best intown family neighborhood (Addison, Irving: rentals, house, neighborhoods)

[Mister Mappy]

Old Irving Park is a really nice area. Old, well-kept vintage houses with decently sized back yards. It can be a bit pricey, but it couldn't hurt to look.

Also, Jefferson Park. It's a little further out than Old Irving Park, but right off of the Blue Line, so it's convenient to both Downtown and O'Hare. A lot of charming bungalows that should definitely be in your price range.

[Lookout Kid]

Lincoln Square, Ravenswood, Roscoe Village, The Southport Corridor (West Lakeview), and Andersonville are all lower-density city neighborhoods with lots of kids and small back yards. The housing stock is usually either two-flats, single-family houses, or occasional larger apartment buildings.

Portage Park, Jefferson Park, Norwood Park, and Mayfair are all "Bungalow Belt" neighborhoods on the Northwest Side with lower crime rates. Slightly lower density than the forementioned places, but still houses on small lots.

Sauganash, Edgebrook, and Beverly are all safer city neighborhoods with more of a suburban feel. Sauganash and Edgebrook are part of the "Forest Glen" Community Area. They are on the far North Side, whereas Beverly is on "da Sout Side".

Ravenswood Manor is kind of between bungalow belt and suburban feel, and is just awesome for families. The houses and parks are great. The Governor lives there. Irving Park also has some great houses, particularly in the 'Old Irving Park' and 'Independence Park' sections, but crime is a just a little higher there than in the other neighborhoods I've mentioned.

[cd771]

Jefferson Park and Portage Park are nice and you can get a house with a yard for that price. Irving Park also.

[Mister Mappy]

Sauganash & Edgebrook are actually part of the Forest Glen community area.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by Mister Mappy

Sauganash & Edgebrook are actually part of the Forest Glen community area.

Oops, you're right. I edited my post to correct this.

[apa1128]

Originally Posted by Lookout Kid

Lincoln Square, Ravenswood, Roscoe Village, The Southport Corridor (West Lakeview), and Andersonville are all lower-density city neighborhoods with lots of kids and small back yards. The housing stock is usually either two-flats, single-family houses, or occasional larger apartment buildings.

Portage Park, Jefferson Park, Norwood Park, and Mayfair are all "Bungalow Belt" neighborhoods on the Northwest Side with lower crime rates. Slightly lower density than the forementioned places, but still houses on small lots.

Sauganash, Edgebrook, and Beverly are all safer city neighborhoods with more of a suburban feel. Sauganash and Edgebrook are part of the "Forest Glen" Community Area. They are on the far North Side, whereas Beverly is on "da Sout Side".

Ravenswood Manor is kind of between bungalow belt and suburban feel, and is just awesome for families. The houses and parks are great. The Governor lives there. Irving Park also has some great houses, particularly in the 'Old Irving Park' and 'Independence Park' sections, but crime is a just a little higher there than in the other neighborhoods I've mentioned.

Thank you, this helps!!

[ajolotl]

Originally Posted by apa1128

Beverly looks nice. Is it safe? When I mentioned to my husband it was on the Southside, he didn't seem too interested.

Yes, Beverly is safe. I personally think it is the last great deal within the city limits (search what you can get for 600K online). It's definitely not for everyone, though, depends on your priorities. First, you really should have kids if you want to reap the benefits. Otherwise, living closer to the loop makes more sense. Then, you would have to put a high value on things like architectural variety (antithesis of cookie cutter -- lots of spectacular Heatherington, Griffin, etc. homes), mature trees, huge lots (75x150 not uncommon), hills, reasonable prices, deep roots/sense of community, etc. against the shortcomings such as distance from the loop (9-10 miles), distance from lake, relative isolation, and relative lack of commercial vibrancy, old homes might need some work, lack of an unequivocally good public non-magnet high school (for K-8 Sutherland is highly regarded and there are many good Catholic private schools). Many people also don't like the south side. Metra to Lasalle street station is about 21-30 minutes depending on what part of beverly you're in, but with Dan Ryan Expansion I can literally be downtown in 15 minutes from my house. Every neighborhood is a balance of strengths and shortcomings when factoring price in so it depends on your priorities. I would say there aren't too many city neighborhoods where you are guaranteed to be any more safe than Beverly, though.

I would check out Welcome to www.beverlymorganpark.net to get a sense of what's going on commercially in the neighborhood. There is definitely some cool stuff but not nearly to the extent that one would find on the north side. When the price is factored in though it's very hard to beat.

[Lookout Kid]

The South Side has a bad reputation nationwide, but it does have quite a few safe areas. Beverly is one of those.

But if you really want to be in the safest part of the city, the far Northwest Side has the lowest crime rates in Chicago proper. The same can be said for Forest Glen, which is a bit more to the east.

All of the neighborhoods I listed have low crime rates.

[BJT83]

Beverly is great. I had a friend who grew up at 108th and Maplewood. I was always jealous because I grew up in boring Palos and loved the atmosphere of his block. Beverly is pretty well insulated from the south side trouble areas, and the housing stock is unreal.

[JohnCU]

Edison Park and Norwood Park fit the bill too.