Any advantages of living in an unincorporated township? (Chicago, Franklin Park: buying a house, neighborhoods)

[emoeskaite]

Are there any good sides of buying a house in an unincorporated area? I mean for instance Leyden Township or Norwood Park Township. These are small areas adjacent to the City of Chicago which are not part of any municipality, they are governed by the township which is subordinated to the county.

[pvande55]

More freedom to do what you like with your land. The Cook County board seems to have an "anything goes" attitude. Don't know if you can keep chickens in your yard. Though to some that is a disadvantage. A strip joint (excuse me, Gentlemen's Club) could go up on the nearest vacant lot.

[middle-aged mom]

Generally speaking:

Lots are larger
You can usually burn leaves
Your neighbor could park 27 beaters on his front lawn
Property taxes are cheaper than a corporated area. Given the lion's share of our property taxes go to schools, the tax benefit trends insignificant
Police, Fire Protection, street maintenance, snow plowing and garbage removal may differ from an incorporated area
You will pay non resident rates to use some services in parks in incorporated areas
Not all neighborhoods within unincorporated areas are alike
Those who live in unincorporated areas tend to place a strong emphasis on privacy

[plates]

Originally Posted by emoeskaite

Are there any good sides of buying a house in an unincorporated area? I mean for instance Leyden Township or Norwood Park Township. These are small areas adjacent to the City of Chicago which are not part of any municipality, they are governed by the township which is subordinated to the county.

I honestly think that the negatives outweigh the positives of living in an unincorporated area.

One thing that I didn't see posted about living in an unincorporated area is that they are much less likely to have sidewalks. There is also less certainty about the future of surrounding land because it's not incorporated.

[chet everett]

More than a few FORMERLY unincorporated areas have decided to make the switch to a "village" so that there is a more effective unit of organization. The unincorporated little bits and pieces of a township are not quite like the lawless wild west but the isolation does make it very hard to influence county commissioner. The "township supervisor" really responds only to the seniors and others that recieve aid so it is an uphill battle to every get any positive change or even to block negatives...

You can end up with some "random junk dealer" / tatto studio / gentleman's club in a blink of an eye...

Originally Posted by plates

I honestly think that the negatives outweigh the positives of living in an unincorporated area.

One thing that I didn't see posted about living in an unincorporated area is that they are much less likely to have sidewalks. There is also less certainty about the future of surrounding land because it's not incorporated.

[emoeskaite]

Thanks all. Actually Norwood Park Township looks preety much like an incorporated area as it is squeezed in between Chicago, Norridge and Harwood Heights. But when you are there you can feel that something is different, I never was thinking what it is.. However Leyden Township (close to Franklin Park) looks as though it wasn't a part of Chicagoland, it's more like a rural area. I wouldn't be surprised if people had chickens there.

[plates]

Originally Posted by chet everett

More than a few FORMERLY unincorporated areas have decided to make the switch to a "village" so that there is a more effective unit of organization. The unincorporated little bits and pieces of a township are not quite like the lawless wild west but the isolation does make it very hard to influence county commissioner. The "township supervisor" really responds only to the seniors and others that recieve aid so it is an uphill battle to every get any positive change or even to block negatives...

You can end up with some "random junk dealer" / tatto studio / gentleman's club in a blink of an eye...

I know some people who live in unincorporated areas and it is nice to have seclusion while being right in the middle of a major metropolis. I also forgot that I remember seeing an abundance of trees in unincorporated areas.

Originally Posted by emoeskaite

Thanks all. Actually Norwood Park Township looks preety much like an incorporated area as it is squeezed in between Chicago, Norridge and Harwood Heights. But when you are there you can feel that something is different, I never was thinking what it is.. However Leyden Township (close to Franklin Park) looks as though it wasn't a part of Chicagoland, it's more like a rural area. I wouldn't be surprised if people had chickens there.

For all intents and purposes that part is Norridge/Harwood Heights. I mean that because of the schools that you would go to and the way the area looks.

[ToriaT]

I would never live in an unincorporated area. Where we live, there were pieces of property that were holdouts to incorporation way back when. The house and yard next to me is unincorporated. They have a septic field and probably a well. Some of these wells have become contaminated. There are risks to being in unincorporated areas especially if something happens to your water supply.

[middle-aged mom]

My subdivision is adjacent to a subdivision in unincorporated Barrington, in Cook County. Lots are a tad larger and have private well and septic instead of tapping into the Village of Barrington's water/sewers, thus property taxes are a tad cheaper.

Children attend the same schools as children within the Village of Barrington.

That people could, has not caused anyone to park beaters on front lawns. Police Protection is provided by the Cook Cty Sheriff instead of the Village of Barrington. Residents pay non-resident rates for discretionary stuff.

The only obvious difference is that folks in this unincorporated area burn their leaves.

[emoeskaite]

So generally speaking, if you live in an unincorporated area you have more freedom (burning leaves, parking your RV on the yard, having chickens etc). Probably you also don't need buildng permits to do any remodeling. This may be a pain when living in a municipality because some of them require permits for every simple construction job. You also pay lower taxes. But on the other hand you don't have that many conveniences, like sewer system or even running water, many police car patroling the neighborhood etc. Therefore there are good and bad sides of living like that.