Let's find out how nice Chicago folks really are... (Rockford: townhomes, employment)

[luauelvis]

I have been reading this thread for a few weeks now, and evertone seems pretty nice and helpful so I thought I would put you all to the test. I am a 33 year old married teacher with 2 children (9and 4) My wife is a registered nurse. we are looking to move from Seattle Washington to either Shaumburg, Naperville, or as opposite as you can get, Jacksonville Florida. I know what you are thinking, Florida compared to Illinios, they could not be more different!!!!! My wife went to college in Florida and really loves the sun. I spent the first 16 years of my life in Minnesota. I miss the midwest. I miss the seasons and the people. Illinios is not cheap but compared to Washington it looks alot better. So if anyone out there could help with some advice that would be so great.
1. Does 300,000 buy a decesnt home in Shaumburg, or Naperville areas?
2. How do you all like living in Ilinios?
3. What makes illinios so special?
Thanks for any help you can provide.

[Calidreemer]

1. Does 300,000 buy a decesnt home in Shaumburg, or Naperville areas?
Probably in Schaumberg but I think Naperville is getting expensive. Chet Evans will provide you with statistics on this I am sure.
2. How do you all like living in Ilinios?
In the Chicago area it has a lot of conveniences and culture, but the weather isn't all that great to me. I'm like your wife, I love the sun and the many days without sunshine or with poor weather is depressing to me. I also am bored by the flat topography. I do love having Lake Michigan close by, that adds a lot of value from a recreational stand point. I also feel like the Chicago area is pretty safe from natural disasters which is nice. I do think Florida and Chicago come in neck and neck for humidity and heat during the summer time. This summer has been pretty mild so far, but our weather can turn on a dime. You never can be sure your summer BBQ wont be rained out.
3. What makes illinios so special?
See # 2 and remove the negatives

[fredn]

I will say one thing. You really must like cold weather to move to the Chicago area because a fair amount of the year is just darn cold. I lived in Seattle for a while and the mild weather doesn't compare to the extreme hot and cold of Chicago. But you probably already know this...

[JerichoHW]

1. Does 300,000 buy a decesnt home in Shaumburg, or Naperville areas?
Really that all depends on what decesnt, the key is to pick out you familys specific needs, and find out if you can get at leas 50% of what you want. For instance if you can't afford Schaumburg look at Streamwood and you will probably get more for your buck. Naperville is really large, so you will have many Subdivisons to choose from. If you want a 300k, but still nice home look at older more established subdivisons, from like the 90's, belive me with the constant moving pattern in that area you can get some great deals on a large still modern house.
2. How do you all like living in Ilinios?
Illinois is more unique then most people think, I find everything I need in Illinois. I have a world-class city "Chicago" and I have plenty of shopping "Woodfield". It's different for everyone, but I enjoy it.
3. What makes illinios so special?
It has everything, including many large cities ie. Naperville, Springfield, Chicago, Rockford Peoria, Champaign/Urbana, Quad Cities you get the point.

Good Luck on the House Hunt!!!

[SouthNapervilleDad]

1. Does 300,000 buy a decesnt home in Shaumburg, or Naperville areas?

It really depends on what one's wants and needs are. For what we wanted, 4 bedroom, 3000+ Sq Ft with the layout wanted and little worked needed. No.

2. How do you all like living in Ilinios?

Lived all over Chicago for my entire life. Love it.

3. What makes illinios so special?

The people, the lake, the museums, the zoos, Metra, Fall and Spring, summer nights, winter nights with a full moon when it just you, alone, walking across the snow

[Calidreemer]

That's a nice synopsis South!

[chet everett]

A #1 There are houses that are perfectly livable in Schaumburg for $300,000, and some in Naperville for that amount too, but there is no reason to confine your search to those two areas, which are less 30 miles apart. I am going to guess that you have a job offer from one school in each town, and if that is case then I would concentrate on finding out more about the specific school. As a former teacher myself I can tell you that it is not unusual for schools to differ dramatically in salary/benefits/work environment. Depending on what is important to you might find a very delightful home for your family in any one of the HUNDREDS of towns or cities that are with a reasonable commute from either of Naperville or Schaumburg.

A #2 I love living in the region. I have lived elsewhere in the midwest and Chicago is nicer for me because of the tremendous range of resources. There is literally NOTHING that is available as far as culture, entertainment, commerce, education in the region that is not equal or better than any other place in the country, and the region is remarkably easy to 'master' in terms of getting to all the resources. Within an easy hour's drive there are lifetime of opportunities. I have worked in and/or visited nearly every state in country and some places are superior in weather (duh), some may be better for outdoor activity, plenty are cheaper, but none are a incredibly rich in so many ways...

