Neighborhoods in Naperville

[kingofhearts]

Originally Posted by chet everett

Each of the subdivisions has different pluses and minuses, though as a renter you may be limited in what is available as most sellers don't want to play landlord with their For Sale properties and renting is not very common in most Naperville Single Family Detached type developments...

Thanks. I ask this question for buying a home, not renting. As mentioned above, I have already signed a lease to rent a single family home in the Saybrook neighborhood. Can you give me your take on the pluses and minuses of the subdivisions you know in this part of Naperville? I would like to keep my eye open for properties that pop up in neighborhoods that would be a good fit for me.

I like the East Highlands a lot, and Saybrook is kinda nice. I am unfamiliar with Green Acres, but am intrigued about actually getting a good sized property near downtown. What other neighborhoods do you and don't you like?

[chet everett]

I don't know if not liking subdivisions with big home owners associations and things like pools/clubhouses puts me in the minority, but generally I find such areas to be a hassle to live in. As if the City of Naperville does not impose enough restrictions on everything a homeowner does, and have code enforcement people writing tickets and setting fines, you have the home owners associations kicking it up notch. I suppose way back in the dark ages when bums could've bought up whole tracts of homes and turned them into some kind of mass rental nightmare HOAs made sense, but now I think they are almost a danger -- what if something happens that needs a major cash infusion, like a cracked pool? That could cause assessments to skyrocket... (yes I know there should be reserve funds and insurance, but who really check that?)

Give me a well built house, a walkable distance from the train, on a street with similar homes and little traffic/noise and I don't care what "neighborhood"/subdivision it is in...

One thing that is a personal turn off is areas with lots of raised ranches or the split levels that have no powderroom/familyroom/laundryrooms at grade level. These places are REALLY hard to remodel and with whether you are talking families with new babies or aging populations stairs like that turn off a lot of current buyers. Even if you buy a ranch or two-story surrounded by places like that you are bound to be hurt by the comps...

[kingofhearts]

I understand and agree with your points. But how about specific neighborhoods rather than general tips ? I definitely get the impression that there are noticeable differences between neighborhoods in Naperville. I wonder if Steve-o has any thoughts given his extensive pictures of the West suburbs?