Need to move from Evanston to west or south suburbs - where to start? (Naperville: new home)

[3boysandacat]

As background, my family has lived in Evanston for the past 8 years. We moved here from the Ravenswood Manor area of Chgo when we needed more space. Great place and location when kids were tiny and we commuted downtown by Metra. Our boys now attend the local public school, I stay home and Dad commutes to his job in Lemont. Due to the lengthy commute to Lemont, my dislike for the school administration and some issues with our community, we are exploring a big change. We are looking place that is within 30 minutes of Lemont (maybe off 355 corridor??), but want a nice friendly community with good public schools. Our budget for a home is about 500k. I am originally from the Beverly/Morgan Park area of chgo and do not want to return for a variety of reasons. Any suggestions for us?

[chet everett]

Need more details. There are certainly some towns within 30 minutes of Lemont where a nice home and good schools can be had for $500K. That said in some towns (like Hinsdale) that have really outstanding schools great walkable downtown, excellent options for local shopping / dining / commuting your budget is unlikely to get other than a older in-updated home in a less than an ideal location. OTOH that same budget could get brand new home in a town that does not have quite as highly rate schools, relatively few local amenities and no real options other than driving to get most anywhere...

[3boysandacat]

Here are more details - kids are currently in K, 3rd and 5th so schools are a big deal for us. Academics are important but the sense of community is really what we are lacking in our current school. Sports are not a big deal for us but love the outdoors. Swimming and biking are our chosen sports (tennis for me). Honestly prefer to drive as little as possible so a walkable, bikeable town is important. What else am I missing? Not looking for a huge home and prefer older, craftmen style.

[urza216]

Tinley Park if you are looking south. It's about a half hour from Lemont. Homewood further east but it's also right off of I-80 and shouldn't be too much more than a half hour. Both are safe, vibrant communities.

[chet everett]

Close to work in Lemont I think you would do well to look in Downers Grove -- the nicest older homes that have been updated will be above your price point but there are some that will meet your needs. It is hard to say that any community will or won't have an emphasis on "team sports" as that is largely driven by the actual mix of families. There is certainly a large range of kids / parents that do appreciate the competition of soccer, basketball, hockey, football, baseball etc BUT Downers Grove also has a nice mix of parks / nature areas as well as opportunities for both indoor and outdoor swimming. There is also a long tradition of recreational and competitive bicycling...

Many of these same qualities can be found in downtown Naperville though it is probably going to be more of a hassle to get to a job in Lemont and the costs are likely the same if not higher for homes as close to the core where the library and other amenities are located.

Also worth considering would be Lisle where home prices are a bit more affordable. The schools are a notch less desirable than Downers Grove or Naoerville. The downtown is not as vibrant either, commute to Lemont is a bit easier than from Naperville, not as easy as from Downers Grove...

Lemont itself might be worth exploring too. Affordability is probably comparable to Lisle, schools are probably similar. Specifics range of older vs newer housing is a bit different as the more charming homes are pretty tightly clustered "on the hill" and many of the more recently built homes tend to have been part of boom of tract homes...

[urza216]

Lemont itself is also worth looking into. Or perhaps Crest Hill?

[3boysandacat]

Thanks for the responses ... Lemont is on our list. Any thoughts on Glen Ellyn? It is a bit further but sounds lovely. Also - how about the Palos Hills, Heights, Park area ... location is desirable but not sure about schools, community etc.

[chet everett]

While technically you could rely on 355 to get from Glen Ellyn to Lemont it would not be an easy commute. As far as "value" for $500k I am fairly confident your money will go farther in the towns already discussed...

When it comes to the towns south of Lemont it has been my experince that folks looking for the "charming" sections of those towns (which do exist...) are out numbered by folks (who either by necesity or preference) are shopping the much more common sections of mass builder built subdivisions. Some of those are quite well constructed, with lots of brick and solid options but these are more the sections of souther Downers Grove or Wooddrige than the more charming areas near the core. The fact is that even the sections of towns like Downers Grove that are rather distant from the BNSF tracks stil share the mostly traditional grid layout which is not the case of the towns further south...

In general there it is far more common for folks in any of the towns along the BNSF to have the neighbiorhood type schools that one can walk to (which I believe is a HUGE component of their success as well as a big part of making for a community where families really get involved in the school) than towns where buses are the only viable way to get the kids to the schools. The philosophy that goes along with walkable neighborhood schools is fairly well studied and widley acknowledged as highly desirable.