2 college students moving to Chicago (Oak Park, Columbia: rental market, how much, safe area)

[IrishIllini]

Originally Posted by xsboost

This.



For a 2 bedroom? I doubt it.

I've heard of two beds being rented in Rogers Park for under 1,350/mo.

OP, do you mean $650 TOTAL?

[xsboost]

Originally Posted by IrishIllini

I've heard of two beds being rented in Rogers Park for under 1,350/mo.

OP, do you mean $650 TOTAL?

I assumed total since Clark&Addison asked for clarification and OP never really answered.

[babybat]

Yes I mean total but I'm starting to realize that that's an impossible price.

[via chicago]

what you are asking simply isnt realistic (and if you DO see a place that is offering that, you can be assured its in a neighborhood where your personal safety will be at severe risk, and will likely be a complete ****hole).

[babybat]

What about around $700 - $750 in Pilsen? And is Oak Park a nice/safe area? What other areas are there that are safe and within the $700 - $750 range?

[via chicago]

oak park itself is nice, but i would bet anything being advertised as "oak park" at that price is actually over the border in the Austin neighborhood which is high crime and i would avoid. (or is advertising two "rooms", not BED rooms). small distances can make a big difference in this city.

again, you have to understand that even finding a studio for the prices you are mentioning is pretty difficult.

you MIGHT be able to find that in Pilsen, but im a little skeptical. most any place that will be at these prices for a 2 bedroom are going to be neighborhoods you wouldnt want to live, and most definitely not safe or hip, sorry to say. you also need to closely consider any listing you are looking at by its proximity to an L stop.

[babybat]

Okay, I mean at least that's something. What if we tried Pilsen and found a roommate? So altogether $1050/month between 3 people? Does that sound more realistic for safe Pilsen?

[via chicago]

i mean your best bet is to just play around with padmapper or Craigslist and adjust the filters. it will give you a decent idea of what and where you can afford

https://www.padmapper.com/

everyone has their own tolerances for crime, and no where in chicago is crime free. that said, you are searching at the very minimum price range possible which means you are going to be looking at mostly marginal neighborhoods no matter what. while getting another roomate will help bring the overall price of a bigger unit down, youre still running into the same issue which is essentially that 1050 is not very realistic for a 3 bedroom apt in decent areas of Chicago either

the other issue you are going to run into with pilsen is that only the most expensive units are going to be listed online. most buildings in that neighborhood are owned by small mom and pop mexican families, and they generally dont list them online and instead rent them out through word of mouth or For Rent signs on the front of the property. the best way to find deals in Chicago is to hit the streets and call numbers on the sides of buildings, esp if you are looking for deals. it also dosent hurt to know a bit of spanish if you are going to focus your efforts on the SW side

[Larry Siegel]

I don't want to be a party pooper but I think two girls moving to Chicago need to live in a relatively safe area and $650 for a two bedroom apartment is just way, way off. Double that and you might find something decent.

[knitgirl]

Double that and they can definitely find something decent. If they can't do that, but can increase their budget some, they should try to find a 4 room one bedroom and block off either the dining room or living room as a bedroom. My last year of college I lived in a 2 bedroom with 2 roommates, I took the living room and put up a screen to block the doorway. It worked out pretty well. I actually have neighbors in my building who share a 1 bedroom now. One of the sisters has a chronic disease and can't work full-time, so the other one let her move in and they have the one sleeping in the dining room.