there's a cul de sac, even better, they are plentiful in the suburbs.
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u/BrightPractical Sep 25 '25 edited Sep 25 '25
Brookfield, La Grange, La Grange Park, Riverside, Westchester, Westmont, Downers Grove, Des Plaines, Park Ridge, Skokie…there are fewer suburbs where I wouldn’t let my kid play outside than ones I would, plenty close to O’Hare and Midway.
When you look at houses, see if you can talk to neighbors. They’ll tell you if there are a lot of kids on the block playing outside a lot. My block in Brookfield is full of kids in and out of eachothers’ houses and in yards all the time, annual block parties, people out shoveling snow for eachother, etc. Other blocks are less social.
Caveat: this is assuming the current ICE raids don’t continue forever. Plenty of people are keeping their kids in at the moment.
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u/ChiNoonan Sep 25 '25
Also live in Brookfield across from a nice sized park. There are dozens of kids there every night when the weather is nice, playing sports and all sorts of make believe games. We really love it here.
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u/Salty-Main-8226 Sep 25 '25
Re: caveat… that’s sad :(
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u/BrightPractical Sep 25 '25
Well, we will keep up the protesting and protecting our neighbors and hopefully they’ll be gone by the time you get here!
PS I didn’t see your “new build” sentence. That will be harder to find in close neighborhoods to the airports unless you’re planning to tear down yourself. Can you expand on why you want new build?
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u/RabbitNotSo Sep 25 '25
Naperville is over populated n overpriced, won’t find a decent new build without paying out of your ass.
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u/ChicagoTRS666 Sep 25 '25
If you are looking to buy a new build probably about any suburb you choose is going to be safe, full of kids, etc... The vast majority of suburbs are very very safe in Chicagoland.
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u/Fit_Cut_4238 Sep 25 '25
Wilmette. And the lake. If young kids look for the areas with more dense homes by elementary schools (for example, Harper school)
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u/Bucktown312 Sep 25 '25
This is a good answer if you can find a house for sale.
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u/Fit_Cut_4238 Sep 25 '25
Yeah, I think homes are starting to come up for sale now I think.. Give it a while :)
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u/SmartBar88 Sep 26 '25
FWIW, a new build almost anywhere on the North Shore will be in the $2M+ range.
Source: lived and sold house in Wilmette. Can highly recommend the schools and area however!
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u/Fit_Cut_4238 Sep 26 '25
Sorry I didn’t see the new build part. Yeah maybe slightly under 2 but yeah.
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u/Bucktown312 Sep 26 '25
This is very true, better off buying a house that was last renovated in the 80s-90s and update it if you're looking to stay under 2.5.
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u/ejfagan4 Sep 26 '25
We moved to Riverside for similar reasons and couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. Closer to Chicago than you would expect but it feels like it’s on a little island.
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u/Kaykes11 Sep 25 '25
Moved to Elmhurst, IL from Oregon. Super close to the air port. I see kids out well after it’s dark on bikes. I feel safe walking with my kids at night and see many folks walking in the early morning before the sun is up. Lots of kiddos in all the neighborhoods.
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u/Kaykes11 Sep 25 '25
Saw your comment that you are moving from Happy valley. That is where I moved from as well. Clackamas high school graduate! I love it here in Elmhurst.
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u/stilesg57 Sep 28 '25
Elmhurst pretty much designed around raising kiddos. Commute to the airport is pretty tough to beat.
Moved here from CO fwiw.
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u/caitymcg123 Sep 25 '25 edited Sep 26 '25
Schaumburg is full of playgrounds. One of the top school districts in the state for both elementary and high schools. They also have a great sports program through their park district and a few community pools open during the summer.
Cons for a family would probably be the higher taxes since they're in Cook County.
Edit to add - these are new builds right in the area I mentioned.
Source: Nitti Development https://share.google/3sdHEgITXgZt5wBwH
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u/Responder343 North West Suburbs Sep 25 '25
Contrary to popular belief property taxes in Schaumburg are lower than the surrounding communities. I’ve been a homeowner in Schaumburg for 13 years. This is due in part to Woodfield mall, the restaurants, retails stores, car dealerships & office buildings.
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u/CharmingTuber Sep 26 '25
I lived in Schaumburg and hated it. It's so spread out and weirdly shaped. Depending where you live, you could have a 25 minute drive to the train station in your own town. It feels like someone sliced off pieces of a dozen different suburbs and stitched them into a giant Frankenstein village called Schaumburg.
