Moving to Wilmette! (Chicago, Evanston, Glenview: for sale, real estate, rentals)

[chet everett]

Our weather is highly variable -- summers can be nearly as hot as those on the Gulf Coast for a few days and sometimes our wintertime temperatures can dip as low as those in some arctic locations. That said our typical temperatures are not even as hot as St. Louis nor as cold as someplace like Buffalo NY. You can get by with just "normal" winter clothes like those availble from Land's End.

You ought to be able to find a find a family sized apartment or townhomes on our budget. Since you don't yet need to think about schools that gives you some flexibility but the fact is that there is a one-to-one relationship between income, greater safety and school quality -- all go up & down together.

Best bet may be to just draw a circle of about 10 -15 miles or so from the Coast Guard Station, maybe a little further up the tollway, and then decide what is the best trade-off for your budget in terms of distance / size / quality.

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by slicklorin

Thank you for all the information! From what other coasties have said, the Navy housing in Glenview does accept other branches. I will be looking to rent there since it'll cover our BAH. When I quickly browsed rental homes in the area, they all seemed WAY out of our price range so I would love to have housing available!

We only have one child who is still a baby so schools are not an issue at the moment. I'm sure in a couple years I will put him in preschool, though. Do you know if the schools in Glenview are any good?

Not familiar with this, is this a good option? Glenview is a very nice town in a desirable area. Lots of family oriented things to do. A children's museum and a small dairy farm are nearby and popular young kid activities. The North Branch trail runs through the forest preserve and is a nice place for a walk or bike ride. Local schools are excellent, and the parks and libraries are as well. Not too sure how easy it is to get around via public transit, since most of it is set up to get commuters to and from downtown Chicago. There is a relatively new development called the Glen which would be a relatively easy place to live car free. They have homes, town homes, park, Kohl's Children's museum, shopping, groceries, restaurants, movies all within walking distance.

[nana053]

Schools in Glenview are excellent. There are lots of private preschools in both Glenview and Wilmette.

Chicago gets much colder than 40, but not all the time. You can expect lows at night in the high teens and low 20s in Nov thru Feb. Highs can be in the 30s and 40s as well.

Average Weather for Glenview, IL - Temperature and Precipitation

[JacksonPanther]

Originally Posted by nana053

Schools in Glenview are excellent. There are lots of private preschools in both Glenview and Wilmette.

Chicago gets much colder than 40, but not all the time. You can expect lows at night in the high teens and low 20s in Nov thru Feb. Highs can be in the 30s and 40s as well.

Average Weather for Glenview, IL - Temperature and Precipitation

Although the "average low" graph makes Chicago seem almost balmy, watch what happens when you click the Record Low button. That should give you an idea of the kind of variation you can expect from Dec-Feb.

Expect a couple of weeks where the lows are below zero. Expect another couple of weeks where the lows are in single digits. You will need clothing that can handle those temps, as businesses will not stop, schools and day care will not close - it's business as usual.

The summers, while it will usually hit the 90s for several stretches, will not be anywhere near as oppressive as you're used to.

[slicklorin]

Originally Posted by cubssoxfan

Not familiar with this, is this a good option? Glenview is a very nice town in a desirable area. Lots of family oriented things to do. A children's museum and a small dairy farm are nearby and popular young kid activities. The North Branch trail runs through the forest preserve and is a nice place for a walk or bike ride. Local schools are excellent, and the parks and libraries are as well. Not too sure how easy it is to get around via public transit, since most of it is set up to get commuters to and from downtown Chicago. There is a relatively new development called the Glen which would be a relatively easy place to live car free. They have homes, town homes, park, Kohl's Children's museum, shopping, groceries, restaurants, movies all within walking distance.

I haven't heard much about the housing there. I wanted to find out about the area before considering it.

Glenview and The Glen sound great! I will have to look into The Glen but, thanks so much! I'm getting very excited for our move!!

[ToriaT]

Glenview is nice, so is Wilmette. Most of the North shore is nice, even better than nice so its hard to go wrong. But also very expensive. As others have said, the winters can be pretty cold. Most of us are used to it so no problem but you do need warm clothes. January and February are mostly quite cold, especially mid to end of Jan. July can be unbearably hot near 100 degrees as it was this year but mostly it does not get as hot as it did this year. September October May and June are really nice usually.

[pvande55]

Public transport is remarkably good in northern Illinois. Wilmette is served by both Metra and CTA trains. You can safely take the bus from Glenview to Wilmette. And you may prefer it in the snow. But please use it in good weather too. I assume that in Alabama everything about the buses (no trains) from the routing to the condition of the buses to the attitude of the drivers, is designed to make sure anyone who tries the bus once never comes back.

[Larry Siegel]

Glenview is cheaper than Wilmette and almost as nice. It is probably your best bet. The Glen is a planned community in Glenview that looks a little Disney-ish. There are really no rough spots in the area you're looking, but some areas are beautiful and some are kind of ugly (lots of automotive businesses, etc.).

The Linden L station in Wilmette is also a bus hub and is walking distance (1/2 mile) from the Coast Guard station. Regular people do take the bus.

Wilmette Harbor itself is really beautiful and it looks like a fun place to work. Lots of silly boat rescues. People who don't know how to sail, do anyway. Welcome to our area.

[slicklorin]

Originally Posted by pvande55

Public transport is remarkably good in northern Illinois. Wilmette is served by both Metra and CTA trains. You can safely take the bus from Glenview to Wilmette. And you may prefer it in the snow. But please use it in good weather too. I assume that in Alabama everything about the buses (no trains) from the routing to the condition of the buses to the attitude of the drivers, is designed to make sure anyone who tries the bus once never comes back.

Pretty much nailed that one on the head!! My husband and I are going to be sharing a car so it's great to hear I can still get around if he has the car or vice versa.

[slicklorin]

Does anyone know where I can find pictures of Wilmette or Glenview? I've briefly tried looking on here but cant find any.