What is Wheaton like? (Chicago, Naperville: best city, furlow, rent)

[gracewithfire]

Hi. I'm new here. I've surfed the web for Wheaton, Illinois, but aside from the usual "official" descriptions, I'd like to know people's descriptions of Wheaton from their own personal experiences.

Also, what is the average cost of living in Wheaton? And which are the best recommended schools for children aged 14, 9 and 7?

Thank you.

[HOWELL_STREET]

Dear Friend:

I am a retired senior citizen and have lived in Wheaton since 1966. Since I no longer have kids in the Wheaton grade school system, I cannot specifically talk about the Wheaton schools. Other than they are very good schools.
Although there are new subdivision exceptions within the city limits of Wheaton, the majority of single homes are quite pricey. Many of them are owned by medical doctors and professional oriented people. Once again, there are exceptions within the newer subdivisions. For a brand new house, expect to pay from $500K to one million dollars. However, there are always hidden costs. On such a new house, the property taxes will vary from about $8K to around $15K per house per year. A building permit for a new house now costs $4K per house. Our gasoline prices are high but not as high as inside the Chicago city limits. Wheaton has the METRA UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD WEST LINE that goes from the city of Chicago out to Elburn, IL. Please ask more specific questions if you need to.

Carter Glass

[Steve-o]

I chose "highly recommended" for many reasons. Its just a great town, but the COL is high indeed. Naperville is another great choice for kids, winning a "best city to raise kids in" award (of all USA cities).

[Drover]

DuPage County has the highest median property values of any county in Illinois, and Wheaton is dead-smack in the middle of DuPage County. It's no Glencoe or Kenilworth, but nonetheles, if you wanna live there, you gotta pay. Very nice historic old homes around the center of town, charming downtown area too. Overall, nice place.

[gracewithfire]

Thank you for the quick first responses, Carter, Steve and Drover. I have now a better idea.

For a single adult with 3 kids renting a house and with a car, how much would you estimate monthly household expenses would be?

I am looking forward to more replies.

Best and many blessings,
Jeanette

[Drover]

I'm not going to touch that one. Too many variables to really provide an accurate, specific answer. Sorry.

[gracewithfire]

I would appreciate a ballpark figure for the following:

Rent
Food
Utilities
Car gasoline

Let's say if I bring $30,000 with me, how long would that last me before I need to start having income again?

I'm looking at how long it would take me and my kids to adjust and not be pressured by my having to find a job instantly, you see.

Again, thanks.

[HOWELL_STREET]

The 'OP' person has asked some very tough questions. Since you are from the Phillipines, I wonder if you are a missionary home on furlow? If that is true, then there are organizations that can give you assistance. Also, if you are a retired missionary, or one on a Sabbatical leave, then why not consider an organization called "Bethany Fellowship"? They are located in Bloomington, Minnesota and very close to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Bethany Fellowship has temporary missionary housing to help families to become re-acclamated into the current U.S. economy.
Everything is expensive in the Wheaton, Illinois area. However, to save on food, one should grocery shop at stores known as Aldi's. Aldi's is a worldwide system actually headquartered in Batavia, Illinois. It is a warehouse store where one can save substantial amounts of money with groceries. Rent is high in Wheaton and I could only make a guess at $1K per month and up. But my guess may be outdated since I am not sure. Gasoline is currently about $3.00 to $3.29 per gallon. It seems to oscillate in price from day to day... usually increasing very quickly but then slowly coming down. At one time, there were many religious publishing companies associated with Wheaton. We still have Tyndale Publications (Carol Stream, IL). We have Youth For Christ and Wheaton College. In addition, there is a Christian grammar school and a Christian academy. So perhaps you can start to understand how complex it is to answer your questions. Perhaps for a better understanding, we can take your specific questions one at a time? 'Hope this helps you, somewhat. That's all for now until you have other questions. Of course, I will be happy to answer as best as I can.

Carter Glass

[gracewithfire]

Thanks, Carter. No I'm not a missionary. : ) I'm just really exploring how it would be like to move and live there, for very personal reasons. And it has to be Wheaton now, from the survey results! : )

Don't worry about whether I'd find it too expensive... I'd just like straightforward answers to my questions.

So, Rent would be around $1000. How about food for a month? Utilities? Maybe base it on your own household's use (please indicate how many members of the household there are) and I'll just figure it out from there...

And how many months would $30,000 take me to use it all up just on living expenses? 2, 3, 6? : )

Again, thanks for taking the time and effort to explain.

[HOWELL_STREET]

Since my wife and are retired and since I still support two unemployed adult children, it is almost impossible for me to relate our abnormal expenses to that of yours. I would assume that you are a single person. If a single person, it is my guess that if you were careful with your expenditures, you could actually live on $30K for a long time. The greatest expenditures would be your housing, utilities, food and transportation. However, if public transportation to the city of Chicago is soley used, then one could eliminate the use of an automobile - - for a great percentage of the time. So it is difficult for me to place my experiences into your unique situation. That is why I have to talk in generalities. I have mentioned a very interesting formula with some of my other threads. All people want the same things. Even you do, too. And that is what America is all about. A good town to live in, a good employment with good remuneration, a nice house and land that didn't cost too much, low crime, and good schools. Everybody tries to achieve the same things along these lines. So to 'get ahead' and save money, then choose one of the above parameters and do a 180 degree turn on at least one of them. In that manner, you won't be chasing everyone's 'dust' as the saying goes.

Best Regards,

Carter Glass