Medical professional working at Loyola hosp. needs advice regarding loctation and purchase vs. renting (Chicago: sale, foreclosure)
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Dandiday please come back to the thread and tell us your observations and what you have decided. This forum is full of people who get lots of info and then never return to say what they did or offer an insights that might be useful.
Hello to ToriaT and all of you wonderful responders!
I apologize...haven't been on CD for quite awhile. Too many family "urgencies"!
OK- job got held up until Dec. or Jan.- in the meantime, I've been researching so much, and have a much better understanding of the 'burbs! I even gleaned more tonight from month's -old posts with delightful comments (and light-hearted sparring...) from Chet, LookoutKid, and Holl1ingsworth.
Soooo...our "wish list" has shifted a bit, and I'd welcome their and anyone else's advice and input!
We still are quite "budget-minded", and so are still going to watch for a good deal, short sale, etc.
It appears we'll be staying in the area for at least 3-4 years, maybe more (if I can tolerate the cold - looking into getting a great wood-burning stove!).
So, here are the parameters:
-Cost - would like to keep it under 500K if possible. Of course, if there was a "great deal" or short sale with a house that had a significant price drop, we'd consider going slightly higher.
-town with good access to Metra.
-30-40 minutes max to Loyola univ. hospital
-Top school district town.
-Top resale value town.
-Walking distance to something...downtown, +/or park, library, etc.
-Prefer a town with a historic/nice downtown.
-Seem to like the pre-mid-century homes (Craftsman, Prairie, etc.) - however, the systems/mechanics of an older home is a concern. Does anyone know the cost of replacing electrical, plumbing, heat, etc. if necessary?
-3+ beds, 2+ baths, 2+ garage, At least 2 living/dining areas on main level...prefer 3 (formal dining, formal living, and family room, for example).
-Basement -Would prefer finished basement, but could finish it out. (What is the average cost to do so?)
-Would prefer an updated kitchen, but could finish it out. (Cost?)
-Smaller yard (or in keeping with "resale" in mind.)
Soooo, I've narrowed the towns down to the following...please let me know if there are any others I should consider? Also, DD will probably live with us for about a year - she will take her master's elsewhere. However, she does need some preliminary classes to augment her BS- was looking to online courses, as well as COD for fun stuff! In fact, I'd like to teach there, if there are openings...
In no particular order, we've found: La Grange, Western Springs, Hinsdale, Glen Ellyn, Downers Grove, and possibly, Elmhurst. However, aren't both Glen Ellyn and Elmhurst on the upper Metra vs. the others? Is this a significant difference? Should we consider any others?
Does anyone have any input or advice? What about the neighborhoods in each?
I also see from Redfin that there's quite a difference in the number of houses sold over the last 6 months in each town...along with differing price ranges. Are there any shifts occurring? Have housing sales slowed significantly?
Can anyone comment on the resale appeal of each town, as of this fall? I did see a link posted about real estate trends since '06, but that was from March 2014, and reference 2013 data. Have trends taken a turn?
ToriaT, thank you for the prompt, and for your interest! This has been a major project for me, and I want to make the best choice possible. DH can live in temporary housing (I'll stay here for the time being) until we find our house!!!
oops...forgot to add another question. It seems that many of the older homes have 1 or 1.5 bathrooms. Is this a deal-breaker for many house-hunters? I wonder how difficult it is to add a bathroom, given enough space? Cost?
Also, although we prefer an older home with character, the price may obviate that desire...so, we'd go with a mid-century or newer house, in that case.
Finally, we would like a shorter commute, if possible. So, La Grange would fit into that category above the others, I'd imagine. However, not knowing the road systems and traffic, can anyone comment on the time difference between La Grange versus Downers Grove into Loyola Hospital? Thanks!
Thank you all again for your wonderful comments, advice, and time! We really appreciate it!!!
Hello to ToriaT and all of you wonderful responders!
I apologize...haven't been on CD for quite awhile. Too many family "urgencies"!
OK- job got held up until Dec. or Jan.- in the meantime, I've been researching so much, and have a much better understanding of the 'burbs! I even gleaned more tonight from month's -old posts with delightful comments (and light-hearted sparring...) from Chet, LookoutKid, and Holl1ingsworth.
Soooo...our "wish list" has shifted a bit, and I'd welcome their and anyone else's advice and input!
We still are quite "budget-minded", and so are still going to watch for a good deal, short sale, etc.
