Moving to Chicago - A Little Overwhelmed...

[emathias]

Originally Posted by wedmiston

...

• Forget anything south. Period.

...

• people your age typically live in the city until the day the test comes back positive, then it's immediately out to the burbs, because NOBODY raises a kid in the city who has any brains, at least not past the age of four.

...

Spoken like a true braindead follower. You may be "a bit artsy", but you're anything but creative. Creative, intelligent people of almost any income level are able to raise kids in the city just fine with some relatively minor sacrifices (like size of a yard). Or people who manage to make over about $300k/yr can raise their kids in the city in the best neighborhoods at the best schools in the state. Two ambitious, well-educated, smart professionals can be earning that much by the time their kids are school aged without too much trouble. If you feel "nobody" with any brains raises kids in the city, maybe it's just that you don't know very many people with any brains.

Of the people I personally know who I met while they lived in the city who've since had kids, about 60% of them have stayed in the city (the number is actually about 75% staying in the city if I exclude the south-asian-immigrant families I know), even while their kids have been well past age 4. I don't know many with kids who've reached high school age, so that statistic may change as they pass junior high age, but you're pretty much living your parents' generation's ideals if your knee-jerk reaction to kids is to immediately move to the suburbs. Granted, I tend to mostly socialize with people who actually understand, like, and know how to take advantage of city life and don't just consider it a fashion accessory used to try and be like the cool kids, so my experience may be atypical compared to yours.

City life isn't for everyone, and I don't think it's terrible to want to move to the suburbs with kids. But I do think it's asinine to categorically decree that people who don't choose that life don't have brains.

[chet everett]

I do agree with emathias that with proper planning, a little sacrifice and bit of extra effort it is entirely possible to raise kids in Chicago, especially if your income / employment gives you the flexibility to make choices. The cost factor is really one of those things to some folks can adapt to and others decide the better value exists elsewhere -- increasingly even "upper" middle income find themselves priced out...

It is sorta funny that about the "artsy" angle too as I know quite a few folks that make their living in the performing arts / music and those with school age children really don't like the trade-offs that come with living inside Chicago. Now mind you I understand that to some folks "artsy" means they either just like that stuff OR are not really doing it as a full-time career, which is also a function of age -- folks that are fortunate enough to earn a living in the arts often need to stay active in the whole region as well as have access to the airports for travel to other cities. In some ways the schedule is not all that different from a "corporate consultant" type job where you go to the where the clients need you. For those with arts careers that might mean have a faculty position with a college in the region in addition to other employment...

In my experience the type of person that would immediately start shopping for a home in the 'burbs upon deciding to start a family is pretty rare. Beyond the obvious desire to get value out of their current home the range of decisions that go along with choosing an established suburb that may have excellent schools and desirable amenities but high housing costs VS a newer or less desirable area is often just too stressful for a young family -- will they become a single income family? will there be extended family to help? will health issues compel them to consider a limited range of options? what sorts of tradtion / culture is important to their vision of a growing family?

While some folks have delayed marriage / childbearing the additional stresses that may place on the whole process causes even more decisions to be considered: while older parents often have more resources they may also have additional work responsibilities, the health issues that sometimes come with starting a family later can mean that certain limitations need to be considered, the upside of older parents generally having kids that do better academically may also mean that the advantages of high performing schools may also be a bigger factor.

I honestly cannot remember any couple immediately dismissing city life with a child since about the days of Miami Vice... That said, for folks moving to the region WITH A SCHOOL AGE CHILD the hurdles and costs that may come with having to navigate the tremendously bureaucratic CPS system OR choose a costly private school is often BY ITSELF enough to make the choice of city living a non-option. The whole calendar of CPS enrollment is a severe hindrance to anyone relocating -- firms just do not have enough lead time for most employees to take part in the tests / lotteries that CPS has in place to TRY and have some racial balance in the better schools. The relatively TINY number of folks that relocate weighed against the HUGE numbers of folks that are stuck in horrible schools makes it unlikely that changes will even happen to make CPS more attractive to relocating families...

[Vlajos]

Of course you can just move to neighborhoods in the Blaine, Bell, Nettlehorst, Lincoln, Wildwood, Sauganash, Burley, Peirce, Audobon etc schools.

[chet everett]

The differential for those neighborhoods may not be easy to justify for someone that is facing the possibility of having to find a job upon relocation, and the performance of those schools really is significantly below that of the selective admissions schools in CPS. When one actually gets onnthe ground and starts looking for either rentals or potential opportunities to purchase the whole set of trade offs can be even more overwhelming -- does it make sense to try and raise a family in a walk up on a commercial arterial street just to be inside a school attendance boundary? Would the commute from a far-from-the-El apartment really be any faster than taking a Mwtra train in? What if CPS over crowding dominates the active parents in a desirable school / those 'pioneer' parents are out of the picture as their kids move to high school?

