What about Westchester? (Chicago, Arlington Heights, Schaumburg: affordable house, neighborhoods, magnet school)

[ChicagoSully8]

I'm looking for an affordable house and am considering Westchester. Any thoughts on that suburb?

FYI - I need to be close to downtown Chicago, where I work. I cannot go any further south than Westchester, as my husband commutes to Northbrook. I know there are a lot nicer suburbs, but we cannot afford any that we have looked into. I have children and need at least 3 bedrooms for about $325K. Of course, we want decent schools and we are happy to have some diversity. I currently live in a house so close to our neighbors that when they smoke cigarettes in their living room, the smoke comes into our bedroom. So now I want a little room between me and my neighbors, and a back yard for the kids! Therefore, we have ruled out any affordable neighborhoods in the city. Westchester seems to best match my needs, although I realize I would want to send my children to a private high school if we live there, as theirs doesn't rank very well.

[OakBrookMom]

Westchester as a community is nice but the high school really stinks, it is one of the lowest ranked high schools in all of the suburbs. You might want to think about a longer train ride and go up to Grayslake, Lake Villa, Lindenhurst or Gurnee where you could afford a really nice home (4BR,2.5BA,Basement, 2car - less than 5 years old or even new). You can even get a 3Br2.1 bath up there for under 260K. As a realtor, I would recommend a different route. There are parts of Elmhurst that you could afford (Willowbrook high school) as well as Bensenville, Lombard, Wooddale, Addison and Villa Park, all of which have better high schools than Westchester (not the best high schools but sooo much better than Proviso). I don't think the magnet school the district started is going to solve the problem or raise the value of a Westchester home enough to make it a better investment than the other towns I mentioned. You might get lucky in Hoffman Estates and find a nice home. You may even think about a townhome that looks like a home which a little yard and deck which you can get in Hoffman or Schaumburg and maybe even Arlington Heights. The townhomes you could afford are really nice and live like single family homes. You should check out a few of the communities in Hoffman and Schaumburg like Castleford, Canterbury Fields and Town Place West. All have 3Br, 2.1Ba townhomes that look like SFH for under 300K. Let me know if I can help you.

[ChicagoSully8]

Thanks for responding. I really appreciate the ideas for other places to look as well.

[mike3512]

villa park is a nice place too, only about 20 miles from downtown.

[Chinolala]

Check out Lombard, Oakbrook Terrace, Lombard, Elmwood Park, Norridge, Schiller Park and Harwood Heights.

[gardener34]

Most people in westchester send their kids to catholic schools. Which are very excellent in that area if that is a consideration for you. The homes in westchester are very nice.

Also elmhurst is very expensive nouveau riche now - they all go to york high school. And willowbrook I believe is villa park and maybe parts of Lombard? check Lombard and wheaton as they are also on the trains.

[nlschr0]

Westchester is nice - peaceful, quiet, family-oriented. But you're right - the public high school is not an option I would ever consider for my family.

[emmi605]

Originally Posted by gardener34

Most people in westchester send their kids to catholic schools. Which are very excellent in that area if that is a consideration for you. The homes in westchester are very nice.

Also elmhurst is very expensive nouveau riche now - they all go to york high school. And willowbrook I believe is villa park and maybe parts of Lombard? check Lombard and wheaton as they are also on the trains.

Just to clarify:
Oakbrook Mom was not wrong in saying parts of Elmhurst is affordable. It is NOT all "nouveau riche" but there are many middle class families. Also, If you live in Elmhurst west of 83 you go to Willowbrook, but may have an Elmhurst Address.

[cmoscinski]

Again, I post over and over La Grange or La Grange Park would be perfect. Great schools Dist. 102 & 204 and homes start from upper $200's Lagrange Park to low $300's to ++ in LaGrange.

Westchester has very beautiful homes (reasonably priced can get something great for $300K) but the school system is lacking.

What style of home are you looking for?

[Warrior9004]

WESTCHESTER DOESN'T HAVE A GOOD PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL SO MOST KIDS GO TO PRIVATE SCHOOLS OR MOVE. THIS IS A BIG PROBLEM