It appears we'll be staying in the area for at least 3-4 years, maybe more (if I can tolerate the cold - looking into getting a great wood-burning stove!).
So, here are the parameters:
-Cost - would like to keep it under 500K if possible. Of course, if there was a "great deal" or short sale with a house that had a significant price drop, we'd consider going slightly higher.
-town with good access to Metra.
-30-40 minutes max to Loyola univ. hospital
-Top school district town.
-Top resale value town.
-Walking distance to something...downtown, +/or park, library, etc.
-Prefer a town with a historic/nice downtown.
-Seem to like the pre-mid-century homes (Craftsman, Prairie, etc.) - however, the systems/mechanics of an older home is a concern. Does anyone know the cost of replacing electrical, plumbing, heat, etc. if necessary?
-3+ beds, 2+ baths, 2+ garage, At least 2 living/dining areas on main level...prefer 3 (formal dining, formal living, and family room, for example).
-Basement -Would prefer finished basement, but could finish it out. (What is the average cost to do so?)
-Would prefer an updated kitchen, but could finish it out. (Cost?)
-Smaller yard (or in keeping with "resale" in mind.)
Soooo, I've narrowed the towns down to the following...please let me know if there are any others I should consider? Also, DD will probably live with us for about a year - she will take her master's elsewhere. However, she does need some preliminary classes to augment her BS- was looking to online courses, as well as COD for fun stuff! In fact, I'd like to teach there, if there are openings...
In no particular order, we've found: La Grange, Western Springs, Hinsdale, Glen Ellyn, Downers Grove, and possibly, Elmhurst. However, aren't both Glen Ellyn and Elmhurst on the upper Metra vs. the others? Is this a significant difference? Should we consider any others?
Does anyone have any input or advice? What about the neighborhoods in each?
I also see from Redfin that there's quite a difference in the number of houses sold over the last 6 months in each town...along with differing price ranges. Are there any shifts occurring? Have housing sales slowed significantly?
Can anyone comment on the resale appeal of each town, as of this fall? I did see a link posted about real estate trends since '06, but that was from March 2014, and reference 2013 data. Have trends taken a turn?
ToriaT, thank you for the prompt, and for your interest! This has been a major project for me, and I want to make the best choice possible. DH can live in temporary housing (I'll stay here for the time being) until we find our house!!!
Thanks to all in advance!!!
Dandiday
Glad to see a follow up. I'm sorry Wheaton didn't make the final cut. It hits hard on all your parameters and probably has the most to offer in your price range. Best of luck with the hunt though. Exciting stuff house hunting is...
As for market trends, I trust the algorithms over at Zillow more than any elsewhere. Zestimate and Zillow Home Value Index are industry standards. You can see summarized info for each town, including forecasts, by following this link: http://www.zillow.com/wheaton-il/home-values/ and punching different town names into the search bar.
Last edited by holl1ngsworth; 11-12-2014 at 05:58 PM..
Dandi – welcome back, You nailed it on safe investment and most desirable areas here. Every town you selected can satisfy all your wants – just have to catch the right house when it pops up. That is going to be the big challenge for you guys…
I am not sure about the commute from Downers/LG to Loyola univ. hospital - someone else will need to advise here with experience.
In Chicagoland even a short few miles can mean A LOT of extra commute time. Looks like LG =5.5M and DG = 12.5M which does not look like a lot. BUT this is Chicago and traffic is CRAZY… Assuming you mean driving, Metra express would not be that much.
La Grange, Western Springs, Hinsdale, Downers Grove = BNSF Metra (known because it is so fast and serves the wealthiest towns) Elmhurst and Glen Ellyn are on UP-W. See line maps here: Schedule & Fare Finder
Dandi – welcome back, You nailed it on safe investment and most desirable areas here. Every town you selected can satisfy all your wants – just have to catch the right house when it pops up. That is going to be the big challenge for you guys…
I am not sure about the commute from Downers/LG to Loyola univ. hospital - someone else will need to advise here with experience.
In Chicagoland even a short few miles can mean A LOT of extra commute time. Looks like LG =5.5M and DG = 12.5M which does not look like a lot. BUT this is Chicago and traffic is CRAZY… Assuming you mean driving, Metra express would not be that much.
