Or am I dreaming? (Chicago, Naperville: estate, landscaping, job)

[Momzo]

My husband is considering a job that is located in DuPage County. We could live in that county or in a neighboring one, but I don't want to subject him to a huge commute (we do that now, and don't want to make the same mistake again). We have no clue about the area at all, but I have read about Naperville and Wheaton and Arlington Heights on these forums. Since our youngest child is a teenager, we are most interested in excellent high schools (we would love a great Catholic hs), friendly people (because it will be difficult for our kids to leave their current friends), and a real downtown where we can walk around, go out to eat, etc. We are less interested in the cookie-cutter suburbs, but still want our teens to have good friends from school, fun things to do, and a decent commute. In short, we would love to find a place that has friendly people, personality, and a good quality of life.
Does anyone know anything about transferring into the Catholic high schools there? Is it impossible? Where we live now, there are waiting lists. So I may be asking for too much, but I thought I'd give it a try, anyway. Thank you for your help.

[Steve-o]

Naperville would be a fantastic choice. As would Geneva or St. Charles, but theyre in Kane County, right next door.

The main question is, how much do you have to spend on a house.

[Momzo]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Naperville would be a fantastic choice. As would Geneva or St. Charles, but theyre in Kane County, right next door.

The main question is, how much do you have to spend on a house.

Well, I guess a lot depends on whether we can sell our present house without lowering our price too much. Our house is supposedly worth around 500K. So, would we be able to find a comparably priced house in one of the towns you mentioned?

[GoingMobile]

Originally Posted by Momzo

Well, I guess a lot depends on whether we can sell our present house without lowering our price too much. Our house is supposedly worth around 500K. So, would we be able to find a comparably priced house in one of the towns you mentioned?

Most likely, but it will be quite "average" in features and appearance. Like anything real-estate, LOCATION is very important. The further you get from the hot spots (like the train-stop suburban downtowns and Chicago itself), the more affordable it becomes. Being within walking distance of a Metra station makes a house worth a lot more.

Within the Naperville area $500K should get you an average 4BR 2300 sq ft house on 1/4 acre with a 2 car garage, about a mile or two from downtown. Naperville is considered desirable because it has a nice downtown, excellent schools, and a large quantity of relatively well-built housing stock.

Out in rural Kane county $500K gets you a larger, newer house with a 3 car garage and some nicer landscaping. Geneva is pretty nice as well, but again it has the same issue of cost/location as any whistle-stop town.