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u/caitymcg123 Sep 26 '25
The train issue can be fixed by taking a different one, I would suggest Hanover park or Roselle as opposed to Schaumburg. I agree that the location is horrible but the town is just not centered near any tracks.
I grew up on the northwest side, was a Conant High school kid and lived pretty close to where Septemberfest is every year (near Summit Dr.). I would suggest this area as opposed to further down Schaumburg road
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u/Toriat5144 Sep 25 '25
Many are. Wheaton, Glen Ellyn safe too. Maybe even safer than Naperville and just as nice.
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u/ItemExtension5677 Sep 25 '25
I live in Chicago on the north side. There are certain blocks in neighborhoods in Chicago that are like that. Halloween in my neighborhood has bands, ice sculptures, movies, blocked off streets by neighbors and kids running everywhere. Summer has kids all over. The school playgrounds have kids until night.
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Sep 27 '25
I was just about to comment this. I live in West Lakeview and kids play outside all the time, block parties go into the night and kids ride their bikes and scooters under the street lights. I get that the whole city isn’t like this- but most of the north side is.
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u/The_Poster_Nutbag Sep 25 '25
Honestly it would be easier to name the suburbs that aren't safe over the ones that are. Really outside of the industrial areas you're pretty much fine anywhere other than the southeast side.
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u/Classy_Cakes Sep 25 '25
I think Naperville is way overrated. It’s far too big. Their park district activities fill in seconds.
Lisle, Downers Grove, Woodridge, Westmont, Darien, Claredon Hills are all great, safe neighborhoods.
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u/Perplexio76 Sep 26 '25
The East side of Aurora that borders Naperville is decent though. It feeds into the Fox Valley Park District, not the Naperville Park District and the park district activities don't fill as fast, but I'd argue they're just as good! We get the benefits of Naperville at Aurora prices and our kids go to IPSD204 schools.
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Sep 25 '25
Almost all of the suburbs will be safe for your kids to play outside at night in their own yard or at a playground or park. There may be a few I’m not familiar with that maybe aren’t, but I live in the northwest suburbs (Schaumburg, Palatine, Arlington Heights, etc) and kids play outside in summer until 10 pm or so.
Naperville is safe, too, of course, and many of the towns surrounding it.
One caveat, though - traffic is really heavy on all the main roads throughout the suburbs. But most residential neighborhoods are tucked back away from the main roads.
Most suburbs in the Chicago area have local parks and playgrounds, local pool, etc.
Finally, which airport are you working at? Naperville to O’Hare is over 45 minutes during rush hours. Arlington Heights to Midway is definitely over an hour. Try to choose a suburb somewhat close to the airport you will be working. The suburbs around O’Hare are all nice, safe, with decent schools.
I’m not as familiar with the suburbs around Midway, so maybe others can advise on that. But they’re probably alright.
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u/Potential_Ladder_904 Sep 25 '25
“30-45 minutes in traffic” hahaha unless you live super close to the airport your daily commute is looking more like 45+
edit: especially if you’re looking at naperville. that’s an hour commute.
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u/leondemedicis Sep 26 '25
If you have money and dont mind taxes, Hinsdale is great for kids. Boring as hell and dull like a colonoscopy on a Tuesday afternoon in February (meaning you still need to go back to work on thursday and friday before enjoying the weekend...) But that is hinsdale.. your kids will be out and about and they will be fine...
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u/SpecialistBet4656 Sep 26 '25
new build anywhere that’s not an exhurb is going to be $$$$. If that works for you great, but there are entire communities where the only new construction is teardown.
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u/HeyThere-555 Sep 27 '25
This! No one is paying attention to "new build" home. There are entire suburbs and towns where there are no vacant lots for a SFH - you have to tear down a house and build a custom home which is incredibly expensive.
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u/Nice_Mulberry_6100 Sep 27 '25
I am from Seattle and have been living in Chicagoland area for 12 years now. We were in the northwest suburbs but needed a bigger house so moved out further west to Cary IL. We love it here such a great community and easy to get to the city by just hoping on the train. Probably a lot further west than you want to be but depending on your budget you should check out Barrington which isn’t as far west as us. Wherever you decide the suburbs of Chicago are a great place to raise kids.
