Buying in Chicagoland (Aurora, Naperville, Bolingbrook: real estate market, renting, loan)

[amy_w]

We have two small children and moved out of the city to Naperville a few months ago. We only had less than a month to make a decision on WHERE to move (long story) and knew NOTHING about the suburbs. We picked Naperville because we had heard that the schools here are excellent. We are currently renting, but NEED to get into a more permanent living arrangement ASAP (the kids are GROWING!!) Problem is that we had no idea how expensive it is to buy a house here. Or any other town along any of the train lines it seems... (my husband works downtown and needs to take the train in)
Can anyone recommend another suburb that is SAFE to raise a family and has good schools? AND has a train stop? Somewhere a little less pricey...

Also, has anyone had any experience with an interest only loan? Since I will return to work when the kids are in school in a few years, we thought that may be an option.

Thanks in advance!

[jimjohn]

It is going to be hard to help not know your price range. Give me an idea and I'll do my best.

[Steve-o]

Unless youre living right on the tracks near the depot, youd need to drive to the station I assume. In that case, check out Elburn. Its a short 5 minute drive to wonderful Geneva, which has a station right near downtown. Elburn is hardly as cheap as it used to be (its growing like a weed), but it should be substantially cheaper than Naperville.

[oakparkdude]

Elburn to Geneva is more than 5 minutes, probably 10-15 with traffic these days. Luckily, Elburn has its own Metra station now and is on the same line as Geneva.

[Steve-o]

I was unaware Elburn had its own station. Is this a new thing?

Anyways, from Elburn (Rt. 47) to Randall Rd takes about 5-7 minutes. There isnt much traffic and only one light (Old La Fox Rd) between Elburn and Randall. Plus the speed limit is 55 mph, of which most people do 65. It takes no time at all. I know, I drive it everyday. ;-)

[amy_w]

We need to stay under $220K. And I would be fine with a townhome or duplex as long as it has a little yard for the kids

Yes, he will need to drive to the train station.

I've seen some homes in Bolingbrook (near 53 & Boughton) that looked nice, but I have been STRONGLY advised to stay away from that area because it is not safe. Same thing with Aurora.

We're thinking about NW Indiana too, even though the commute would be longer. At least we wouldn't be paying out the nose on property taxes.

[Frank the Tank]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

I was unaware Elburn had its own station. Is this a new thing?

Anyways, from Elburn (Rt. 47) to Randall Rd takes about 5-7 minutes. There isnt much traffic and only one light (Old La Fox Rd) between Elburn and Randall. Plus the speed limit is 55 mph, of which most people do 65. It takes no time at all. I know, I drive it everyday. ;-)

Yeah, they just extended the train line to that town.

As for the original post, Elburn would probably be your most reasonable bet if you want to stay in the west suburbs and want a newer home. Lombard, which is a bit closer in than Naperville, also is on the train line and has lower housing prices (albeit with older housing stock).

Also, as someone that was a finance major in college, I highly discourage you from taking an interest-only loan. I could go on for a long time for the reasons if you'd like, but the only reason why anyone could ever justifiably consider an interest-only loan would be someone taking a big risk of buying a home in a rising real estate market and then flipping it quickly for a profit (and I still think it's a bad idea in that situation). We certainly don't have a rising real estate market today and for a long-term situation, I really can't see any reason to take out an interest-only loan for a house unless you want the risk of having substantial financial problems down the road (you'll have to pay the piper at some point - an interest-only loan only puts that off).

[CBexp.]

Homewood and Flossmoor have outstanding public schools, park district, and villages! there are train stops in both towns that can be at Randolph station in about 30 minutes. Educated and friendly area, homes from 180's to over a million. Very diverse housing. Check out www.H-Fisgreat.com (broken link) for different links about this beautifull area!

[DonkeyTeeth]

There are lots of parts of Bolingbrook that shouldn't be unsafe, but none of the town is convenient to any of the train lines. The East side of Aurora that hugs route 59 shouldn't present too many safety issues, and can offer pretty easy access to a Metra station. There are lots of townhouses within a mile or two of 59 and that side of Aurora feels more like Naperville than the grittier areas near downotown Aurora.

Is there a reason you're limited to the West burbs? The Crystal Lake area may offer some choices, and there are Metra stations in CL and several nearby towns. You might even find some options closer in if you look in places like Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, Wheeling. You'd have to scope out each individual neighborhood to see if it meets your safety standards, but you shouldn't be limited to the far end of one Metra line.

[amy_w]

Donkey Teeth

Nope, we're not limited to the Western suburbs - I'll look into those areas you suggested! As far as Bolingbrook is concerned, we were thinking that taking 53 up to the Lisle metra wasn't going to be a big deal until we discovered there is no parking there (well, extremely limited parking). So yeah, you're right - that's really not a viable option. I was cautioned by our realtor that even some of the neighborhoods near 59 in the 204 school district with Aurora addresses are rather sketchy (even though I thought they looked fine when I drove around over there)