Moving to Chicagoland from north Georgia (Evanston, Skokie: budget, salary, work)

[wxguy]

I grew up in the Chicago area (left in the early 80s), but it looks like my wife, two sons and I will be moving to the area. (I'm looking forward to a good hot dog. Sorry, but the Varsity doesn't cut it.) For my wife, who is from NDak, and my children, who were born in Georgia, this will be an adventure.

I'll be working near Lincoln Park, but even on a ~$120k salary we wouldn't be able to support a family there. Like most people who post here, I need to balance commute time, schools for the kids, and affordable housing. It seems that some of the near north suburbs might be the best options (Skokie perhaps?). Evanston seems like a nice place, but it seems more expensive than Skokie.

Can anyone suggest a good location that would keep a commute to Lincoln Park area 40min or less with housing that we can afford and decent schools? (We are in a very diverse school district now, so diversity is a positive from our perspective.) Is the commute doable by car or will it need to be rail? I'm sure much has changed since 1983.

Thanks so much. This is a great forum!!!

[Drover]

Can you give an approximate address or street intersection where you will be working? (Some parts of Lincoln Park are more amenable to public transit connections than others.) Also, do you have an approximate home purchase budget?

[wxguy]

I don't have the address handy as I'm out of town at the moment, but I know it is right on the L red line. It is fairly close to the DePaul station.

[Windy City John]

Try looking at Rogers Park or Evanston - you might want to embrace city life and find a great townhome in Lincoln Park. Do the city thing!

[vester72]

Check out the South Loop too - just stay north of Cermak/22nd street and south of Roosevelt - and the closer to the lake the better.

Otherwise look at Oak Park, Park Ridge, Sauganash neighborhood (north side of the city right next to Lincolnwood) and maybe Norridge too - all nice areas and great for families.