The rise of Northwest Indiana in the Chicagoland area (Indianapolis: wages, tax)

[ggplicks]

I mean Illinois politics ARE garbage. freaking Dallas just surpassed Chicago in financial workers.


https://www.chicagobusiness.com/fina...-la-first-time


Chicago is doing something wrong

[Kraftask]

Originally Posted by Master Jay

Kmanshouse, I only wanted to do it to prove a point, because you doubted midwest1's claim.



Happy New Year!

P.S. Yesterday I drove through the old neighborhood of Lincoln Square and was able to enjoy a little meal at Barba Yanni's and enjoy seeing all the lights along the street.

Hey Happy New Year! I doubt that claim as well. Indiana has my favorite license plates designs though. Love the Stars & Stripes In God We Trust.

[Chuckity]

Eh.

People have moved from the south side to the south suburbs to NWI for decades.

Me included.

We've seen a huge influx in Porter Co since the pandemic from Illinois - a large contingent aren't just from the south suburbs, but western suburbs now too.

They caused a super hot real estate market where homes were going for WAY over asking. Everyone loved it until the new tax bills came. Increases of $1K+ per year have been the norm. And mine have doubled in the last 8 years.

Property taxes are still WAY less than Illinois though - my friends comparable suburban homes in Chgoland are 2 1/2 times what mine are.

The South Shore double tracking will do a lot for values in northern Porter & LaPorte counties over the next few years.

With all that being said, I wish I would've closed the door to NWI behind me when we moved here 20+ years ago. What a headache it's been.

And here's the funniest thing: people are now complaining that their animals are being taken in by new residents and posted as "found dog!" and "found cat!" People in the outer areas have let their pets wander for YEARS. Now they're being scooped up by new residents who don't understand they way these people have lived out here.

Oh, another funny thing: gunshots. Transplants complain people recreationally shooting on their own land (safely I might add) all damn day. And fireworks. You guys moved HERE.

[Master Jay]

Kraftask, you ALWAYS find the positives in things!!



May you and yours have an awesome 2024!

[jcp123]

Makes sense to me. Chicago is cheap for a really big metro, but NWI is even cheaper with added gun rights. Commuting is already a mess in Chicagoland as in any big city, but Chicagoland has functioning rail - not the best in the US, but far above average (South Shore is making big moves - not sure if Metra reaches down there). And y’all check me on this, but I believe tax burdens in NWI would be lower than in Illinois, although I’m certain property taxes are way lower, IL is famous for having massive property taxes not unlike NY or Jersey. Now, just because NWI is popular doesn’t mean Gary or Hammond or Lake Station are suddenly going to become rock stars, but it does bode well for some of the eeriest places in the nation.

[MarianRavenwood]

Originally Posted by jcp123

Makes sense to me. Chicago is cheap for a really big metro, but NWI is even cheaper with added gun rights. Commuting is already a mess in Chicagoland as in any big city, but Chicagoland has functioning rail - not the best in the US, but far above average (South Shore is making big moves - not sure if Metra reaches down there). And y’all check me on this, but I believe tax burdens in NWI would be lower than in Illinois, although I’m certain property taxes are way lower, IL is famous for having massive property taxes not unlike NY or Jersey. Now, just because NWI is popular doesn’t mean Gary or Hammond or Lake Station are suddenly going to become rock stars, but it does bode well for some of the eeriest places in the nation.

There is the South Shore Line (It's not actually Metra...it's operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District). But it's only one line. It's not like it's easily accessible, since there's no other public transit in Indiana. You have to drive to the station, and at that point, why not just drive the whole way? Except driving is a nightmare too.



Plenty of people moved to Indiana during the pandemic...why not save some money and have room to spread out too? But now that the pandemic is over, and employers expect us to commute to the office every day (or most days), suddenly Indiana doesn't seem so appealing. And when you want to have fun, you are hours from anything interesting (except shooting trees in your back yard).



"Thousands" moved to Indiana in 2021 (literally. 5,000 people. from all of Illinois). But Indiana's population was static in 2022. We don't yet have data for 2023.



Property taxes aren't everything. Now that Illinois has a flat income tax, the difference between Illinois and Indiana is negligible there. Gas tax is nearly the same.



And low property taxes sound great until you realize that they fund schools. And roads. And libraries. And parks.



Keep in mind also, not everyone is actually moving to Indiana. Buying a second home and then claiming it as one's 'primary' residence is quite popular (in both Indiana and Wisconsin). You get the tax advantages of a low-tax state without actually having to give up the city amenities, or totally give up the liberties afforded to citizens of a blue state. And changing one's primary residence from a condo in Chicago to a vacation cottage in Indiana is, on paper, a 'move'.

[midwest1]

Originally Posted by Kmanshouse

Ah, there it is. Your POV makes total sense now. I should have known - this is the case almost every time. A couple of probing questions and it always comes out.

Every once in awhile we get these kinds of posters that boost NWI because they hate Illinois politics.

Who doesn't hate Illinois politics?

[Kmanshouse]

Originally Posted by midwest1

Who doesn't hate Illinois politics?

Most do - but I hate it less now that Madigan is gone. JB has actually balanced the budget and improved Illinois' bond rating since then. The pension debt will certainly be a drain for a long time - not a quick fix.

It's a very, very fun and popular game to hate Illinois and boost neighboring states.

And old and very unoriginal game. Boosting NWI beyond reality is just another way to play. An easy one to sniff out.

[Kmanshouse]

Originally Posted by MarianRavenwood

There is the South Shore Line (It's not actually Metra...it's operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District). But it's only one line. It's not like it's easily accessible, since there's no other public transit in Indiana. You have to drive to the station, and at that point, why not just drive the whole way? Except driving is a nightmare too.



Plenty of people moved to Indiana during the pandemic...why not save some money and have room to spread out too? But now that the pandemic is over, and employers expect us to commute to the office every day (or most days), suddenly Indiana doesn't seem so appealing. And when you want to have fun, you are hours from anything interesting (except shooting trees in your back yard).



"Thousands" moved to Indiana in 2021 (literally. 5,000 people. from all of Illinois). But Indiana's population was static in 2022. We don't yet have data for 2023.



Property taxes aren't everything. Now that Illinois has a flat income tax, the difference between Illinois and Indiana is negligible there. Gas tax is nearly the same.



And low property taxes sound great until you realize that they fund schools. And roads. And libraries. And parks.



Keep in mind also, not everyone is actually moving to Indiana. Buying a second home and then claiming it as one's 'primary' residence is quite popular (in both Indiana and Wisconsin). You get the tax advantages of a low-tax state without actually having to give up the city amenities, or totally give up the liberties afforded to citizens of a blue state. And changing one's primary residence from a condo in Chicago to a vacation cottage in Indiana is, on paper, a 'move'.

People will point to failing CPS schools that drag down the average...but you really can't do better than suburban IL Chicago for public education. It's outstanding - I've seen it out there in other states, it ain't pretty.

People at or below the average wage who want/need to save money and don't care about aesthetics or amenities will love NWI and it's probably a smart move for them to do that. In their shoes, I might do the same. Very glad I'm not. Hate the roads, the I94 logjam, the way things look for the most part, the precipitation that comes off the bottom tip of the Lake, and other things I won't mention.

[ggplicks]

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/econ...ove-out-states


Illinois, year after year, one of the most moved out states. People are voting with their feet