Homewood, Flossmoor or Tinley Park? (Chicago, Oak Park: for sale, real estate market, foreclosures)

[dylan]

Hi,
My family and I are looking to move to this area because of employment and the ease of commuting by Metra to the city of Chicago.
Does anyone have any idea about the schools, parks, community, etc. Do any of these places have a small town feel as opposed to a sprawling suburban commuter town? We are looking for the small town feel and want to put down roots, get to know people and families and really belong where we live.
I know that there has been a thread on Flossmoor about it having a lot of Jewish people, which is fine by me, but apart from that what do people know? We are looking for good education, diverse communities, friendly people, good shopping other than Walmart or the same old stripmalls.
Thanks!

[prairiestate]

If you have more money to spend on a house, Flossmoor, otherwise, Homewood. Both are beautiful communities, with a small town feel. You hardly even realize you're in Chicagoland. Both have viable downtown areas. Homewood's is a bit larger, though neither really offers a huge selection of shops. Still, there are some interesting places to shop and dine. The population is certainly diverse, and Homewood Flossmor HS is one of the better ones in the south suburbs. Getting into the city is very convenient, the Metra Electric Line offers more service than any other line.

You might want to take a look at Tinley as well. It's largely suburban sprawl, but there is an attractive and quaint downtown area centered around Oak Park Ave. and 171st St. It may not feel enough like a small town to you, though.

[dylan]

Prairiestate,
Thanks for the info - that helps a lot. We are going to visit this weekend and to talk to some friends we have that live there and to look around.
We're looking forward to it now!
Dylan

[carguy39]

Good luck in your search. Homewood and Flossmoor have charming downtowns with a small town feel to them. The population there is diverse, well-educated, and typically earn high incomes. The public school systems there are good, the park district is excellent, but the property taxes are pretty high--but I believe you would get your money's worth in either town. In Homewood, the homes and lots tend to be a little smaller and cheaper than Flossmoor--however, homes in either town are well-built.

Flossmoor is known for its custom homes on good sized lots in older neighborhoods. I guess the next question you need to ask is how many bedrooms/bathrooms you're looking for, and how much are you wanting to spend? A typical 3 bedroom/2 bathroom home in Homewood might cost around $200,000-$230,000 or so, while the same home in Flossmoor might cost around $250,000-$300,000+. Homewood and Flossmoor are pretty much all built up--most homes in either town were built in the 1920s through 1970s--if you're looking for new construction, you'll easily spend upwards of $500,000 in either town. Metra has stations in both Homewood and Flossmoor to commute downtown.

Tinley Park is more of a suburban sprawl type suburb--new construction abounds. There is a nice small downtown feel somewhat, but most of Tinley has the big box stores and stuff like that. Metra has a station in Tinley Park as well.

To get an idea of what you'll spend in either town, I'd suggest a website like www.realtor.com--you (broken link) can plug in the town, number of bedrooms/bathrooms, and see what comes up without having to give out your personal info.

[kirkie]

I, likewise, am looking to buy in Flossmoor in the next year. When you say property taxes there are high, how high is that? Examples? (First-time buyer, so I really have no frame of reference).

[NYrules]

Originally Posted by carguy39

Good luck in your search. Homewood and Flossmoor have charming downtowns with a small town feel to them. The population there is diverse, well-educated, and typically earn high incomes. The public school systems there are good, the park district is excellent, but the property taxes are pretty high--but I believe you would get your money's worth in either town. In Homewood, the homes and lots tend to be a little smaller and cheaper than Flossmoor--however, homes in either town are well-built.

Flossmoor is known for its custom homes on good sized lots in older neighborhoods. I guess the next question you need to ask is how many bedrooms/bathrooms you're looking for, and how much are you wanting to spend? A typical 3 bedroom/2 bathroom home in Homewood might cost around $200,000-$230,000 or so, while the same home in Flossmoor might cost around $250,000-$300,000+. Homewood and Flossmoor are pretty much all built up--most homes in either town were built in the 1920s through 1970s--if you're looking for new construction, you'll easily spend upwards of $500,000 in either town. Metra has stations in both Homewood and Flossmoor to commute downtown.

Tinley Park is more of a suburban sprawl type suburb--new construction abounds. There is a nice small downtown feel somewhat, but most of Tinley has the big box stores and stuff like that. Metra has a station in Tinley Park as well.

To get an idea of what you'll spend in either town, I'd suggest a website like www.realtor.com--you can plug in the town, number of bedrooms/bathrooms, and see what comes up without having to give out your personal info.

$200,000-$230,000 for a single family??? and $300,000 for a single family in Floosmoor? UHHHHH, really? Heck if thats the case I'll move there tomorrow. Last time I checked homes there started at about $300,000 and they were dumps needing about $100,000 in repairs and updating, otherwise you were looking at about $500,000 for a house on average.Flossmoor Homes for Sale. Real Estate in Flossmoor, Illinois Floosmoor is VERY upscale and posh.

[Dominik]

You'll spend about $12000 a year on a 3,000 sq foot house

[sbd78]

I'm not as familiar with Homewood/Flossmoor, but I am very familiar with Tinley Park. Parts of it have a small town feel (the downtown area around Oak Park Ave.) and parts of it are subdivisions, big box stores and typical suburbia. Overall, its a very nice suburb with great schools. Andrew High School in Tinley Park rates very highly. You can check schools there and the other towns you are interested in on GreatSchools.net. Will you will be working downtown? If so, the Tinley Park metra train will let you off in the Southwest side of the loop at LaSalle and VanBuren, Homewood Flossmoor will let you off on the Northeast side of the loop, at Michigan and Randolph. Depending on where your job is, one of these may be closer than the other and cut down on commute time.

[carguy39]

Originally Posted by NYrules

$200,000-$230,000 for a single family??? and $300,000 for a single family in Floosmoor? UHHHHH, really? Heck if thats the case I'll move there tomorrow. Last time I checked homes there started at about $300,000 and they were dumps needing about $100,000 in repairs and updating, otherwise you were looking at about $500,000 for a house on average.Flossmoor Homes for Sale. Real Estate in Flossmoor, Illinois Floosmoor is VERY upscale and posh.

Do you live in Homewood or Flossmoor? I'm guessing you don't. The typical home value for a house in Homewood is in the lower $200s, while the typical value of a Flossmoor home is in the mid-$300's. The examples you pointed out are either new construction in subdivisions like Ballantrae, which Flossmoor doesn't have a lot of, or Flossmoor Estates, which is across from the Flossmoor Country club. In that neighborhood, yes, houses start in the $300s and head up to $1.5 million. However, in neighborhoods like Old Flossmoor west of Flossmoor Station, and Flossmoor Park, which is just north of Flossmoor Country Club, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom houses can be had for the price ranges I quoted earlier.

Yes, Homewood has houses that are foreclosures for around $100,000, however, most of those are 2 bedrooms. 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom homes can be had for the price ranges I quoted earlier--especially given the state of the residential real estate market right now.

[kim jennings]

Try Orland Park, I think you will like it better.