where would you live if.... (Bolingbrook, Downers Grove: houses, price, commuting)

[jessiegirl_98]

Originally Posted by somewherediff

Well the only problem is we have 3 cats, daughter will be crushed if we have to give any of them up. I don't think many apts. will allow that, but maybe if we found a house to rent with understanding landlord. Do you think I should go for the interview at Midwestern?

Go for the interview and see if you like it! Regarding cats, I had 4 cats and a dog and was able to find landlords even in the city that allowed them! That being said, I think Naperville (which is out of the price range anyway) has a 3 pet max.

Originally Posted by Lookout Kid

$180K home in Chicagoland = House 100 miles from the city or in a high-crime neighborhood.

This is an overstatement. Now, you are going to get far away from the city, but not 100 miles. Plus, if the poster is going to Downers Grove, that already puts you out from the city a bit.

[somewherediff]

Originally Posted by tyboo123

Hi, Live near AURORA/Naperville. Need renters good area location near schools, police/fire dept. low crime to none. growing area. Good restaurants, etc.

I love it, bought house in 2005, and decided to live closer to CITY.

If interested call me at 224 653 8574.

Hey that sounds really interesting. How far would it be to the metro station and commute to Chicago? I'm not sure where my husband would work, he is a java programmer, on dice.com it looks like a lot of jobs for this in the area, so he may be able to choose what side of town to work in.

Thank-you to everyone for responding to this post! Please keep on with the advice, I only have a few days to make up my mind about the interview.

[SouthSideRenegade48]

Your best bet will probably be a condo. You might be able to get lucky and get a condo in Tinley Park in the Brementowne subdivision off 163rd street and 80th ave. I used to live in those condos for a while, but they can be a little small. If you only have 3 people, then a 2-bedroom condo should be enough. The price might be a little more nowadays than when I moved out, though. And you can probably sneak the 3rd cat in if they don't allow more than 2 cats, they'll never know. The high school your kid would be going to would be Andrew High School, which is where I went to, and it's really nice and they have some of the highest test scores in the area, but it severely lacks in diversity. Another possibility is to get a mobile home. There is one REALLY NICE mobile home community in Matteson just south of Lincoln Highway. The mobile home community doesn't even look like a mobile home community, a lot of the mobile homes are double-wide and they look more like a bunch of little houses. They are also spread around in a very nice scenic manner and there's also a recreation center located in the middle of the community. There's also a 24-hour guard tending to a gate to keep non-residents out. This area has kids going to the Rich Township high schools, which are average, not bad at all, but not over-achieving, but the diversity is fantastic. Honestly, those are your two best bets, a condo or a mobile home, and don't let the stigma of getting a mobile home discourage you from looking into getting one. The mobile home community in Matteson is EXTREMELY nice and they're not trailers by any stretch of the imagination. Also, I think the price range for a mobile home is something like 40k to 60k, and you can sell it when you're ready to move for your money back. The mobile homes there are in high demand.

[sgresident]

If you come out to the western suburbs as the Montgomery resident posted, you can find some homes in the 200,000 range. I haven't been in the market for a home, but there are definitely plenty to choose from. You also may be able to find a home to rent in the area. I am from sugar grove and kids here attend Kaneland schools. parts of the montgomery area also attend kaneland schools. It is a safe area. The metra stop is in downtown aurora. There is also a metra stop in Elburn, which is a small town north of sugar grove, along rt 47. good luck in your search.

[becoming trees]

There are homes around your price range in Bolingbrook/Romeoville area which isn't far from Downers Grove.
You could get right on 355 and be near Midwestern.
You'd be about 10 miles away from Naperville (in Romeoville, even closer in Bolingbrook.)

So the comment on 100 miles from the city, is absolutely an overstatement.

The biggest problem is that there's no Metra stop, the closest would be Naperville, Downers Grove, or Lemont (which has limited service.)

But, I would look around that area, as others have said.

[Rockwell1]

I wouldn't think you could find more then a town home in that budget but it would need to be in a pretty far out suburb. For a decent three bedroom rental I would think you would be over $1,500/mo for something decent with 3 bedrooms.

[chet everett]

Not to burst anyone's bubble but there is NO WAY that you can get to Midwestern U from Montgomery in 20 minutes. In the middle of night with no traffic you'd have a hard time doing it under 40 minutes.

During any normal commuting period you'd be lucky if you could do it under an hour.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by jessiegirl_98

This is an overstatement. Now, you are going to get far away from the city, but not 100 miles. Plus, if the poster is going to Downers Grove, that already puts you out from the city a bit.

The "100 miles" thing wasn't meant to be taken literally. Sheesh.

[mendelman]

Delete post

[mendelman]

I think you just need to look at some local realtor listing sites.

I really like the Baird and Warner residential site: http://www.bairdwarner.com

Here's one that might work for you:
100 2nd St
Downers Grove, IL 60515
$ 199,000
3 Bedrooms, 1.0 Baths
Photo of house:
http://www.mlsni.com/photos/property/666/06969666.jpg

It looks like it is about 1/2-1 mile from downtown Downer's Grove and probably an easy 10 minute drive to Midwestern U. The interior photos at Baird & Warner show it as a little "old" inside, but probably livable, and at this price and in Downer's Grove you'd be doing pretty good.

Suffice to say, if you're willing to live in something "small" or "outdated" than I don't think you'll have a problem finding something in Downer's Grove, Lombard, or Villa Park (Lombard and Villa Park are just north of Downer's Grove). But don't dally, there isn't much supply of livable houses in your price range.