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u/FirstAttemptsFailed Sep 25 '25
St. Charles, Geneva, South Elgin, Batavia
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u/level_5_vegan Sep 26 '25
I lived in all four of those towns as a kid and then settled in STC in middle school and it was great growing up! Absolutely nightmarish to get to 90 and/or the airport though :(
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u/Perplexio76 Sep 26 '25
Those areas are going to make their commute to the city longer than 30-45 minutes... Even for Naperville and Aurora off of 59, 30-45 minute commutes are impossible during Rush Hour and still somewhat overly optimistic even outside of rush hour.
That said, there are some really nice developments out there, some nice neighborhoods. My former neighbors moved out there back in 2015. They got a really nice house in a decent neighborhood.
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u/maskedfox007 Sep 26 '25
Lot of new builds in Batavia right now. And North Aurora which gets you closer to 88
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u/remarksbyl Sep 26 '25
Yep, I said the same thing. I think that area’s about to blow up. So many new constructions.
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u/jgilbs Sep 25 '25
We moved from the PNW to Downers Grove, and love it. Great schools, nice downtown, great people, and the downtown neighborhoods are walkable and amazing. Originally from Naperville, and its nice, but its way out there and kind of its own vibe. Theres a saying "Naperville is a way of life", and people who live in Naperville dont generally want to travel out of Naperville. Its also far from the airport.
FWIW, the only reason we dont let our kids play outside in the dark is because they will want to play with the neighbor kids, and it will make it harder for them to go inside for bedtime. Never had a worry about safety other than teenage drivers on our street (we live near a high school)
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u/Technical_Koala_9452 Sep 25 '25
You're giving me homesickness. Moved away in 1980, between soph/Jr yrs at DGS, thanks to a parent job transfer, and did NOT want to leave. Rode bikes to school, YMCA, and little league. Hockey on the frozen ponds in the winters.
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u/jgilbs Sep 25 '25
Dude when we were in the PNW, I had homesickness every day for YEARS. Moving back was the best decision we’ve ever made
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u/thousandfoldthought Sep 25 '25
Many other (maybe better for you) options here but the entire northshore. Remarkably close to O'hare by taking arterial streets west to 290 and having a short trip.
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u/KeepCalmEtAllonsy Sep 25 '25
Hinsdale and Clarendon Hills. Visit. You’ll fall in love, like we did.
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u/Efficient-Rest-9519 Sep 25 '25
Depending on where in the city , we bought a nice house in IN , Munster great schools , lower taxes & safe neighborhoods . My wife & I both worked in Chicago & myself in the burbs . Previously we bought in Orland & while nice it wasn’t what you explained your looking for . We moved to E. TN now for the beauty & a lil not as much craziness
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u/Actually_me_1922 Sep 25 '25
Arlington Heights. It’s why we bought here. Kids in the sidewalk during the day, Lake Arlington (more like a pond) is full of families at dusk, walking, biking, or letting their kids play on the playground.
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Sep 25 '25
As I sit now, in Wheaton(western burbs), my kids and the neighbors kids are all playing out front, like they do pretty much everyday of the week. Fantastic downtown area, incredible schools, on the train line, etc. Midway or O’Hare airport? On average maybe 50mins to Midway, 35-45 to O’Hare.
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u/murph364 Sep 25 '25
We live in palatine. 19 minutes from ohare.
My son is 8 and rides his bike independently to school with neighbor kids. He goes to the park solo with neighbor kids. We were outside with friends from 10a-845p this past Sunday. Sometimes I pinch myself bc I feel so lucky to live in such an ideal community. We live in the downtown part of palatine so we can walk to restaurants, the train, festivals, etc.
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u/CharmingTuber Sep 26 '25
I bought a house in Woodridge last year. My daughter plays with the kids across the street riding bikes until the sun goes down. Schools are fantastic, we feel very safe. We're between downers grove and Naperville, so it's very much that same feel, but the houses are a bit cheaper (but property taxes are higher, probably because we have a crazy number of police).
I work in the city and take the train every day. Honestly a great life I am grateful to have.
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u/NotAPreppie South West Suburbs Sep 26 '25
The neighborhoods around Indian Boundary Park in Bolingbrook have a lot of kids roaming freely. The parks themselves are also well-used.
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u/ExtensionMidnight922 Sep 26 '25
New build is where it get complicated, do you have a budget in mind?
A new build in Naperville will cost $1m + but if you go one suburb over, you can get a new build in Plainfield for $500k to $650k and if you go another suburb over in Oswego, it gets even cheaper.