La Grange, Western Springs, Hinsdale, Downers Grove = BNSF Metra (known because it is so fast and serves the wealthiest towns) Elmhurst and Glen Ellyn are on UP-W. See line maps here: Schedule & Fare Finder
Good Luck…
BNSF is not necessarily faster than UP-W. An express train from Elmhurst takes the same time as an express train from Hinsdale. What the BNSF does have is more express trains from middle-distance suburbs, like Naperville and Downers Grove.
And aside from Hinsdale, and maybe Western Springs, I wouldn't call BNSF the "wealthier" line either. According to census tract data, the parts of Oak Park, River Forest, Elmhurst, Wheaton and Glen Ellyn served by the UP-W are as wealthy, or wealthier than La Grange, Clarendon Hills, Downers Grove, Naperville, etc. It'd be splitting hairs to say otherwise.
Last edited by holl1ngsworth; 11-13-2014 at 08:10 AM..
If you want to cherry pick, you could say the BNSF serves Cicero, Berwyn, Brookfield, Westmont, and Aurora while the UP-W serves River Forest, Elmhurst, Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, and Geneva. Which train line seems wealthier now?
If you're looking at Glen Ellyn, you might as well look at houses in Wheaton too. They are basically the same town with minor differences--perhaps analagous to Oak Park and River Forest, but without the shared high school.
The differences in the size /layout of the towns along BNSF is a factor. Other than Naperville (which is enormous . well over a 100K residents...) most of the towns along along the BNSF are rather small and physically compact. That tends to make for a narrower range of incomes / home values and gives most of the towns a decided core / charming layout.
In contrast the town along the UP-W line once also had the parallel line that since has been torn up and converted to the Prarie Path. Together with the generally larger size of town along the UP-W line it is a factor. The bigger towns along the UP-W have more commercial corridors that cut through the towns too. Elmhurst and Lombard have fairly signficant bases of autodealers and such along North Ave, St. Charles Rd, Lake St, and Roosevelt. That is more limited in towns along the BNSF with the only signficant such patterns being along Ogden, predominately in Downers Grove & Westmont. By the time you get down to the strip centers along 75th that is more focused on towns like Woodridge & Darien that have no rail-centric core. Similarly the retail traffic along Cermack / 22nd St / Butterfield tends to radiate west from the mall-centered area of Oak Brook and the portions of Lombard that sort of peter out around Danada...
Again, not a deal breaker, just a little historic context of how things have "gotten to now".
The differences in the size /layout of the towns along BNSF is a factor. Other than Naperville (which is enormous . well over a 100K residents...) most of the towns along along the BNSF are rather small and physically compact. That tends to make for a narrower range of incomes / home values and gives most of the towns a decided core / charming layout.
In contrast the town along the UP-W line once also had the parallel line that since has been torn up and converted to the Prarie Path. Together with the generally larger size of town along the UP-W line it is a factor. The bigger towns along the UP-W have more commercial corridors that cut through the towns too. Elmhurst and Lombard have fairly signficant bases of autodealers and such along North Ave, St. Charles Rd, Lake St, and Roosevelt. That is more limited in towns along the BNSF with the only signficant such patterns being along Ogden, predominately in Downers Grove & Westmont. By the time you get down to the strip centers along 75th that is more focused on towns like Woodridge & Darien that have no rail-centric core. Similarly the retail traffic along Cermack / 22nd St / Butterfield tends to radiate west from the mall-centered area of Oak Brook and the portions of Lombard that sort of peter out around Danada...
Again, not a deal breaker, just a little historic context of how things have "gotten to now".
Strongly disagree. Along the UP-W, neither Wheaton nor Glen Ellyn nor Elmhurst have any large commercial corridors "cutting through" any of their central parts. There is a commercial corridor along 20 in Elmhurst, but that in no way "cuts through" any kind of residential part of town. It's squeezed up along the northern border. Out of the towns in question, the only one that is truly intersected by a dense commercial corridor is Downers Grove, along Ogden Avenue. And the population differences are not so great either. Elmhurst and Downers are both just under 50k residents, Wheaton is just over. And Glen Ellyn is about the size of Clarendale. Western Springs and La Grange aren't exactly small either, with a sum of about 30k residents.
That said, all the desirable rail-linked Western suburbs in question have more in common than they do different, regardless of the line. The UP-W and the BNSF are the two oldest railways in Chicagoland (with UP-W being slightly older) and the charming cores of the towns they serve reflects their strong history and common narrative.
Last edited by holl1ngsworth; 11-13-2014 at 02:45 PM..
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YIKES! my apologies...
