La Grange area - what sacrifice would you make? (Chicago: fit in, apartment complexes)
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Hello, my wife and I are currently looking to buy our first house in the western suburbs. We are in a unique career/commute situation and we would appreciate your advice!
Some background...My wife just graduated law school and will be starting her job downtown, to which she would take the train. I just finished medical school and will be at The University of Chicago for my residency, so I will be driving. We really want to live in the suburbs, and will probably have children in around 2 years. Our financial situation (with my boatload of student loans) right now is very different than what it will be when I finish my residency & fellowship training (6 years) and get a "real job", so we just need a starter house until then. Plus I will have to find a job in 6 years which could be anywhere in the city or suburbs, so we feel like buying a 6-7 yr starter house would be perfect because then we can move closer to wherever I end up getting a job. We are trying to keep it under $325k, could spend more, but would be very happy spending less and putting the money towards my loans.
We have been looking extensively in La Grange and love it, but we just don't feel like there is much in our price range. The Countryclub area is appealing to us because it is a nice community with reasonable prices. We know the schools in La Grange are a huge advantage, but if we have kids in a few yrs and move in 6 yrs we don't need to worry about schools, plus we would be sending our kids to Catholic school. The restaurants and bars are also great.
I guess where we're at is that we are trying to figure out "sacrifices" we can make to afford a house. We are considering a few options:
1. Stick with La Grange but look at smaller/less nice houses.
2. Stick with La Grange but look at cheaper neighborhoods: Sedgwick Park area 47-55th, La Grange Rd to East Ave - does anyone know anything about this area? Is it nice, good people? Couple apartment complexes - any problems? It is way cheaper.
3. Check out surrounding suburbs with a similar commute: La Grange Park makes my commute more difficult. Riverside is nice but not really our style. Brookfield would be good for both our commutes. We know it is not quite as "fancy" which is fine with us and you can get a LOT more for your money and till be walk-able to the train, but is it safe? Is it run down, because by very very quickly perusing googlemaps it kind of looks that way? We noticed a lot of the houses don't have driveways which is weird to us, feels like Chicago with the alleys. Not many grocery shops, etc which isn't ideal but La Grange is so close. Same for nightlife. We are both from Downers Grove originally, and someone described Brookfield to us a "what Westmont is to Downers Grove"... fair?
Sorry for the long message. We would really appreciate your comments, especially on Brookfield and the Sedgwick area of La Grange. Thank you so much!
:Congratulations on your academic success.
I know many folks that have grown up in Downers Grove as well as a fair number that have grown up in the various parts of Westmont. As you may know, parts of Westmont are served by the Westmont Unit District schools while other parts are inside the attendance area of Hinsdale Central or Hinsdale South. Each of those has a big impact on housing values...
You may not realize that parts of Brookfield are served by the well regarded Riverside elementary schools, and parts are served by Riverside-Brookfield High and other parts are served by Lyons Township High. Each has a significant impact on values...
Personally I have no issue helping folks understand why values might be higher in one part of a town than another but I caution that anyone that dismisses either these differences or even the reasoning behind them might be missing som good options...
As to the relative desirability of various parts of Lagrange, Lagrange Park, Brookfield or surrounding towns I would caution that there are different factors at work than comparing Weatmont to DG. The core of DG is highly valued -- historic homes and literal estates in Denburn Woods have no analogue n Westmont. The superior train service available at DG's 3 train stations blows away the options in Westmont. The range of options that can be found in downtown DG is far more impressive than anything Westmont can offer...
Ok? So if you got a starter home in Lagrange at the bottom of your price range does that make more sense than spending a similar amount of money on perhaps a larger home in Brookfield or Lagrange Park? Core question. Not a 100% certainity. Always some trade-offs. That said, assuming you choose the "worst home in the nicest block you can afford" (and subsequently put at least a modicum of effort into improving the home / updating decor / getting involved prettying up landscape and getting to know neighbors...) it likely does make sense to invest in the area with the best long term prospects for stability / impovent and that would be Lagrange. There are lots of folks that do appreciate / prefer alleys but the overall mix of businesses and such in Brookfield is not as desirable as what is in Lagrange. Now if you already had kids a needed a bigger home at a better price I would likely be much more supportive of looking at Brookfield or LGP, but given the likely that your household income will increase and you do not yet have kids the whole picture makes for a better fit in Lagrange itself...
Quote:
Originally Posted by agallan
Hello, my wife and I are currently looking to buy our first house in the western suburbs. We are in a unique career/commute situation and we would appreciate your advice!
Some background...My wife just graduated law school and will be starting her job downtown, to which she would take the train. I just finished medical school and will be at The University of Chicago for my residency, so I will be driving. We really want to live in the suburbs, and will probably have children in around 2 years. Our financial situation (with my boatload of student loans) right now is very different than what it will be when I finish my residency & fellowship training (6 years) and get a "real job", so we just need a starter house until then. Plus I will have to find a job in 6 years which could be anywhere in the city or suburbs, so we feel like buying a 6-7 yr starter house would be perfect because then we can move closer to wherever I end up getting a job. We are trying to keep it under $325k, could spend more, but would be very happy spending less and putting the money towards my loans.
We have been looking extensively in La Grange and love it, but we just don't feel like there is much in our price range. The Countryclub area is appealing to us because it is a nice community with reasonable prices. We know the schools in La Grange are a huge advantage, but if we have kids in a few yrs and move in 6 yrs we don't need to worry about schools, plus we would be sending our kids to Catholic school. The restaurants and bars are also great.