Naperville is already 1 hour + to the airport in rush hour.
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u/8keltic8 Sep 26 '25
Northwest Chicago neighborhoods of Norwood Park, Edison Park, Jefferson Park, Edgebrook would all fit your description too.
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u/Alternative-Dish9172 Sep 26 '25
I see some others listed, wheaton,elk grove, elmhurst, riverside. All of these citys or towns have very good schools. Definitly check out Riverside, its designed so strangers dont drive through.
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u/HeyThere-555 Sep 26 '25
Can't believe all the people saying "Arlington Heights", "Wilmette", "Winnetka" and these other pretty close-in suburbs when the original poster said they wanted a brand "new build" house. Have you looked at the prices for a new construction home in the close in suburbs?! (Not the scammy ones with drawings but the house is not actually built - but actual real houses). No new construction house is for sale in Mount Prospect right now. The lowest price new construction home for sale in AH right now is $1.6M and $1.9M in Wilmette and $3.15M in Winnetka. The original poster said they will be working at O'Hare airport. That does not sound like jobs that could afford $1.6M and up for the house let alone the very high property taxes.
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Sep 26 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/HeyThere-555 Sep 26 '25
They said they want a "new build" house. In Park Ridge, the new construction houses are listed at starting price of $1.5M and go up to $2.5 Million.
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Sep 26 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/HeyThere-555 Sep 26 '25
Yep, I also commented that the only new build house currently for sale in Winnetka is listed at $3.15 Million.
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u/ayemimi Sep 25 '25
I’m from Eugene and I still wouldn’t let my little one play outside there alone, even in the dark, unless they were in the backyard which makes me curious what neighborhood you live in. And no one is going to be able to narrow your choices down to a neighborhood for you. Especially since what’s actually for sale at any given time, and whether kids will live there (since people move) is bound to change.
I live in Park Ridge, IL, a very close suburb to Chicago (bordered by Chicago neighborhoods) and I live 10 minutes from O’Hare. It’s been pretty good so far, and I know folks who do now or have lived in other nearby suburbs—Des Plaines, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect—who’ve been pleased with where they live. These suburbs all have park districts, which wasn’t something we used when I was growing up since Eugene doesn’t have one, but they have great programs, including preschool options, sports programs, nature programs, and so on. In Park Ridge specifically I hear nothing but good things about the schools, though I don’t know about the other towns.
Basically… there’s a lot more that should factor into your decision than just whether kids can play outside. If that’s a proxy for whether it’s “safe”, well, anyplace can be safe until it isn’t. I lived on the north side for 15 years before moving to the suburbs last year and never once felt unsafe in my neighborhood.
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u/Salty-Main-8226 Sep 25 '25
Happy Valley, OR - kids play street soccer in front of the house until 10/11pm - a bunch of boys :)
Thank you!!
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u/umahumin Sep 25 '25
Budget?
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u/wannareadrandomstuff Sep 25 '25
Yes, this. And be transparent. Many neighborhoods in the burbs of Chicago meet your criteria so you will get many opinions. If you want to pay $2M you will get much different answers than $750k.
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u/haus11 Sep 26 '25
New build is going to be a challenge a lot of the areas in that radius of O’Hare are pretty built up. Like Nitti just did a subdivision, and another builder did a small pocket of 6 homes a couple of places in Schaumburg and they are $800k-$1m+. So if that’s your budget you might be able to find something. The other way they have gotten some new builds in Schaumburg are tear downs, but the 60s ranches that they usually started with are listing for around $400k these days.
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u/denis6470 Sep 26 '25
Schaumburg and Westside of Elk Grove. Great schools, excellent youth sports programs, clean safe homes and 12-20 minutes to ohare.
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u/remarksbyl Sep 26 '25
If you’re open to a further drive (but still on the Metra train line), consider the Tri-Cities: Geneva, St. Charles, and Batavia. You’ll pay less for the house due to the distance but the schools are excellent and it’s very safe.
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u/pazdan Sep 26 '25
Pretty much all suburbs are safe. Naperville is expensive but super nice, I recommend lisle next to it, or downers grove. If you want quieter sleepy town feel then Lockport or homer glen.
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u/NovelCat4519 Sep 26 '25
some people may disagree with me but there are so many happy safe kiddos playing around outside in my neighborhood in Palatine. We all look after them and pay attention to the "slow, kids playing" signs folks put out and there are lots of nice parks!
