Hello Chicagoan, Where should I live in Downtown? (Bolingbrook, Oak Park: apartment complexes, for rent)

[kisas]

I just moved from Hotlanta to Chicago. I stayed in west suburb for almost 4 months. Now I'm thinking of moving to downtown because there is virtually nothing in the area where I live now (Willowbrook). 25 miles away from downtown seems not far. But that's enough for me to feel that Chicago is a remote city. So far I have been to downtown for only two times. Now my wife was just relocated to Chicago and my parents are visiting us for a couple of months, I'm planning to find a place in downtown or close to downtown. I hope I can get advices from Chicagoans here. Any input is appreciate !


I'm looking for 2 or 3 bedrooms units (considering 4 people and we are planing to have a baby soon), apartment/townhouse. I would like the place to be
1) Safe (it would be nice to have a nice walk-around area)
2) Easy access to city life ( restaurants, shopping)
3) Easy access to highway 55 (or from lake shore dr) (my work is in the west suburb)
4) Easy to get to subway/transit system (preferably union station)
I'm considering both rent or own as options.

Please advice me which areas should I start. Thanks in advance!

[marothisu]

Can't give you advice with any sort of budget (monthly for example or outright condo price)...

[nearnorth]

When you say "downtown," do you actually mean downtown, or do you mean the whole city? I ask because sometimes people in the burbs use the latter definition, and there's a big difference when it comes to options for places to live. Also, what are you willing to spend on rent?

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by kisas

I just moved from Hotlanta to Chicago. I stayed in west suburb for almost 4 months. Now I'm thinking of moving to downtown because there is virtually nothing in the area where I live now (Willowbrook). 25 miles away from downtown seems not far. But that's enough for me to feel that Chicago is a remote city. So far I have been to downtown for only two times. Now my wife was just relocated to Chicago and my parents are visiting us for a couple of months, I'm planning to find a place in downtown or close to downtown. I hope I can get advices from Chicagoans here. Any input is appreciate !


I'm looking for 2 or 3 bedrooms units (considering 4 people and we are planing to have a baby soon), apartment/townhouse. I would like the place to be
1) Safe (it would be nice to have a nice walk-around area)
2) Easy access to city life ( restaurants, shopping)
3) Easy access to highway 55 (or from lake shore dr) (my work is in the west suburb)
4) Easy to get to subway/transit system (preferably union station)
I'm considering both rent or own as options.

Please advice me which areas should I start. Thanks in advance!

West Loop, South Loop, Printers Row, University Village, River North, Logan Square (if you want to be cewl).

[kisas]

HI Marothisu, thanks for your reply. I didn't give a budget because I didn't want any good location is eliminated from the candidate list. People can always figure out something even in a very expensive area.

My budget for rent is $2500 (upper limit); for own, We can afford up to $700k with mortgage (although life style might be changed by financial pressure).

Originally Posted by marothisu

Can't give you advice with any sort of budget (monthly for example or outright condo price)...

[kisas]

Hi nearnorth, that is a great question. Actually I don't have a clear definition. In my mind, downtown is museum campus, public libraries, restaurants, grand park, subway system, cultural events, shopping centers.....

By downtown, I mean the place concentrated with good restaurants, cultural events, nice public facilities, easy access to subway. Sorry, I really can not give a definition of downtown. But it is not limited only to the loop.

Originally Posted by nearnorth

When you say "downtown," do you actually mean downtown, or do you mean the whole city? I ask because sometimes people in the burbs use the latter definition, and there's a big difference when it comes to options for places to live. Also, what are you willing to spend on rent?

[chet everett]

If you currently work in the "west suburbs" that are N/NW of Willowbrook (like Westmont, Oak Brook, Lombard, or Downers Grove) I would strongly encourage renting in West Loop.

If current work location is more W/SW like Bolingbrook or Burr Ridge you might do OK renting in South Loop.


If you purchase budget is $700K and you could hande $14K or so in property taxes you might want to consider Oak Park or River Forest which are going to be a lot closer to having a Chicago feel / much better access to public transit than Willowbrook which has an odd mix of some rural feeling older homes, big unpleasant apartment complexes and a smattering of subdivisions that are desirable mostly for the schools ...

[nearnorth]

Originally Posted by kisas

Hi nearnorth, that is a great question. Actually I don't have a clear definition. In my mind, downtown is museum campus, public libraries, restaurants, grand park, subway system, cultural events, shopping centers.....

By downtown, I mean the place concentrated with good restaurants, cultural events, nice public facilities, easy access to subway. Sorry, I really can not give a definition of downtown. But it is not limited only to the loop.

Your definition could include much of the city and even some of the suburbs, and with your budget you can live pretty much anywhere. (Downtown is really just the Loop and the neighborhoods surrounding it.) I recommend visiting neighborhoods in person to see how you like them.

By the way, you have to call it The El or The L in Chicago, not the subway. Most of it is above ground.

[kisas]

Thank you Chet, My work place is down 55. So South loop might be easier for me to get to 55.

Oak park is a nice place, I drove around that area when i was looking for apartment in March. But getting to my work from there takes as much time as from down town.

700k is the limit, the financial pressure of mortgage can degrade life quality a lot. I think I will go for a cheaper option.

Originally Posted by chet everett

If you currently work in the "west suburbs" that are N/NW of Willowbrook (like Westmont, Oak Brook, Lombard, or Downers Grove) I would strongly encourage renting in West Loop.

If current work location is more W/SW like Bolingbrook or Burr Ridge you might do OK renting in South Loop.


If you purchase budget is $700K and you could hande $14K or so in property taxes you might want to consider Oak Park or River Forest which are going to be a lot closer to having a Chicago feel / much better access to public transit than Willowbrook which has an odd mix of some rural feeling older homes, big unpleasant apartment complexes and a smattering of subdivisions that are desirable mostly for the schools ...

[kisas]

Thank you jdiddy.

I heard that some part of the loop is sort of ghost town. When people leave work, the streets and builds are empty. Is Printers Row like this?

Is the museum campus safe in the evening (before 10PM) ? I usually walk for a hour after dinner to keep my blood sugar normal. So I would like to have a less crowded area/park/trial near my apartment.

Originally Posted by jdiddy

West Loop, South Loop, Printers Row, University Village, River North, Logan Square (if you want to be cewl).