MKE - Chicago, where to live (Naperville, Cicero: rent, houses, neighborhoods)

[pete6032]

I'm looking at a job in downtown Chicago near union station. Only been to Chicago a couple of times, right now I live in Milwaukee. If you had a job downtown right near union station, what would be a reasonable place to live? I'm looking for a family-friendly area, walkable area, sort of a suburban feel to it. Don't have kids and don't know what a reasonable rent is. I'm kind of looking for a neighborhood similar to Shorewood, Whitefish Bay, Wauwatosa, etc.

Do these kinds of areas exist in Chicago or would I have to live way far out to get something like that? I'm not looking for suburban utopia, but something that is in between dense urban core life and suburban life. Walkable yet still suburban in feeling if that makes sense.

[UrbanCheetah]

Originally Posted by pete6032

I'm looking at a job in downtown Chicago near union station. Only been to Chicago a couple of times, right now I live in Milwaukee. If you had a job downtown right near union station, what would be a reasonable place to live? I'm looking for a family-friendly area, walkable area, sort of a suburban feel to it. Don't have kids and don't know what a reasonable rent is. I'm kind of looking for a neighborhood similar to Shorewood, Whitefish Bay, Wauwatosa, etc.

Do these kinds of areas exist in Chicago or would I have to live way far out to get something like that? I'm not looking for suburban utopia, but something that is in between dense urban core life and suburban life. Walkable yet still suburban in feeling if that makes sense.

Your post is kind of strange. What industry do you work in? I feel like it would be hard to get a job that is specifically just in downtown. Yes most of the professional/corporate jobs are in downtown, but I am not sure that is the best strategy. You can find plenty of good jobs in Evanston, Near O'Hare and other suburbs/parts of the city.

With that being said if I were you I would focus on getting the job first, then based on the location look where to move. The last thing you want is you moving to Oak Park and end up getting a job in Evanston.

[Lookout Kid]

I made the move from Milwaukee to Chicago myself many moons ago. Shorewood and Whitefish Bay are very similar to our inner-ring North Shore suburbs like Wilmette and perhaps Northern Evanston. Both of those suburbs have trains that go in to Ogilvie, but that could still be manageable.

If you are interested in city neighborhoods that basically meet your criteria, you might consider Lincoln Square/Ravenswood, Roscoe Village, or Andersonville.

[♥Puddles♥]

The inner suburbs and place like Roscoe Village and the other ones ^ mentioned. Union Station is close to Ogilvie but if your job is in the other direction from Union Station it might totally suck to walk between station and office in winter. A few blocks is not that bad. If you are from Milwaukee you already know the weather

Sent from my iPhone 5

[Lookout Kid]

Since Chicago is bigger than Milwaukee and has suburbs of a similar age, there are literally dozens of suburbs with tree-lined streets, walkable density around a downtown core, and older charming houses similar to Wauwautosa, Shorewood, Whitefish Bay, etc. Most of the older suburbs with Metra stations have this sort of feel in their town centers. Here's a partial list:

Oak Park
River Forest
Riverside
Berwyn
La Grange
Hinsdale
Downers Grove
Naperville
Glen Ellyn
Wheaton
Elmhurst
Park Ridge
Arlington Heights
Evanston
Wilmette
Winnetka
Highland Park
Glencoe

For any of these, look at Google Street View near the downtown areas/Metra stations to get a sense of their appearance and density.

[pete6032]

Thanks for the suggestions. What is commuting like in Chicago? I really enjoy Milwaukee because I can live somewhere walkable with a small town feel but only have a 15 minute commute to get downtown. If I lived out in some of these suburbs it looks like the commute would be 45 minutes or more. Are there any areas of Chicago/suburbs that fit my original criteria that would be a 30 minute commute or less? Or is Chicago too big to have what I'm looking for and have a 30 minute or less commute?

Also do subway trains ever come and they are entirely full during commute times so you end up waiting for another car? The train I was in yesterday was absolutely packed on the blue line from o'hare around 8:30.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by pete6032

Thanks for the suggestions. What is commuting like in Chicago? I really enjoy Milwaukee because I can live somewhere walkable with a small town feel but only have a 15 minute commute to get downtown. If I lived out in some of these suburbs it looks like the commute would be 45 minutes or more. Are there any areas of Chicago/suburbs that fit my original criteria that would be a 30 minute commute or less? Or is Chicago too big to have what I'm looking for and have a 30 minute or less commute?

Also do subway trains ever come and they are entirely full during commute times so you end up waiting for another car? The train I was in yesterday was absolutely packed on the blue line from o'hare around 8:30.

There are a lot of city neighborhoods you can live in and have a commute downtown of 30 minutes or less by public transit. The closer you are to downtown, the more crowded the trains are.

[reppin_the_847]

I would look into the bordering suburbs of Chicago. Towns like Evanston, Wilmette, Oak Park, Forest Park, River Forest, Berwyn, etc. If you take the Metra train from these areas, you should be able to reach downtown Chicago in about half an hour. They are also very walkable areas, but a lot of them are a bit pricey.

Originally Posted by pete6032

Thanks for the suggestions. What is commuting like in Chicago? I really enjoy Milwaukee because I can live somewhere walkable with a small town feel but only have a 15 minute commute to get downtown. If I lived out in some of these suburbs it looks like the commute would be 45 minutes or more. Are there any areas of Chicago/suburbs that fit my original criteria that would be a 30 minute commute or less? Or is Chicago too big to have what I'm looking for and have a 30 minute or less commute?

Also do subway trains ever come and they are entirely full during commute times so you end up waiting for another car? The train I was in yesterday was absolutely packed on the blue line from o'hare around 8:30.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by pete6032

Are there any areas of Chicago/suburbs that fit my original criteria that would be a 30 minute commute or less? Or is Chicago too big to have what I'm looking for and have a 30 minute or less commute?

Sure, it's possible, but it really depends on how close your home and work are to the transit line you need. And if you change jobs, it can all get screwed up pretty quickly. I've had 20 minute and 45 minute commutes from the same home address in the city to various downtown job locations (I've worked in all corners of the Loop and River North at this point).

The only suburbs that may give you a 30 minute commute downtown are the very near western burbs, like Oak Park, Forest Park, Cicero, and Berwyn. But again, it totally depends on where your workplace is in relation to the train line you live by. Or you can drive and pay for parking, but that really adds up. I know a guy who lived in Northern Oak Park, and he would take Chicago Avenue to his job in western River North every day, and he swore it was 25 minutes. But he probably paid $200/month for parking. Some of the near western burbs are nicer than others...

[glenninindy]

..Or you can do what many in my little community/town do everyday, which is take the fast Southshore train from MillerBeach, Indiana into the Loop.