A #3 A lot of things makes Illinois special. Education is a huge business in the state -- from UofC to Northwestern to UofI we are fortunate to have have major national research universities. The most direct benefit of this is superior access to state of the art health care, but there are numerous other benefits that are less obvious.
Some of the public high schools in and around Chicago are nationally respected, and there are many feeder elementary districts responsible for that. The various educators that work in such districts are serious and appreciated by the communities they work in.
The "second city" aspect of Chicago makes us kind of an "alternate capital" in many ways. Employment is very diverse and stable, virtually every firm that sells anything to business or consumers is very active in the area. The state overall is a huge influence on the nation's agriculture, both directly because of the massive farming and related industries (John Deere, Caterpillar, ADM) as well as the financial capital of world's agriculture markets (CBOT/ CME). The "high end" and cosmopolitan nature of much employment means that service industry that caters to that raise the bar for everyone. One example are some restaurants that are really equal to those of any in the world.

The political heritage of "The Land of Lincoln" is big deal as well, even recent national figures came from the same heritage -- from Rumsfield to Obama there are plenty of significant political figures that got their start in Illinois. Politics is sort of like sports, something to watch or participate in. Chicago is a great sports town. From a spectator standpoint right now the Cubs and White Sox are both in the hunt for league champions. The Bears rule the fall sports scene. The Blackhawks are under the renewed leadership of a new generation of ownership. There are large numbers of youth sports that have huge participation. Little League, swimming, soccer, hockey,speed skating are all well known for being nationally respected. For adults the Chicago Marathon is among the nation's largest. Golf is hugely popular and even unlikely sports (given our not very long summer) such as tennis, cycling, rowing, and sailing have large competitive draws. Equine sports have a long tradition in the area too.

I cannot fathom any thing about Florida, especially Jacksonville, that it offers other than a more pleasant air temperature for a few months... You know happens to people that spend too much time in the sun.

[sgresident]

I think that your budget of $300,000 can find a very descent home in the chicagoland area. as mentioned above, their is quite a bit of distance between schaumburg and naperville, so why limit your search to only those towns? Being in close proximity to chicago has huge benefits..cultural, economic, travel etc. The thing about Illinois weather is that it has a lot of dynamic changes..highs, lows, wet, dry, ever-changing. the surrounding area has a lot of variety as well...cities like schaumburg, aurora, elgin. quaint areas like geneva, st. charles. semi-rural areas like elburn, sugar grove, yorkville..with farms, horses etc. a wide range of housing opportunities..older, historic-types, new mcmansions, regular homes, townhomes. There is a lot of opportunity in our greater metropolitan region!

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by luauelvis

I have been reading this thread for a few weeks now, and evertone seems pretty nice and helpful so I thought I would put you all to the test. I am a 33 year old married teacher with 2 children (9and 4) My wife is a registered nurse. we are looking to move from Seattle Washington to either Shaumburg, Naperville, or as opposite as you can get, Jacksonville Florida. I know what you are thinking, Florida compared to Illinios, they could not be more different!!!!! My wife went to college in Florida and really loves the sun. I spent the first 16 years of my life in Minnesota. I miss the midwest. I miss the seasons and the people. Illinios is not cheap but compared to Washington it looks alot better. So if anyone out there could help with some advice that would be so great.
1. Does 300,000 buy a decesnt home in Shaumburg, or Naperville areas?
2. How do you all like living in Ilinios?
3. What makes illinios so special?
Thanks for any help you can provide.

1. 300K might be kinda feasible in Schaumburg, but not really Naperville, unless you want to get into a cookie-cutter subdivision, which can also be more expensive than 300K for a smaller home. Naperville is a fun place to live though, so you pay for it.

2. I love it. Ive traveled to every corner of this country and have yet to find a place that feels as good as CHicago's western suburbs. It just feels like home! You can find everything under the sun here, its safe and clean, etc, etc. Sure its expensive, but if thats the price I have to pay, OH WELL!

3. Many things. The people, the diverse topography, the cities/towns, even the weather in spring/summer/fall. Winter is harsh at times, but its fun if you take advantage of it instead of sitting inside and getting fat like most people choose to do. As for the person who said IL's summers are like Floridas???? They have NO clue what theyre talking about. On average, maybe 15 days of the entire summer can compare to Florida, thats it. Generally its quite a bit cooler and less humid. I dont see Miami getting temps like we've had the last few weeks (low humidity, 75 degree highs, 55 degree nights). Florida's summers and CHicagoland's summers are completely different. We also get a lot less rain then they do.

[Calidreemer]

Hi Steve-O I was the one who compared the summers to Florida. I was comparing the heat and humidity to Florida's. We have relatives down there and I have been there plenty of times in the summer and I stand by my comparison. How long have you lived in Chicago? If you haven't been here for more than a few years I would say just wait - this summer is not indicative of the typical summer - we can go from 50's to 90 with 90% humidity in a day and boy does it feel oppresive. We can go for days with hot, sticky, rainy weather only to be greeted by sun, heat and humidity. Sunny, mild and low humidity is a gift and should be enjoyed while you can enjoy it (like this week) because that kind of weather is not typical. Give me Arizona's dry heat before Chicago heat (yes we have vacationed purposely in Arizona during the summer because we love the weather - I guess I always love the sauna).

It's just my opinion and I'll stick with it if you don't mind and you are welcome to stick to yours. Oh and BTW - what diverse topography? Not trying to be argumentative, but I feel exactly the opposite - I think it's too flat here.