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Hello! I am looking for information about the Aurora and Naperville areas. My husband and I are both from the Fort Wayne area in Indiana. It looks like starting next summer he will be working as an engineer in Lisle, IL.
I am still in college, and have narrowed it down between Aurora University and North Central College in Naperville. I will most likely choose the school closest to our home...wherever that may be.
I have read many threads about Naperville, and a few about Aurora. The crime rates and the easy access to the metra seem to be calling our name in Naperville. My husband would really love to ride the train to work. However, Aurora University is about $10k cheaper a year for tuition, which is probably the only reason it has made it this far on my list.
We have no kids, so at this point schools aren't an issue. We would really both prefer not to drive as much as possible. Does anyone know the area around each of the universities well? Are they both safe areas of town? Are they easy to access from the metra? What are winters like in that area? Chicago seems to get a lot colder than Fort Wayne in the winter. Are there other suburbs we should check out?
We do plan on visiting when we have a free weekend. We want to get to know the areas better. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. I am really excited about this move, but I need all the insight I can get. Thank you!
You really need to have a broader view of the suburban Chicago region...
I am somewhat familiar with Fort Wayne and it may be hard to explain just how much more spread out / widely developed things are in the Chicago region. Just because your husband is going to be working in Napeville there is no reason to confine your search to just Naperville and adjacent Aurora.
There are SEVERAL DOZEN colleges / universities in the region that would allow you to finish your degree and STILL. Give both you and your husband a pleasantly short commute.
If cost is a concern I would give serious thought to the public universities and community colleges in the vicinity. Besides having their main campus in DeKalb NIU has satellites in Naperville itself. Similarly UIC is not an I pssible commute to their main campus west of the loop, and they ofer many options for classes online and in remote locations.
Private univerisities include the aforementioned Aurora and North Central, but also Lewis,IIT, Benedictine, St. Francis , Wheaton, & Elmhurst AND THOSE ARE WITHOUT LEAVING DUPAGE COUNTY!!!
If you throw in schools in adjacent areas the list is too long for me to bother typing....
Seriously, get online and check out DePaul, Loyola, Domincan, Xavier, Roosevlet, Columbia, Northeastern Illinois, and dozens of community college like Triton, Collage of DuPage, Waubansie CC and more.
What ithe goal of your studies? Which schools which best serve your needs?
With a little planning any of those schools might make sense for a couple where one part er is working in Naperville.
Quote:
Originally Posted by johnlm04
Hello! I am looking for information about the Aurora and Naperville areas. My husband and I are both from the Fort Wayne area in Indiana. It looks like starting next summer he will be working as an engineer in Lisle, IL.
I am still in college, and have narrowed it down between Aurora University and North Central College in Naperville. I will most likely choose the school closest to our home...wherever that may be.
I have read many threads about Naperville, and a few about Aurora. The crime rates and the easy access to the metra seem to be calling our name in Naperville. My husband would really love to ride the train to work. However, Aurora University is about $10k cheaper a year for tuition, which is probably the only reason it has made it this far on my list.
We have no kids, so at this point schools aren't an issue. We would really both prefer not to drive as much as possible. Does anyone know the area around each of the universities well? Are they both safe areas of town? Are they easy to access from the metra? What are winters like in that area? Chicago seems to get a lot colder than Fort Wayne in the winter. Are there other suburbs we should check out?
We do plan on visiting when we have a free weekend. We want to get to know the areas better. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. I am really excited about this move, but I need all the insight I can get. Thank you!
Winter temps in Chicago can be quite cold due to what the local weather forecastors call the "Lake Effect" When I think of Naperville I think of families and children, and a plethora of subdivisions. Aurora I think is a older community about 40 miles west of the Loop.
There are ten communities in what is called the "Aurora Area". The communities, in alphabetical order, are: Aurora, Batavia, Big Rock, Hinckley, Montgomery, North Aurora, Plano, Sandwich, Sugar Grove and Yorkville.
If you have the opportunity I suggest you take a short lease of say 6 months to give yourself the time to get acclimated to the area, school, transportation, shopping ect.. You may find other areas are better suited to your lifestyle. Chicagoland with its 10M people can be very intimidating at times, but you will grow to love the advantages and adventures of living near a world class city.
Another consideration my be Wheaton. I don't pretend to know the suburbs at all. If Google maps are somewhat accurate. it looks as if Wheaton is closer that Aurora. It is not an area much talked about on the forum, but it seems to be a decent area with a good school system. There is a private college in Wheaton and a communty college in DuPage County. City of Wheaton
I am going to school for Athletic Training. The closest schools I could find to Lisle that offer this major were North Central, Aurora, and Lewis. After what research I could do with Google Maps, I decided that as little driving as possible would probably be best. For both of us. Lewis is (according to Google) a 27 minute car drive, and there's no easy train nearby.
