Place to live in northshore (Chicago, Waukegan: for sale, real estate, apartment complexes)

[drums]

My husband and I will be moving to Chicago suburbs and my husband will be working in Abbott. I understand there are a lot of nice areas around it, as well as some shady areas too.

We are looking for a nice 2-3 bedroom apartment to rent. We would like the commute to be less than 30 minutes. The area being safe is important. It would be nice if we are on a lake, forest or close to a water body.

My extensive online searches have not lead to any apartment buildings that really appeal to me.

Does anyone have recommendations for any apartment buildings that they know of?
What areas would you recommend?
Our budget is below 2000 per month.
thanks in advance.

[lincolnparker]

Lake Forest
Lake Bluff
Wilmette
Northbrook
Evanston (possibly)

[chet everett]

Abbott Labs is closer to Libertyville or Gurnee. $2000/mo will not go far , but there are safe apartments available in those areas for that amount.

[reppin_the_847]

I'd also take a look at Lake Bluff, and specifically the "Abbott Park" area in uncorporated Lake Bluff / Knollwood which is very close to Abbott Labs. There should be rentals available, and the commute to Abbott will probably be about 5 minutes.

Once you have a better idea of the region, perhaps look into branching out to other areas. As others have stated, areas such as Libertyville, Gurnee, and Lake Bluff are a pretty close commute to Abbott Labs. The other towns mentioned in this thread are certainly worth considering as well depending on your budget and commute thresholds.

[chitown85]

Gurnee is on the lower end of the list. Lake Bluff is on the high end. I am not sure, but there doesn't seem to be many apartments in Lake Bluff. Libertyville or Vernon Hills is your best bet.

[chet everett]

Too many apartment complexes n Vernon Hills are not well run. My experience is that Libertyville has nicer rentals, as do parts of Gurnee -- the key is to avoid places that are too easy to find / over promoted. Up in the area of Lake Co there tends to be a high percentage of places available directly from small / midsized investor/landlords that do not advertise much and do not offer the stupid "move in free" deals. That makes for a nicer, quieter place to rent.

[noid_1985]

take a look at Lake Bluff

[drums]

thanks, how do i go about finding apartments in that areas? There seem to be only 10-15 apartment complexes that are advertised online.

[cohdane]

Abbott runs a shuttle between the Lake Bluff Metra Station and Abbott Park. Taking the train might open up your options a bit.

Here are a few unconventional places to search for rentals. Consider renting a house, too.

HotPads - Map Search for Real Estate, Apartments & Houses for Rent, Foreclosures and Homes for Sale

Zilpy - Apartments & Houses Rent Comparison, Neighborhood Rental Maps, Rent Trends

Free Chicago Classified Ads - Kijiji Chicago Classifieds Chicago, Illinois

House/Apartment for Rent

Last, but not least, try craigslist and the most conventional of all: realtor.com

[sammy22]

I agree with the suggestions about looking at the apartments in Lake Bluff off of Waukegan Road (route 43) near the Abbott complex - nice places for a smaller family. Pretty convenient to the highways (41 and 94) and a two minute commute for your husband. Your husband might want to check with his HR department to see if any of those complexes give discounts to Abbott employees.