3 months in Chicago (Phoenix: apartments, rental market, how much)

[JonnyisLost]

Hi there,

I live in in England, but I recently posted here,
3 months in Arizona
about living in the US for 3 of the summer months,

A poster there recommended Chicago, but I'm not familiar with the city so I wondered if someone can help me,

Apartments I checked craigslist and chicago seems more expensive than Phoenix but not as expensive as I thought,
I'm looking for a small furnished apartment (studio is fine). is $600/month realistic?

Groceries? How much should someone expect to spend per month?

Transport I heard the public transport system is great in the city, I guess it's not worth having a car,

Any other advice anyone can give me would be most appreciated, as well as recommendations of other areas (Bearing in mind I need to do this without spending too much)

Thanks a lot!

J

[PokerPlayer1]

One bit of advice I would give anyone is to not shop housing in Chicago from afar, when you have no idea what the various neighborhoods are comprised of. It's all too easy to get a notion in your head based on 'internet research' that just doesn't reflect reality, either overly positive or overly negative. Some areas are a no-way all around ("...but this house in Roseland looks just SO lovely! And the name! Roseland! Are there roses there? I love roses!), while others, it's a block-to-block sort of thing. This is obviously going to be hard for you since you're a bit too far away to be taking scout-out trips, but check craigslist and post the places you're looking at here; someone on here will almost always live around there and will tell you what's up.

600/mo, you're usually going to be living in an 'exciting' neighborhood, however, the rental market seems to be pretty soft right now and since you are willing to take a Studio, you can probably get someplace decent if you shop around a bit. As far as furnished, I doubt that, but there's always trash picking and freecycle, if you're only planning on being here for a short period of time. For three months, I could probably get by with not much more than a pillow, sleeping bag and a milk-crate coffee table for my computer. Others need things to resemble something more civilized, so it's a personal thing.

Public transportation is better in some areas than it is in others, but yeah, it's generally pretty good anywhere you go. If you're living in a dicier area, consider the fact that you will have to be standing on a train platform or bus stop at whatever hours you keep, which can be populated by loitering ghouls during off-peak hours.

Groceries are up to you. $40 a month if you want to eat Ramen two meals a day, $400+ a month if wine and gourmet cheese is a staple of your daily menu.

[JonnyisLost]

Originally Posted by PokerPlayer1

One bit of advice I would give anyone is to not shop housing in Chicago from afar, when you have no idea what the various neighborhoods are comprised of. It's all too easy to get a notion in your head based on 'internet research' that just doesn't reflect reality, either overly positive or overly negative. Some areas are a no-way all around ("...but this house in Roseland looks just SO lovely! And the name! Roseland! Are there roses there? I love roses!), while others, it's a block-to-block sort of thing. This is obviously going to be hard for you since you're a bit too far away to be taking scout-out trips, but check craigslist and post the places you're looking at here; someone on here will almost always live around there and will tell you what's up.

600/mo, you're usually going to be living in an 'exciting' neighborhood, however, the rental market seems to be pretty soft right now and since you are willing to take a Studio, you can probably get someplace decent if you shop around a bit. As far as furnished, I doubt that, but there's always trash picking and freecycle, if you're only planning on being here for a short period of time. For three months, I could probably get by with not much more than a pillow, sleeping bag and a milk-crate coffee table for my computer. Others need things to resemble something more civilized, so it's a personal thing.

Public transportation is better in some areas than it is in others, but yeah, it's generally pretty good anywhere you go. If you're living in a dicier area, consider the fact that you will have to be standing on a train platform or bus stop at whatever hours you keep, which can be populated by loitering ghouls during off-peak hours.

Groceries are up to you. $40 a month if you want to eat Ramen two meals a day, $400+ a month if wine and gourmet cheese is a staple of your daily menu.

Thanks a lot for the reply
You're right I should take a "research vacation" beforehand to get a feel for the different areas. Right now I'm looking at craigslist and I'm seeing studios for 500/month (East Rogers Park) but I know nothing about the area whatsoever.
I get your point about groceries, but seems like an average person would spend $200/mo on food, which is what I budgeted for.
Thanks again,
J

[PokerPlayer1]

Rogers Park = Block to Block.
I'm actually pretty bullish on Rogers Park going into the future, but there can still be a degree of diceyness there.