I guess where we're at is that we are trying to figure out "sacrifices" we can make to afford a house. We are considering a few options:
1. Stick with La Grange but look at smaller/less nice houses.
2. Stick with La Grange but look at cheaper neighborhoods: Sedgwick Park area 47-55th, La Grange Rd to East Ave - does anyone know anything about this area? Is it nice, good people? Couple apartment complexes - any problems? It is way cheaper.
3. Check out surrounding suburbs with a similar commute: La Grange Park makes my commute more difficult. Riverside is nice but not really our style. Brookfield would be good for both our commutes. We know it is not quite as "fancy" which is fine with us and you can get a LOT more for your money and till be walk-able to the train, but is it safe? Is it run down, because by very very quickly perusing googlemaps it kind of looks that way? We noticed a lot of the houses don't have driveways which is weird to us, feels like Chicago with the alleys. Not many grocery shops, etc which isn't ideal but La Grange is so close. Same for nightlife. We are both from Downers Grove originally, and someone described Brookfield to us a "what Westmont is to Downers Grove"... fair?
Sorry for the long message. We would really appreciate your comments, especially on Brookfield and the Sedgwick area of La Grange. Thank you so much!
Thank you Chet, this is very helpful. If we had kids that would be going to school in the area we moved to, we would definitely move to the best school district in La Grange even if it meant a lesser house. But since by the time we have school aged kids we will be in a very different financial situation and will have the opportunity to move to a different school district, it kind of takes the school issue out of the equation except for 1) how the quality of schools impact home value; and 2) how the quality of schools impact the types of people that move in the neighborhood and how kept up the neighborhood is. So, for instance, we would be perfectly happy living in the Sedgwick area of La Grange even though the schools aren't up to par with the rest of LaGrange as long as the quality of schools isn't a *symptom* of the neighborhood itself. Get my drift? As for Brookfield, I completely agree with your comments, its just always tempting to go for that bigger house as long as its still a safe area (aka my wife can walk back from the train after dark and feel safe).
Anyone else have any thoughts? Experiences with the Sedgwick area of La Grange?
Since you mentioned Catholic schools, have you considered St. John of the Cross in Western Springs? That is considered one of the premier schools/parishes in the Archdiocese of Chicago. My younger siblings had all attended the school (I missed out since we moved to the area when I started HS - Nazareth). So, Western Springs might be an option for you too.
...the OP's limited budget is unlikely to go any further in Western Springs where prices are higher than it would in Lagrange. Beyond that fact I would also caution that the much more family oriented / limited offerings in WS are unlikely to hold much appeal for a couple w/o children...
Btw I know if no widely published "rankings" of parochial schools. Now I don't doubt that some of the same factors that do influence the achievement of students in public schools are also at work for those that attend private schools, such as the "iron clad" rule of wealthier parents having children that do better in school-- I don't disagree that WS is an affluent area, but so is Lagrange, Hinsdale and surrounding towns. I actually would like to see data that shows the relative performance of St. John of the Cross, St. Francis Xavier , St. Cletus, St. Issac Jogues, Notre Dame, Holy Trinity, etc but I suspect this runs counter to the mission of serving students primarily within their parish w/o competing across towns...
...the OP's limited budget is unlikely to go any further in Western Springs where prices are higher than it would in Lagrange. Beyond that fact I would also caution that the much more family oriented / limited offerings in WS are unlikely to hold much appeal for a couple w/o children...
Btw I know if no widely published "rankings" of parochial schools. Now I don't doubt that some of the same factors that do influence the achievement of students in public schools are also at work for those that attend private schools, such as the "iron clad" rule of wealthier parents having children that do better in school-- I don't disagree that WS is an affluent area, but so is Lagrange, Hinsdale and surrounding towns. I actually would like to see data that shows the relative performance of St. John of the Cross, St. Francis Xavier , St. Cletus, St. Issac Jogues, Notre Dame, Holy Trinity, etc but I suspect this runs counter to the mission of serving students primarily within their parish w/o competing across towns...
Catholic schools usually publish Terra Nova scores. In addition, certain area Catholic schools have been declared a Blue Ribbon School by the federal govt. St. Giles and St John of the Cross are two with that designation in the western suburbs. I am sure there are more.
C'mon out to Downers Grove. Great schools, parks, library, police force, downtown, taxes, property choices. We've been here since 1986. Moved here from Cicero when we got married.
Not to be mean, but if you are hard pressed to live in the area you desire, why are you adding Catholic school tuition on top of your already strapped house budget? I understand the religious aspect, but get them involved in CCD and the youth group and let them go to public school. The public schools in La Grange are quite good.
Not to be mean, but if you are hard pressed to live in the area you desire, why are you adding Catholic school tuition on top of your already strapped house budget? I understand the religious aspect, but get them involved in CCD and the youth group and let them go to public school. The public schools in La Grange are quite good.
The OP does not yet have children, they are speculating about what they might do down the road...
I know quite a few families that live in nicer suburbs with good public schools that choose to send their children to parochical schools. Often the decision is based on social factors -- perhaps they went to parochial schools themselves.
Not to be mean, but if you are hard pressed to live in the area you desire, why are you adding Catholic school tuition on top of your already strapped house budget? I understand the religious aspect, but get them involved in CCD and the youth group and let them go to public school. The public schools in La Grange are quite good.
Right, why pay for the school if you have no intention of using it?
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Lots of misconceptions...
Price point...
