Glencoe and NS suburbs (Chicago, Arlington Heights: middle-class, fit in, real estate)

[northshoreseeker]

We have just moved from California into the windy Chicago. We are currenty looking for a house in the north shore such as Wilmette, North Field, Glencoe, Northbrook, etc. I especially liked Glencoe due to its proximity to free way, the lake, train, and the lagoons. I think the real state prices in Glencoe have come down as the other markets did so there are some appealing opportunities. I also know about the great school system and community. I do have a few concerns:
1. As a first generation Chinese from California it appears Glencoe does not have a great diversity. Would people define the town being open-minded or fairly conservative?
2. We are middle class common folks. We won't live out of our means. However, Glencoe, as some of the other suburbs, is one of the richest areas in the nation. Would that be as bad as some people described. We have kids 4 and 2 so high school is a long way to go. Would we look really out of place there?
Anyone can share their thoughts or experience will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,

[JohnPF]

No, I don't think so. Go for it. If you want more insight, write a DM (Direct Message) to me.
I live in Northbrook and know a bunch of Chinese/Korean/Indian residents. European too. You will do fine.

[cubssoxfan]

We are middle class common folks. We won't live out of our means. However, Glencoe, as some of the other suburbs, is one of the richest areas in the nation.

If the North Shore is too expensive, try Arlington Heights or Prospect Heights. We have many Chinese families in our school, Prospect Heights 23. We have a full symphony program which is rare in many middle schools. Our school population is quite diverse. Russian, Polish, Eygptian, Chinese, Korean, Mexican, Phillipino and many more ethnicities.
The suburbs you are looking at are considered "best of the best" by many, but it comes at a high (for many) entry cost. Arlington Heights and many of the NW suburbs still provide quality education, excellent libraries, good parks & recreation and a manageable commute to downtown- at a lower entry (housing/real estate tax) cost.
Good luck with your search.

[chet everett]

I don't really now how you could classify yourself as "middle class common folks" and be in a position to be seriously consider Glencoe. It is an expensive place to live. The stuff east of Green Bay Rd is still sky high and even the more affordable stuff to the west starts very high.

The places that are lower prices tend to have some negatives with lay-out / style / age, some of which are more serious than others. There are some charmers too, but these could be purchased for hundreds of thousands less in another town where you truly will find LOTS of "middle class common folks".

Here is one charmer: Redfin

Now the big difference is that in an area where there are mostly "middle class common folks" you won't have neighbors that are high powered attorneys, physicians, business leaders, investment stars and the like. If that is not appealing to you then you ought to shop elsewhere where your money will go farther OR you'll leave more money for other things...

Racially there are plenty of Asian families through out the region. If you want to track down an area where Chinese are a dominant part of people's backgrounds that could be a bit harder, as Asia is a big region and the official stats don't break out people from their country origin. Having said, I personally know quite a few families in the Western Burbs and North Shore that did come from China. They have technical / academic backgrounds and incomes that definitely are above "national" norms for middle income, though probably not at the sky high level of the most well compensated people from the best performing financial organizations...

The choices you make about your own place to live and the opportunities that your kids may have are really filled with decisions that only you can weigh.

[Sunsmile]

Don't buy in Glencoe without renting first. It doesn't have many Asians. In fact, it doesn't have many foreign-born people in general. Of course, there are exceptions. But the truth is, most foreigners you'll see there are the "help".

It also doesn't have much economic diversity - most people in Glencoe are upper and upper-middle class. That translates into a lot of hidden costs - like buying your kids designer clothes so they can fit in with the kids from their class. Also, no kid likes to be different - and your kids will be different based on 2 factors: 1) being Asian 2) being middle-class

I am renting in Highland Park (on the border with Glencoe) and am familiar with both places. If I were a middle-class Asian, I would absolutely NOT buy a house in either Glencoe or Highland Park. In fact, I'm an upper-middle class white person, and I don't like Glencoe/Highland Park (found out after renting), so I'll be buying a house elsewhere.

Sorry for the negative rambling, but I feel very strongly that Glencoe is not the best place for you. Maybe I am wrong and you'll feel different, but RENT FIRST.

For you, I recommend West Northbrook, Glenview and West Wilmette. Those places are fairly diverse, have a lot of Asians and great schools.

[skontoller]

[quote=chet everett;11349465]I don't really now how you could classify yourself as "middle class common folks" and be in a position to be seriously consider Glencoe. It is an expensive place to live. The stuff east of Green Bay Rd is still sky high and even the more affordable stuff to the west starts very high.


After some time viewing messages on this board I realized that one man's middle class is another's upper class.

The median income for a household in Glencoe is 164k and for a family is 200k+. (wikipedia) These are clearly magnitudes of order over the nation's average but I don't think they constitute upper class incomes.
They are squarely upper middle class: single income physicians, lawyers, commercial bankers, etc.

I do agree with you about the properties east of GBR....absolutely off the chart expensive. Most of that property goes for well north of $1.5 mil which would require a minimum income of atleast 500k which is defintiely approaching upper class income.

SK

[thePR]

[quote=skontoller;11356066]

Originally Posted by chet everett

I don't really now how you could classify yourself as "middle class common folks" and be in a position to be seriously consider Glencoe. It is an expensive place to live. The stuff east of Green Bay Rd is still sky high and even the more affordable stuff to the west starts very high.


After some time viewing messages on this board I realized that one man's middle class is another's upper class.

The median income for a household in Glencoe is 164k and for a family is 200k+. (wikipedia) These are clearly magnitudes of order over the nation's average but I don't think they constitute upper class incomes.
They are squarely upper middle class: single income physicians, lawyers, commercial bankers, etc.

I do agree with you about the properties east of GBR....absolutely off the chart expensive. Most of that property goes for well north of $1.5 mil which would require a minimum income of atleast 500k which is defintiely approaching upper class income.

SK

Glencoe is upper-middle class and upper class a house might be 1.5 million but the taxes you pay are very high.

[northshoreseeker]

Thank you all for very honest opinions. I guess I should probably better define our family being upper-middle class. I say middle since we are not high-order executives, financiers, or can rake in big stock options, but rather working families. Coming from California it easy to see why I am excited about living Glencoe and North Shore. It's good to have options here. You all know about the California public education.....

[chet everett]

Fair enough. Honestly if you "get on the ground" and like the housing that is in your price range I really don't think you can go wrong in any area served by New Trier. Sure there are some snobby people and you have to be diligent to watch for too much materialism, but the quality of education is first rate and the value that one can get from that is hard to ignore. Socially there are certainly things to watch out for yourself and your kids, but that is true pretty much anywhere.

Probably 90%+ of people that live in the New Trier district are there because of the school and the long term odds of there being any kind of radical shift to freeze funding the way that has happened in CA is extremely unlikley. It is arguable that the lower priced homes are a better deal as the more expensive homes carry a disproportionate tax burden given that that the richest folks often send kids to private schools...

Good Luck!

[Careless]

I don't know where they live, but New Trier is up to almost 10% East Asian now. It's sinicized incredibly rapidly (there were relatively few Asians there in the 90s).