In your price range, +$50 seems to make a considerable difference. I'm seeing studios in prime areas (LP, Gold Coast) in the $650 range.

[smallvillejane]

$200 a month translates into about $45-$50 a week, which is about $6.5 a day. I doubt that's going to feed you well. If you get $1.99 burgers or ramen, that's a different story.

I usually spend about $200 a week, not a month.

Originally Posted by JonnyisLost

Thanks a lot for the reply
You're right I should take a "research vacation" beforehand to get a feel for the different areas. Right now I'm looking at craigslist and I'm seeing studios for 500/month (East Rogers Park) but I know nothing about the area whatsoever.
I get your point about groceries, but seems like an average person would spend $200/mo on food, which is what I budgeted for.
Thanks again,
J

[chirack]

Originally Posted by JonnyisLost

Transport I heard the public transport system is great in the city, I guess it's not worth having a car,

Any other advice anyone can give me would be most appreciated, as well as recommendations of other areas (Bearing in mind I need to do this without spending too much)

Thanks a lot!

J

Transportation in the city is good, but depending on where you are going and what you are doing you could need a car from time to time. If you are downtown doing touristy things then no, you don't need a car. If you need to get to the far burbs or get around the burbs then you may need a car.

[emathias]

Originally Posted by smallvillejane

$200 a month translates into about $45-$50 a week, which is about $6.5 a day. I doubt that's going to feed you well. If you get $1.99 burgers or ramen, that's a different story.

I usually spend about $200 a week, not a month.

While I also spend $200 a week, I don't think most people do. Certainly one can easily feed oneself in Chicago on $50/week if you are more of an "eat to live" type and not concerned with eating your way through the fine dining restaurants of downtown.

As for grocery shopping, enerally speaking the closer a grocery store is to the Lakefront, the more expensive it will be. You can often save money by taking the bus to a grocery store a few miles west, even if it's the same brand as closer ones. Also, for certain kinds of staples, you can get good deals in ethnic neighborhoods, for example Chinatown often has great prices on vegetables.

In the summer, too, there are farmers markets around the city. if you're willing to travel, you could visit one every day I think although most individual locations are only open one or two days a week.

If you want to try out a few nicer restaurants inexpensively, just to see more of the whole range of what Chicago can offer, check out places at lunchtime when prices are lower, and don't order alcohol. Doing those two things will let you try fine dining without breaking the bank. You'd have to supplement your $200/month, but to eat a modest lunch at a nice place once a week could be done for an additional $100-$150/month. Not a tiny amount, but probably doable if it were something you really wanted to do.

[Drover]

As for public transportation being "great..." eh, not quite. Comprehensive, yes. Great, not necessarily. Our train system is laid out in a "spoke and hub" arrangement, meaning our mass transit system is rather efficient at moving people from outlying areas into the central business district in the mornings and back out in the evenings. However, it's not very efficient at moving people from one outlying neighborhood to another outlying neighborhood unless both neighborhoods happen to be on the same train line.

That said, there are certain neighborhoods where you will find just about everything you need along a single train line, or at least with a relatively painless transfer to another train line. (BTW, East Rogers Park is one of them.) In short, the key to a satisfying no-car existence in Chicago is to live near a CTA train station. Buses can get you around the other parts of town, but they will do so at their own leisure, which may or may not conform to your own time schedule.

[JonnyisLost]

Originally Posted by emathias

While I also spend $200 a week, I don't think most people do. Certainly one can easily feed oneself in Chicago on $50/week if you are more of an "eat to live" type and not concerned with eating your way through the fine dining restaurants of downtown.

It's nice to hear it's doable. I do like to eat out but I'd be prepared to sacrafice it if it starts to break the bank

[JonnyisLost]

Originally Posted by Drover

As for public transportation being "great..." eh, not quite. Comprehensive, yes. Great, not necessarily. .

By great I guess I did mean comprehensive. As long as I can get to most places without needing a car I'll be happy. Even if it means taking a train downtown and then out again.
Thanks for the tip