Will a middle/upper middle class family fit in to Hinsdale, Glenview, Barrington, Elmhurst, North Shore? (Chicago: cul-de-sac, sale)

[OakBrookMom]

My family lived in Elmhurst when we both worked corporate jobs downtown and there were quite a few double income families. The commute to O'Hare was extremely easy from Elmhurst. Your money will go quite a bit further there than in Hinsdale. The working mommies tend to find each other as do the stay at home moms. Most of the moms that work where we live now are doctors as well as other professionals - they are all too busy working to have an attitude. My husband works for a non-profit so we don't have the disposible income that the other families have now that I stay at home but I have never felt any pressure to keep up with anyone. We moved here because of the tax difference (we save over 3K a year and have about 1000 more sqft of home) and the small classroom sizes (my 1st grader had 13 and 4th grader had 19) - we are in District 53. Our town feeds into 5 diff school districts and the Elmhurst and Downers areas usually have a few homes in your price range. There is a home in our subdivision right now that feeds into 53 that I'm sure you could snag in the 600's with a tax bill that will have you doing a double take its so low. The tax difference allowed us to spend just a bit more when we bought since the overall monthly payment would not suffer and not have to move later because we got the extra square footage our growing needed. While inventory is definitely limited where we live in your price bracket you should look at a few homes instead of just driving right through Oak Brook on your way to and from Elmhurst and Hinsdale. At first I missed the sidewalks and in-town feel but we are so close to each that we go to both towns as well as Clarendon quite often and honestly now that the kids are older we are so busy that I don't miss it at all.

[maxfischer]

Folks - thanks very much for the posts - lots of good perspectives. A bit more on my situation: was a banker making more than I am now - economy and choice for a better work/life balance sent me to Fortune 500; wife was in advertising and may go back. We are now leaning toward renting (rents still very favorable vs. home price and will likely get more of what we want after wife heads back to work). Good advice on the financial restraint - $600K is indeed reasonable from a financial planning standpoint considering my income. Have crossed Hinsdale off the list after spending time on zillow surveying estimated home prices - most of the walk to's are out of price range even w/ my wife's income. Hadn't really considered Oak Brook - thought prices there were on par w/ Hinsdale - but will make sure we check it out.

[Lookout Kid]

This thread just needed a one-word answer. "Yes". The answer to the OP's question is pretty obvious, don't you think?

[mendelman]

Originally Posted by Lookout Kid

This thread just needed a one-word answer. "Yes". The answer to the OP's question is pretty obvious, don't you think?

Indeed. The question was asked as if him and his family are the equivalent of a minority immigrant single mother household using Section 8.

$600,000 to spend on a house, you say? I don't know?

[thePR]

Originally Posted by Lookout Kid

This thread just needed a one-word answer. "Yes". The answer to the OP's question is pretty obvious, don't you think?

That's asking too much of everyone here.

[nanannie]

If everyone posted yes or no answers to questions, what a snoozefest this forum would become.

[Nysee53]

$600,000 or even $800,000 budjet for housing in many of the suburbs you have mentioned is a little too low. I think if you are very concerned about fitting in socio-economically I would go with a community that has a greater spread of incomes. I agree with Anthera. Traffic is much lighter going east and west on the North Shore because we are executive suburban communities, where most commute to the city. I would personally recommend Evanston or Skokie. You will get very good schools and both communities are among the most diverse communities in Chicago, both racially and economically. As a home builder I have paid up to $1,795,000 for a lot in some of the North Shore communities. Most of the property under $1,000,000 is underimproved and is likely a teardown, but of course that is not always the case. If you are interested in a remodeling project to get a larger home, Evanston or Wilmette are good options. They both have very nice property in their East and Central locations that are good rehab opportunities for usually under $900,000. There is a home on Forest Avenue in Evanston that is listed at $1,350,000 for rehab and went under contract the first day on the market. Good luck on your search! PM me for more details or help.

[middle-aged mom]

Barrington, zip code 60010, is about 100 square miles in 4 different counties, Cook, Lake, Kane and Mc Henry. Several towns comprise the greater Barrington area, the Village of Barrington, Barrington Hills, Lake Barrington, North Barrington, South Barrington, Deer Park, Tower Lakes and depending upon whose is talking, Inveness, Port Barrington and Timber Lakes.

Right now the lowest price house is asking $150K and the highest price is $17 million. The median is in the mid $600's. Most of the area feeds into school district 220.

Given one or both of you want proximity to the city, most of the Village of Barrington is within walking distance or a very short drive of the Metra.
An express train gets you to the loop in about 40 minutes- not too bad.
The Village has a historic district, plenty of tear down activity and plenty of family friendly sub divisions, one of which has it's own pool, tennis court, private lake, social activities and tons of kids.

My best guess is that at least half of the families have dual working parents. You will get more house for the money in Barrington than in Hinsdale, most of the North Shore and Glenview. And pay attention to property taxes, wherever you decide to land. It all matters.

[middle-aged mom]

Originally Posted by Nysee53

Most of the property under $1,000,000 is underimproved and is likely a teardown, but of course that is not always the case.

You raise a very important point. All of the communities mentioned by the OP, have lower end housing. It is increasingly targeted for tear downs, even in this market.

Perhaps more important than having to live through neigboring tear downs, new construction and finding yourself in a house the size of your neighbor's garage, is that forward appreciation is tied completely to the value of the land, not the house.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by middle-aged mom

You raise a very important point. All of the communities mentioned by the OP, have lower end housing. It is increasingly targeted for tear downs, even in this market.

Perhaps more important than having to live through neigboring tear downs, new construction and finding yourself in a house the size of your neighbor's garage, is that forward appreciation is tied completely to the value of the land, not the house.

It's actually a pretty smart investment to buy the cheapest house on an expensive block, however! Assuming there's nothing terribly wrong with it, of course.