Batavia / Aurora / Geneva / St Charles / Elgin / Naperville (Chicago, St. Charles: renting, condos)

[joe_obody999]

I am considering buying a house and living somewhere in that corridor (or perhaps a different suburb) but I really do not know the difference between those areas. I have been to St Charles/Geneva briefly a few times and know those are pretty nice outlying cities with nice neighborhoods, low crime, nice homes at $250k or less, parks, commuter rail; but what about as one goes north to Elgin (I have heard Elgin gets more crime, not so good neighborhoods) or south to Batavia / Aurora -- what is the noticeable difference if any between Batavia, Aurora, Naperville compared to St Charles / Geneva? Big move for me as I am looking to move down later this summer and buy a home, $250k or less.

[ToriaT]

In my opinion Naperville is the best as its closer to transportation hubs, is large and has a charming downtown. It may be very difficult to find a house at that price point but you might be able to find a fixer upper or a town home in the older charming section of town. I would nix Aurora...not as nice. St. Charles and Geneva are both wonderful but a tad too far west for my taste and St. Charles does not have the train station, Geneva does but they are not as close to the highway so getting into Chicago is not as easy as those places near 1-88. Batavia is not as well know but may be a kind of sleeper, nice downtown and I think you could find a house at a cheaper price point. So my recs would be

1. Look first in Naperville then Batavia.
2. Consider Geneva and St. Charles too.
3. Nix Aurora and Elgin.

[joe_obody999]

Originally Posted by ToriaT

In my opinion ....

Greatly appreciated ToriaT, thank you!

[Vasily]

Agree with ToriaT's recommendations. I've lived in Naperville for 26 years, and it's a great place. Batavia's a real charmer. I'd avoid Elgin, but Aurora has cleaned up a lot of its crime problems in recent years. Geneva's OK but I prefer Batavia, and I've never felt drawn to St Charles.

You might have a hard time finding a single family home in Naperville under $250k, but there are townhomes and condos in that range. Also, bear in mind that Naperville has grown to the south over the decades and there are areas where it will take you 45 minutes just to get to the train station.

I'd personally recommend renting for a year or two until you get used to the area and what each town has to offer.

[doodlemagic]

All these are good burbs, Elgin seems to be the one with the least in common with the rest. I would lean towards Naperville as its got better trains to the city and just closer to the city and the I88 business corridor for employments reasons its likely to offer the best commute. That said St Charles, Batavia, Geneva and I'd even trhow Oswego into the mix all have good schools and if your looking for more of a smaller town or countrier feel those would be good fits. Probably bigger homes. St. Charles is basically like a little less busy Naperville a bit farther out but has a great bar scene and restaurants as well

[almost3am]

More opinions:
If looking in Aurora, I would probably focus on the areas that feed into 204 schools, those have higher demand and would likely be more marketable.

Naperville will be tough with your budget, but I love it.

Geneva & St Charles are really nice, but getting to Chicago from there is a chore, so if that is a consideration, I would drop them.

I don't know much about Elgin & Batavia.

[mwrxcmo]

If you decide to lean towards the elgin area, i would suggest South Elgin which is technically a separate town from Elgin. There is also an area of South Elgin homes that are within the St Charles school district.

[mattywo85]

Originally Posted by joe_obody999

I am considering buying a house and living somewhere in that corridor (or perhaps a different suburb) but I really do not know the difference between those areas. I have been to St Charles/Geneva briefly a few times and know those are pretty nice outlying cities with nice neighborhoods, low crime, nice homes at $250k or less, parks, commuter rail; but what about as one goes north to Elgin (I have heard Elgin gets more crime, not so good neighborhoods) or south to Batavia / Aurora -- what is the noticeable difference if any between Batavia, Aurora, Naperville compared to St Charles / Geneva? Big move for me as I am looking to move down later this summer and buy a home, $250k or less.

I would leave out Elgin and Aurora because I feel they are less ideal than the others. Aurora may have some nice parts but overall there is better options. I would look into St.Charles, Geneva, or Naperville. Of those three your best options St.Charles/Batavia have quite a lot of options on the market right now. Naperville would be probably be your nicest option but finding a home for your price point may be difficult.

If you would like me to help you find some properties I can help or even recommend you to a realtor. Feel free to contact me.

[knitgirl]

Depends on what you're looking for. A lot of suburbanites find Elgin scary because there is a large population of non-white people. I've lived here for 17 years and have never had a problem. It does have a more urban vibe. Back in the early 1900's when the suburbs weren't so built up, Elgin and Aurora were the 2 real cities in the Fox Valley. Elgin is DEFINITELY not worse than Aurora.

[almost3am]

[quote=knitgirl;34891025]A lot of suburbanites find Elgin scary because there is a large population of non-white people. [quote]

Are you just guessing that? That's a pretty inflamatory statement to just throw out there. I have never heard that before, but I guess I don't really have conversations about Elgin...I guess people I know don't talk about racial fears, the conversations are more about schools, safety, and commute, then amenties such as stores, restaurants, bars, etc.