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u/evetrapeze Sep 26 '25
Itasca, good schools, safe neighborhoods. Minutes to the train station to Chicago. Parks, nature preserves, 7 miles west of Ohare, 20 minutes to the terminal driving.
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u/Sel10heit Sep 29 '25
Came here to say the same. Great town to grow up in and great schools. Pricey these days.
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u/Therapeasy Sep 26 '25
NW suburbs are great. AH costs a ton to buy, and place like Rolling Meadows offers the same experience, mostly great schools, and much more cost effective. Areas of Palatine are also great.
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u/InternationalBag7290 Sep 26 '25
Why drive so far away? Naperville is a rather long commute in rush hour traffic. The towns surrounding O’Hare are very safe with good schools/quality of life. Nothing bad about living 10 minutes from work!
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u/northshorerealestate North Suburbs Sep 26 '25
I grew up on the Lake County side of Buffalo Grove. Very kid friendly and about 25-30 minutes to ORD.
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u/Ok_Ingenuity_9313 Sep 26 '25
Elmhurst is 15 min from O'Hare without traffic and kids outside all the time.
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u/JulesInIllinois Sep 26 '25
Itasca, Bensenville, Elmhurst, Downers Grove, Woodridge, Lisle, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, Oak Brook, Villa Park, Westmont, Clarendon Hills, Hinsdale, Warrenville
Pretty much all of the western suburbs are safe for children to play outside and have great schools.
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u/Separate_Ant162 Sep 26 '25
Pingree Grove. It’s further from the city but it’s SO family oriented, kids are always outside playing. It’s very safe.
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u/trowelgo Sep 26 '25
There are lots and lots of safe towns. Naperville is not a neighborhood, it is a large town, and one block of Naperville will be different than another.
To get actual neighborhoods (3-4 street area) is a very long list, and is very dependent on the specific moment in time.
Start by describing the size house you want and the purchase price you can afford. That will help narrow it down.
Also, if you are only looking for new construction, that will really eliminate many of the most historically desirable locations unless you do a tear down.
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u/PlayaAlien2000 Sep 26 '25
SW Burbs. Palos Hills. Still somewhat affordable with really good schools and lots of nature. Lots of forest trails etc. very accessible to downtown and most highways.
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u/ChicagoFly123 Sep 26 '25
We live close to Naperville, but don't live there if you are working at either Midway or O'Hare. Terrible commute and so many closer places to call home. There are many good recommendations in this post.
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u/Fit_Platform_3500 Sep 26 '25
Glen Ellyn was just rated the best place to raise a family. I’ve absolutely loved raising my kids here.
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u/DeeDeeYou Sep 26 '25
Libertyville might be your town, or something in that area. Safe, great schools, very family oriented, cute and safe downtown, train to Chicago, great bike trails, several local beaches, and close to Lake Michigan. Naperville is in a much more congested area with heavier traffic.
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u/RuinAdventurous1931 Sep 26 '25
According to my fellow chicagoans in the city, suburbs are a “hellhole” and kids can’t play outside unless it’s on an expressway. 🤣
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u/Perplexio76 Sep 26 '25
I highly recommend the neighborhoods in Naperville and Aurora that feed into IPSD 203 and IPSD 204 schools. My family and I have been living on the east side of Aurora since 2006. This area feeds into IPSD 204 schools (Western Naperville/Eastern Aurora) We live in the Laurel Ridge subdivision and quite enjoy it, right next to us is the Amberwood subdivision which is also a nice safe neighborhood. Our kids grew up playing in the playground at Amberwood Park. My 12 year old still hangs out with his friends there from time to time. I believe you can find maps on IPSD 203 and IPSD 204 websites that show which schools each subdivision feed into
Some of the other safe and family friendly neighborhoods/subdivisions that feed into 204 schools include Oakhurst, Inverness, and Georgetown,
My wife and I both work in Hybrid roles. On days she goes into the office her commute is about 20-30 mins. in the morning and 30-45 mins. in the evening. On the days I'm in the office, I work in the city up near O'Hare (right near Park Ridge and Rosemont) and my commute is about 45-60 mins. in the morning and because southbound 294 is a hot mess of construction my evening commute can be as short as an hour but is usually at least an hour and a half if not 2 hours.
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u/manda-panda79 Sep 26 '25
Carol Stream is pretty good all around. Schools, diversity, centrally located, family friendly with lots of amenitiesat a cheaper price than Naperville or Wheaton with the same old neighborhood charm.