No offense , but those kinds of things are real concerns. If your employer gives you even six weeks (quite rare) of housing assistance do you really want to race around with kids and find a bunch of dumpy over priced places or just use that time to get acclimated to a nice solid community with just as short a commute??

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by chet everett

The differential for those neighborhoods may not be easy to justify for someone that is facing the possibility of having to find a job upon relocation, and the performance of those schools really is significantly below that of the selective admissions schools in CPS. When one actually gets onnthe ground and starts looking for either rentals or potential opportunities to purchase the whole set of trade offs can be even more overwhelming -- does it make sense to try and raise a family in a walk up on a commercial arterial street just to be inside a school attendance boundary? Would the commute from a far-from-the-El apartment really be any faster than taking a Mwtra train in? What if CPS over crowding dominates the active parents in a desirable school / those 'pioneer' parents are out of the picture as their kids move to high school?

No offense , but those kinds of things are real concerns. If your employer gives you even six weeks (quite rare) of housing assistance do you really want to race around with kids and find a bunch of dumpy over priced places or just use that time to get acclimated to a nice solid community with just as short a commute??

FYI, Chet doesn't like the City.

Why do these schools now have to match the best schools in the State(CPS magnets)? They are well above average and as good as most suburban schools if not better.

Dumpy over priced places?

[nJohn]

Of course you can just move to neighborhoods in the Blaine, Bell, Nettlehorst, Lincoln, Wildwood, Sauganash, Burley, Peirce, Audobon etc schools.

I have a niece that attends Nettlehorst. It's pretty bad-ass. I wish I went there when I was her age.

[chet everett]

The OP stated she anticipates spending only a year or so in Chicago then heading back to the Northeast.

I think there were lots of helpful suggestions from lots of folks on this thread that will be relevant to the OP's situation. Some others chimed in that should the OP's plans change they might reconsider where they pick to live based on the sorts of attitudes that frankly have not been common among folks living in more desirable parts of Chicago for many decades. It seemed like there was agreement on that.

Then you post stuff like this:

Originally Posted by Vlajos

FYI, Chet doesn't like the City.

Why?

I like many aspects of Chicago. I sympathize with folks that have to make a veritable N^nth decison matrix upon relocation due to the limits put on them by their budget / employer / media reports of violence / antiquated transit options / and a million other factors. That does not mean I harbor any dislike for Chicago! Sheesh...

[janusman]

The rents have gone up a little now as it is summer... But for 2k you can get good apt. Infact, I think 2K is a bit too much.

My suggestion would be Belmont/Addison area near to the lake. You have so many restaurants and its a young crowd there.

Financial district would be a short commute in Red/brown line into loop or a few express buses run into loop from that area.

[wedmiston]

Let me respond to the three very helpful people who commented on my post:
Vlajos - yes, you can take the position that those who move out to the burbs are cattle-like in their similarity, but it nonetheless is the absolute truth. Very few opt to raise kids in the city due to very limited options on daycare, schools (Chicago public?? forget it) and many other reasons, including HUGE costs to send your kids to private schools.
Aragx6 - you live in Volker, Kansas City. What do you know to offer up the very scientific and objective assessment that I'm 40% off base?? Shut up and go back to your plow...
nJohn - reread what I wrote. Yes I lived there...no, I did not raise kids there. I was aying that it's a great place to live UNTIL kids enter the picture, then most move out of the city. That did not apply to me.

[wedmiston]

I would just like to remind everyone to reread the original post...

We're in our late 20s and we'd like to be around restaurants, maybe a few pubs, parks, fun things to do. We live in an artsy neighborhood now and really enjoy it. He's going to be working in the financial district so it would be good to be somewhat close to there or near public transit.

These are your typical, Lincoln Park/Lakeview young professionals (no disrespect here - a million of them live on the North side and I was one many years ago). I lived in Old Town, Lakeview and Bucktown for a combined 20 years. This is where you will fit in. This is where you will blend in. This is where you will feel at home and with others of your age/status/ interests. If and when you start a family you will have enough exposure to what I wrote originally to make an informed decision to stay or leave. Many leave - a few stay. Hell, I'd stay if paying 30 grand a year for private school was no issue. I have never heard of the schools referred to above, but if they are not in the North side you won't move there anyway to disregard that chatter.

Again....taking into account what you specifically said about yourself, where you are coming from and what you are interested in, you should only be looking at Near North neighborhoods:

Old Town, Lakeview, Wicker Park, Bucktown, Ukranian Village (don't go further west!). Thats really about it. If you want more of a traditional neighborhood, I would only recommend one that would meet your criteria - Oak Park.