Glenview, Glencoe, Glen Ellyn or Wheaton (Park Ridge, Highland Park: houses, neighborhoods, buyer)

[Amra2008]

I need some solid opinions on the benefits of these suburbs. My husband and I are in the market for a single family home - price range 1.2 million. We are looking for a newer (under 10 years) home, with nice amenities. Moving from the city, a neighborhood feel is important to us. We would prefer to live near downtown, but would consider a subdivision for the right house.

I do not want to live in a "tear" down neighborhood. Although we love variety - i'm not comfortable living next to homes half the size of mine. Glenview has a lot nice homes, however I haven't found the right neighborhood - and i'm not sure about the downtown. Glencoe is adorable - but most homes in our price range are older rehabs.
Glen Ellyn and Wheaton seem nice - however I think the commute time may be longer to downtown vs. Glenview?

Schools are important to us, my research shows that all of the districts are above average.

[cubssoxfan]

What about adding Wilmette, Winnetka and Park Ridge to your list?

[nanannie]

I think its a matter of which feels like home and which you like best. All have decent schools and a reasonable commute.Personally, I like Glen Ellyn-great schools,beautiful town,pretty lake,easy metra train to the city. Glencoe is nice by the lake and close to the city with the good schools as well. You will find 'tear downs' in all towns. When looking for a n'hood in the town you decide on,just notify your realtor of your concern of house sizes.

[Amra2008]

I can't pinpoint it, but for some reason i'm not interested in Wilmette and Winnetka. They're very cute towns - but I just didn't "feel it".

Are there a lot of planes going over Park Ridge?

[nanannie]

Originally Posted by Amra2008

I can't pinpoint it, but for some reason i'm not interested in Wilmette and Winnetka. They're very cute towns - but I just didn't "feel it".

Are there a lot of planes going over Park Ridge?

It is very close to O'hare. I would suspect on some days there is flight patterns over PR. I like the downtown, and there are n'hoods with old,lovely homes, but I personally dont find it as 'charming' or desirable as Glen Ellyn/Glencoe

[irish setter girl]

I certainly think you could find what you are looking for in many communities. I have personal experince in the western burbs so that is all I can comment on. In both Wheaton and GE you will find million dollar homes within walking distance to town and train. Glen Ellyn's Lake Ellyn area is lovely and you certainly will not be the only milliion dollar home in the neighborhood. Wheaton's northside has many newer homes that are similar to what you are looking for. Both GE and Wheaton schools are very good and I would recommend either one if you found a house that you really like. Both communities have excellent park districts and are very close to all kinds of retail/restaurants and expressways. Lots of people from the city move to Glen Ellyn. Many friends of mine who lived in Lincoln Park have moved to Glen Ellyn (downtown area) and love it. I would think you'd get more house for the money in Wheaton or GE than the north shore. There are express train routes from GE and Wheaton that would be comparable to the north shore commute. Good luck to you.

[Bette]

My grandparents lived in Glen Ellyn for over 40 years - 680 Essex Drive - too bad they didn't gift it to us, ha, ha!

I can remember my dad being upset when my grandmother started going downhill - it seems she called Marshall Fields one day and ordered tons of stuff. I remember my dad spent weeks on the phone and flying back and forth.

[JanuaryGirl]

Unless you are taking the train, Wheaton and Glen Ellyn are going to be a worse driving commute than from the north suburbs. Those towns are further away from an expressway, and the Eisenhower (290) tends to have worse traffic than the Edens that you would take from north burbs (although the Edens is currently under construction). I grew up in Wheaton but spent the last several years working on the north shore in Highland Park (near Glencoe and Glenview). My opinions below:

Wheaton: strong church presence, conservative, republican, Christian, more down-to-Earth, not as materialistic as the north shore, ok downtown for basics but not that trendy, worse driving commute of the bunch

Glen Ellyn: not as conservative or church-oriented as Wheaton, downtown similar to Wheaton but with an independent film movie theater (I think they also show kid's stuff)

North Shore Suburbs (sorry, not as familiar with them specifically): not as conservative, more trendy/high-end shops, much more of a Jewish population which lends some diversity, MUCH more focus on looking good, having a good looking home, high-end possessions, etc. in most areas (which could be good or bad, lol!). Closer to lake which is nice. IMO I think it would be easier to raise kids in the western burbs, on the north shore there is a whole different level of wealth as far as what the kids have and how they (or their parents) can afford to spend their free time.

[Nysee53]

You can definitely find newer construction in Glencoe for under $1,300,000 which means you can spend under $1,200,000. You should act quick as the inventory is dissapearing quickly. I know of a home on Adams Avenue as well as one on Oakdale Avenue. Oakdale is nice because it is walking distance to Hubbard Woods in Winnetka and Adams is nice because you can walk to Watts Park, which has tons to offer, and you can walk to Downtown Glencoe.

Glenview is also very nice, but it doesn't have the feeling of the North Shore in your price range. If you look in Glenview you want to be in East Glenview in neighborhoods like Glen Oak Acres and Glenayre. The New Trier portion of Glenview is nice, but it tends to be hard to unload homes there, because generally New Trier families want to be in Wilmette, Winnetka, Glencoe, etc.

Glen Ellyn and Wheaton are very nice. I travel there a lot to see my friends in Wheaton. Glen Ellyn seems to be a little nicer and more tranquil, but Wheaton is nice. If you are looking at Glencoe and Glenview you will feel that you have made a step down though.

As a longtime resident of Glencoe and the North Shore I can tell you that Glencoe is a great place to raise children. Glencoe is very laid back and I don't want to say less pretentious, but it is less caught up in typical 'North Shore' activites as some of its neighbors, I believe this is because of the small community feel. The Jewish population much depends on where you are. You will find more jews in far west Glencoe and northeast Glencoe. Then you have communities like Winnetka, Kenilworth, and Lake Forest which have very small jewish populations. Good Luck! Please PM me if you have any other questions.

[Anthera]

Originally Posted by Nysee53

You can definitely find newer construction in Glencoe for under $1,300,000 which means you can spend under $1,200,000. You should act quick as the inventory is dissapearing quickly. I know of a home on Adams Avenue as well as one on Oakdale Avenue. Oakdale is nice because it is walking distance to Hubbard Woods in Winnetka and Adams is nice because you can walk to Watts Park, which has tons to offer, and you can walk to Downtown Glencoe.

Wrong.

New construction in Glencoe has a 3 year inventory. It is very difficult to sell new construction right now. If you do buy new construction, bargain hard and be prepared to walk away from the bargaining table, the developers will come running after you. They are paying all the carrying costs for unoccupied homes and most developers are being squeezed.

Banks are no longer financing spec houses unless the developers are putting up 50% or more of the costs. Now instead of building spec houses, they are putting sketches of the houses on the MLS and waiting until they have a buyer. Many developers are going out of business.