I did actually consider Wheaton and Wheaton College. They offer Psychology as a major. I have an associate's degree in Psychology, and wouldn't mind getting my bachelor's in the same, but you just can't do anything with a bachelor's in Psychology. Is the train easy to access from here? Would it be practical to think I could commute to Naperville or Aurora for school while my husband had to get to Lisle every day?
Are the crime rates in Aurora as bad as they look on this site? They are double to triple that of Naperville. Are there certain neighborhoods we should look in or steer clear of?
Are the cities comparable as far as things to do? We are not much into the night life, but we do enjoy going out to a sports bar for wings...I like parks and museums; both of us enjoy playing & watching sports.
Hello! I am looking for information about the Aurora and Naperville areas. My husband and I are both from the Fort Wayne area in Indiana. It looks like starting next summer he will be working as an engineer in Lisle, IL.
I am still in college, and have narrowed it down between Aurora University and North Central College in Naperville. I will most likely choose the school closest to our home...wherever that may be.
I have read many threads about Naperville, and a few about Aurora. The crime rates and the easy access to the metra seem to be calling our name in Naperville. My husband would really love to ride the train to work. However, Aurora University is about $10k cheaper a year for tuition, which is probably the only reason it has made it this far on my list.
We have no kids, so at this point schools aren't an issue. We would really both prefer not to drive as much as possible. Does anyone know the area around each of the universities well? Are they both safe areas of town? Are they easy to access from the metra? What are winters like in that area? Chicago seems to get a lot colder than Fort Wayne in the winter. Are there other suburbs we should check out?
We do plan on visiting when we have a free weekend. We want to get to know the areas better. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. I am really excited about this move, but I need all the insight I can get. Thank you!
Some people will knock Aurora but if your between Rt 59 and Eola you can't even tell where Naperville ends and Aurora begins.
As for schools, you may even want to consider Northern Illinois satelite campus near I88 and Naper Blvd. May actually be cheaper than North Central and Aurora Univ. North Central is a great school but plan on paying about 7k per trimester which are every 10 weeks. I imagine Aurora Univ is more reaonable but probably still pricey.
As for driving in Naperville or Aurroa you'll have to do a fair bit of driving.
Lisle is actually surprisingly affordable, if you havn't looked there take a look.
Not sure what your price range is but West Aurora near I88 and Orchard may not be a bad area. Good schools which even if it doesn't matter to you now it will affect resale and if you do have kids down the road its nice having the option of not having to move for better schools.
Dont buy anything in East Aurora school district, it will be hard to sell.
Anyhow, I-88 and Orchard area is close to expressway. even though thats a ways out there b/c of the proximity to I-88 its actually much closer to get to the city and other burbs than the south end of Naperville where it can take 30 minutes just to get to an expressway.
I think we will throw Wheaton and Lisle in the mix too. I am not opposed to living in a smaller community. Especially if it means less time on the road.
Is it realistic to think we will be able to rent a 2-3 bedroom home or do most renters live in apartment complexes? We have had a much more enjoyable experience renting from a private citizen than living in apartment complexes. We are hoping to keep our rent less than $1500/month.
I think we will throw Wheaton and Lisle in the mix too. I am not opposed to living in a smaller community. Especially if it means less time on the road.
Is it realistic to think we will be able to rent a 2-3 bedroom home or do most renters live in apartment complexes? We have had a much more enjoyable experience renting from a private citizen than living in apartment complexes. We are hoping to keep our rent less than $1500/month.
In Aurora you can easily find a nice SFH in your price range. Possibly Lisle, probably not Wheaton.
SFH may be pushying it but you can easily rent a townhome from a private renter for your price range. More privacy than an apt and probably a yard and patio as well.
I'll help you. Aurora University is a joke pure and simple. My wife has her Masters degree from there and she will tell you how much she regrets that decision. My neighbor graduated there also and greatly regrets not going to North Central instead or Wheaton College. I am a businessman and I guarantee you I will never again hire an AU graduate. Their school of business and computer science is a joke at best. AU is definitely a commuter school and not a real college. By that I mean if you want college amenities after class hours AU offers very little. In other words if you want to have intellectual debates with your friends in a quaint coffee shop AU is not for you. If you are going to hop in the car, attend class and then go home for dinner and to snuggle up with hubby then AU may work out for you. If you are a business major, Psychology, or Computer Science NIU is a great choice. And the commute is not bad at all from the Fox Valley. Just get MWF or T-Th classes.
In general I think anyone considering moving to Aurora needs their head examined: extremely high taxes, huge gang problems, a corrupt police department and city council, in general lousy restauraunts (unless you like Mexican, then probably the best in the nation), low educational standards, a cultural black hole, the arts are underdeveloped and check this out, there is a not a bookstore in the city nor a movie theater. 2nd largest city in IL and you can't find a bookstore or a movie theater.
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Thank you!
You really need to have a broader view of the suburban Chicago region...
