Anyone moving/moved out of the Chicago area? Where, and are you happier? (Schaumburg: to buy, scorpions)

[frostopsy]

I moved to DC a few years ago for a job opportunity. Chicago had a drought of jobs and unfortunately, I believe because of crackpot political nonsense (Illinois in general), still hasn't recovered as well as the rest of the country. But I digress, I found a good number of Chicago transplants that I either worked with, or met in some way. The majority of the people I worked with, transferred back to Chicago, or have quit and moved back. A good number of people I met have done the same. Maybe it's a DC thing. Some, but not all people seem to want to claw their way back to where they came from after a few years. Myself included. I miss Chicago's appeal as a great city for music, sports, the skyline, waterfront, the food...

I've had a great opportunity to travel all over the world at this point, and can still say Chicago is my favorite city.

[oddstray]

Originally Posted by linicx

The desert southwest from The LA/TX border to the Pacific Ociean is exactly as DC2CHI13 describes it. El Paso, Los Cruces, and Palm Springs is just as hot from June to September. The deep canyons in Texas may be the only place to escape the heat, but I would not bet on it. The Gulf breeze in the summer is not nearly as cool as the summer breeze off the ocean. ...

To try to describe weather of such a huge geographic area with one description simply doesn't work. It doesn't even make sense to group Texas weather in with Arizona weather - they are totally different areas each with their own weather patterns.

Yes, there are many places in this region that are this way. There are many other places, maybe at higher elevation or near large-ish bodies of water, that have more moderate weather.

[Ultrarunner]

Originally Posted by oddstray

^^^^


I went from Chicago, through Sacramento and Pomona (Los Angeles). I wound up in San Diego because that's where my first job offer was out of university. Advantages: great weather (usually - not always), lots of outdoor opportunities. Disadvantages: wages not commensurate with cost of living, high-cost housing is difficult to get into (though due to Prop 13 disallowing outrageous property tax increases once you're in, you're good), schools are hit-or-miss and you need to carefully look at them before moving here.

Prop 13 isn't outrageous... it's the only protection property tax payers have and applies evenly to all without exception.


Simply put, Proposition 13 fixes the Statewide Property at 1% of the value at the time of transfer and 99% of the time the value is the price paid...

Anywhere in California is worth a look if only for the protection Prop 13 affords Property Tax Payers.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by frostopsy

I moved to DC a few years ago for a job opportunity. Chicago had a drought of jobs and unfortunately, I believe because of crackpot political nonsense (Illinois in general), still hasn't recovered as well as the rest of the country.

Actually, it's made some pretty good progress since a few years ago. The preliminary August results have Chicago at 7.4% unemployment rate. August of 2013 was at 10.7%, so it has decreased 3.3% in a year. NYC is slightly lower at 6.9% and Los Angeles is at 9.4%. If you go to the metro area, then it's 6.3% for both NYC and Chicago, and 7.7% for Los Angeles.

It's actually made some very decent progress where the city itself is almost at the level of NYC.

[frostopsy]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Actually, it's made some pretty good progress since a few years ago. The preliminary August results have Chicago at 7.4% unemployment rate. August of 2013 was at 10.7%, so it has decreased 3.3% in a year. NYC is slightly lower at 6.9% and Los Angeles is at 9.4%. If you go to the metro area, then it's 6.3% for both NYC and Chicago, and 7.7% for Los Angeles.

It's actually made some very decent progress where the city itself is almost at the level of NYC.

I'm glad to hear that! For all my friends and family still live there. FWIW I moved in 2010.

And I'm trying to return.

[Atlanta_BD]

I left Chicago many years ago. I hate that I had to leave. Tried twice to move back and my plans fell through both times. I'm hoping the third time will be the charm. :-)

[nj21]

I've been interviewing with a couple of companies which I am waiting to hear back from in the NYC area. I know the cost of living is higher there, but all of my family and my SO is there, so I'm pretty sure I'll be happier when I move back to NJ.

[Atlanta_BD]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Ultimately when weighing these things, take ALL costs into consideration of living, not just one. For example, a city like Houston will have lower monthly rent than Chicago on average. However, weigh whether you'd live somewhere where you wouldn't use a car (or barely) in Chicago versus a place like Houston? If you are not using a car, but all of a sudden have to buy one (or get a loan) in Houston, then your costs will be much more similar than you think and sometimes even more after transportation in Houston in that particular situation.

This here. Something I struggle with since moving south. I want to move back to Chicago for the public transportation alone. I don't like having the forced expense of owning a car due to have limited transit options.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by frostopsy

I'm glad to hear that! For all my friends and family still live there. FWIW I moved in 2010.

And I'm trying to return.

Yeah, 2010 was not the greatest for sure. The unemployment rate on average that year was almost 12%. Nowadays if you need a comparison, then it's the lowest it's been since late 2008, when the recession started. So essentially it's almost returned back to its late pre recession rates. It will be interesting to see what plays out in the next handful of months. The rate is actually down 2.2% since January and has been decreasing healthily every month. If this keeps up (who knows) then the unemployment rate could be below 6.5% or even 6% by December. That's pretty optimistic, but you never know especially given the decline in rate this year.

[ninjamyst]

I been in Chicago most of my life. I can not wait to move out of this city. My wife loves the city though because she was born and raised here. I looked into Austin and other cities in Texas but I feel like I am just trading extremely cold winter for extremely hot summers. Now, I am focused on Boulder, Colorado since they still have 4 seasons but just milder. COL is still very high in Colorado and job market sucks, but the scenary and weather is very appealing.

Things I hate about Chicago:
- Weather (remember polar vortex)
- Traffic
- COL (taxes, taxes, taxes...we are ranked in the top 5 for highest income tax, property tax, and some other tax)
- Public school system is a joke
- Corrupt, incompetent city government
- Potholes (there's always construction in the summer but the roads dont get any better)

I think Chicago is an awesome city to visit in the summer, but not to live in.