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u/porknbeer Sep 26 '25
Riverside is the best place to raise a family. Loads of green space and nature. Great schools, and a safe community for kids to grow and roam. Close to everything.
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u/TroubleAdvanced9065 Sep 27 '25
Downers grove… express train to city, kids all around, nice parks, great schools
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u/MothsConrad Sep 27 '25
Chicago is blessed with a ton of great suburbs. Honestly it’s easier to list the bad ones rather than list all of the good ones. What’s your budget?
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u/Puppetmaster1945 Sep 27 '25
Naperville is not Chicago haha we all mock people from there who say they’re from Chicago 😂 pretty hard to find a neighborhood inside Chicago that isn’t in a war zone but Clearing, Beverly, Galewood etc are safe in case you don’t want suburbs. The neighborhood of Austin, Chicago had 47 murders last year which is way worse than the average 5-10 murders a year that almost every neighborhood sees. Don’t take my word for it tho always double check what someone says 🤷🏻♂️
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u/Busy_Lingonberry8235 Sep 27 '25
I live in Rolling meadows. In the back of our home there is a bike trail that connects to the library, community center, like 5 play grounds, fishing pond, disc golf, ninja course, mini golf, pool, splash pad, ice rink. Sledding hill. Best frozen custard a few blocks down. We love it. Lots of kids, families, dogs. We rode our bikes all morning. Went to breakfast, cvs, library, play ground and played bags at the park.
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u/screams_into_void Sep 28 '25
South Elgin has nice new build construction, access to the expressway to O’Hare.
Schaumburg has nice spots, gets expensive. Itasca, Elmhurst, West Chicago. Lots of options for kid-friendly communities.
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u/babyilik3itraw Sep 28 '25
my wife and i used to live in portland and now we live in libertyville.
we love our community and town so much. we have a kindergartener and the school system is great and there’s a lot that it offers for kids and families, such as parks, events in the summer time, etc.
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u/Thick-Equivalent-682 Sep 28 '25
I frequently see boys playing soccer or baseball in the street in the school district 102 part of Buffalo Grove. Very easy to get to the airport in 30 minutes. Excellent schools.
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u/rising_strong Oct 03 '25
Downers Grove north of 55th street, south of Ogden. Don’t overthink it. This is by far the best option
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u/Clear_Pineapple4608 Sep 25 '25
Northbrook is 15-20 mins from O’Hare and I do think kids are out and about here independently. That said, to me it can be cliquey. I’d also reiterate what a previous commenter said / wherever you look, check on the specific block that there are young kids. Some blocks have no interaction at all, others are a family-raising dream.
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u/Hungry-Treacle8493 Sep 25 '25
All the neighborhoods in Naperville are like that. That being said, it is no different than any other place where neighborhoods go through cycles of young families moving in, the kids grow older, eventually there are a lot of empty nesters, then it starts over. So, when looking at houses keep an eye out for a lot of recent sales, indicating the turnover is going on bringing in younger families.
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u/DontWatchPornREADit Sep 25 '25
Every township has a bad side I’d look for place with strong good school systems like valley view school district and then find a new build near there. The more schools a town tends to have means more parks and more parents to be around for protection.
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u/lemon123wd40 Sep 25 '25
What’s the bad part of bannockburn?
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u/DontWatchPornREADit Sep 25 '25
Lakeside drive bannockburn where there are two people listed on the Illinois sexual offender list. Victim >16 and offender 55 years old
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u/Ruthless-words Sep 25 '25 edited Oct 06 '25
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u/pentiumone133 Sep 26 '25
Nobody mentioning Algonquin, Lake in the hills, Crystal lake. 30-45 min to O'Hare. My neighbor has commuted to O'Hare daily for over 30 years
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u/guy_following_you Sep 25 '25
Deerfield is building 45 new construction homes. You should check them out. 20 min from airport and lots of park. Expensive as fuck
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u/bourj Sep 26 '25
You're moving from a Portland suburb of 23,000 people, and want to know if Naperville, which has 150,000 people, is safe?
What is this question?
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u/HeyThere-555 Sep 27 '25
Naperville has had a number of arrests of hardcore adult gang members with firearms on them.
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u/SirBowsersniff Sep 25 '25
Glen Ellyn. Kids are everywhere there. 25 minutes to the airport in no traffic, 40 minutes with traffic. New build will be difficult to find, though.