Relocating to Chicago Area - working in Carol Stream (Wheaton: real estate, home)

[dcsae]

Our family will be relocating to the Chicago area and I was just looking for some incite on areas to look at real estate. My husband will be working in the Carol Stream area, so we were thinking about St. Charles, Geneva, or Wheaton. We have a family and would like a bigger yard, but schools are probably the most important factor. We would really appreciate input about any of the suburbs, north, west, or south, that you would recommend.

On a side note, my husband checked out the mall in St. Charles and was surprised at how empty it was. He said there were quite a few empty store fronts. I was concerned that it may signal a weaker housing market. Any thoughts?

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond

[chet everett]

Charlestown Mall has ALWAYS been a "dying mall". Really never achieved the right mix of tenants from day one, the developers did not have the right connections to convince the people from Marshall Fields or even Sears to locate there -- too close to Stattford Square I guess...

Geneva is a lovely area, as is St. Charles and Wheaton. All of them would be great for the commute and you probably would have good schools in any of them, though the data is a little mixed. I generally respect the methodology of the US News list and they put Wheaton North in their silver category, while none of the St. Charles or Geneva high schools merit even a bronze. Wheaton North High School: Best High Schools - USNews.com

The elementary districts are even harder to assess, as all three towns have one or two schools that seem to have numbers significantly better than the district average, and the Illinois assessment is particularly weak: http://www.suntimes.com/images/cds/pdf/elemagate.pdf

Without knowing about your specific budget and desires it is hard say if any one town has more to offer you than the others...

[Steve-o]

I highly recommend Wheaton and Geneva, theyre top-notch, world class suburbs in their own rights. St. Charles is nice, too, but not as nice as Geneva or Wheaton. Schools in all 3 towns youre looking at are amongst the best in the state.

[sgresident]

I don't think you can use the charlestown mall as an indicator of the housing market in st. charles. for some reason, that mall just never took off. I think that if I was looking to buy, I would choose st. charles. It is definitely in a good driving range from carol stream. I would also be looking to stay on the east side of the river. the drive from the west side, across the bridge would be rather lengthy.

[cubssoxfan]

Don't forget to include Winfield. Also a nice town with a smaller feel to it.

[dcsae]

Thanks for the info - since we are not from the area, I really appreciate hearing what everyone has to say. My husband is working there now, and I will have him drive through Winfield tonight and check it out.

We would like to stay under $600,000 for our budget and a commute is okay. If anyone else would like to respond - I am just wondering if you worked in Carol Stream, and didn't mind a commute, what community would you live in? Thanks for the info!!

[TempesT68]

The housing market is tanking everywhere. Though with a 600K budget you can get a very nice home in wheaton with top notch schools and is right next door to carol stream, that is where i would look first but geneva is also a great choice.

[css9450]

I live in Glen Ellyn and work in Carol Stream; its a four-mile commute door-to-door. Glen Ellyn is probably one notch more expensive than Wheaton.

Charlestown Mall, as has been mentioned, has been dying for years. Sad, too, since its not very old. New in 1991 I think?

[dcsae]

After reading some of the other threads - I am a little concerned about the commute from st. Charles and Geneva to Carol Stream during rush hour - any thoughts?

[irish setter girl]

If you decide to go with the Wheaton area you have lots of options. As mentioned before, Winfield, is another good option since parts of it attend Wheaton Schools (Dist 200). Klein Creek is a nice subdivision in Winfield that attends Wheaton Schools. You are within walking distance to a very nice elem school and just a short drive to the middle and high school. 600k will get you a nice home with a three car garage. Another nice area very close to Klein Creek but with a Wheaton Address (same schools) is Wheaton Ridge and Wheaton Crossing. All three neighborhoods are near the intersection of Geneva and Pleasant Hill Roads. Very close to Carol Stream too. South Wheaton and Downtown Wheaton have some excellent areas and would not be far from Carol Stream at all. Feel free to DM me if you have any specific questions about the Wheaton area.