Attributes of your ideal house in the Western Suburbs (Wheaton: low income, foreclosure)

[DandiDay]

After a few weeks of house hunting in the Western 'burbs, I wondered what house attributes you all wanted in your own home.

Please list your "ideal" house in La Grange, Western Springs, Hinsdale, Downers Grove, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, and Elmhurst using the following parameters (feel free to add your own):

style/age of house
move-in ready, or needs some reno? what would you change about the house if you had to?
square feet above grade
# bedrooms
# baths
# living/dining areas (formal living, formal dining, family room)
kitchen size and style (eat-in?)
basement - finished/unfinished, square feet, what kind of rooms
fireplace,deck, mud room, foyer, or any other "must have"

In fact, it would be interesting to see which of the "solds" from the past year you would choose on Redfin or Zillow, given a budget of 500K-800K. Please copy and paste a link from a sold property that fits your description!

I'd be interested to see everyone's input! Thanks in advance!

Cheers,
Dandiday

[4122]

I would want at least 2500 sqft 3 beds 2 baths. A fairly new house particularly built after 1978, because some houses before 1978 have led. I would only consider a house older than that if it was remodeled in 1978 or after. At minimum, I would want a living room and a family room. I prefer an eat in kitchen, but I'm not opposed to just a regular kitchen as long as it's not small. A galley kitchen would usually be too small for me. I definitely would want a basement and would want it finished. The less you have to fix in a house, the better, but I would consider buying a fixer upper or a foreclosure to get a bigger house for a cheap price. I would buy a house in any of the areas mentioned, but I would prefer to buy in DG, GE, Elmhurst, or Wheaton because I would get more house for my money, but still reside in a great school district.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by 4122

I would want at least 2500 sqft 3 beds 2 baths. A fairly new house particularly built after 1978, because some houses before 1978 have led. I would only consider a house older than that if it was remodeled in 1978 or after. At minimum, I would want a living room and a family room. I prefer an eat in kitchen, but I'm not opposed to just a regular kitchen as long as it's not small. A galley kitchen would usually be too small for me. I definitely would want a basement and would want it finished. The less you have to fix in a house, the better, but I would consider buying a fixer upper or a foreclosure to get a bigger house for a cheap price. I would buy a house in any of the areas mentioned, but I would prefer to buy in DG, GE, Elmhurst, or Wheaton because I would get more house for my money, but still reside in a great school district.

... I gotta say that I have sold LOTS of suburban homes built well before the ban on lead paint and frankly NONE OF THEM ever failed a lead paint test. If you think about it the reason is simple -- we are not talking about tenements that some absentee landlord did not want to spend a dime on if they didn't have to.

No sane suburban home owner would want their own kids gnawing on a door frame or window casing and ending up too stupid to ever be employed, thus pretty much ALL of these older homes had "remediation" done decades ago. Understanding Inspection, Risk Assessment, and Abatement | Lead | US EPA

BTW -- There is a whole other school of thought that says "lead poisioning" as experienced in low income urban populations has never been from paint but from sources like industrial contaimination / soil -- Lead Paint Not sure I agree with that, but it does go along with the fact that there was NEVER any evidence of lead being a serious threat in nice older homes in places like Wheaton or other historic type suburbs... CDC - Lead - CDC's Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program

[Lookout Kid]

Another reason that a lot of older homes lack lead: Many vintage houses wall-paper and unpainted wood trim in the decades before 1978.

My kids have only lived in houses from the 1920's, and their blood tests have always been negative for lead (many pediatricians test young children for this).

[DandiDay]

Originally Posted by 4122

I would want at least 2500 sqft 3 beds 2 baths. A fairly new house particularly built after 1978, because some houses before 1978 have led. I would only consider a house older than that if it was remodeled in 1978 or after. At minimum, I would want a living room and a family room. I prefer an eat in kitchen, but I'm not opposed to just a regular kitchen as long as it's not small. A galley kitchen would usually be too small for me. I definitely would want a basement and would want it finished. The less you have to fix in a house, the better, but I would consider buying a fixer upper or a foreclosure to get a bigger house for a cheap price. I would buy a house in any of the areas mentioned, but I would prefer to buy in DG, GE, Elmhurst, or Wheaton because I would get more house for my money, but still reside in a great school district.

Hi 4122 - great post! I loved reading what you wanted and why. You posted logical reasons for a new person like me. Sounds like a house with wide appeal. So, the further west one goes, the more chances one has of finding houses built after the '60s?

Are there any homes you can find on Redfin sold over the past year, that fit your criteria? I'd love to see something that exists to demonstrate the house qualities you prefer.

Thanks!
Dandiday

[chet everett]

There are plenty of home built more recently in towns closer in -- the only issue is that the COST of them is going to be a whole lot higher...

If they are in nicer towns and are still affordable they may be adjacent to a more heavily traveled road -- https://www.redfin.com/IL/Downers-Gr.../home/18030666 Worth the trade-off?
https://www.redfin.com/IL/Downers-Gr.../home/18028559

Nicer? https://www.redfin.com/IL/Clarendon-.../home/18022796
https://www.redfin.com/IL/Clarendon-.../home/14177412

[OakBrookMom]

Looking at many homes each week, every once in a while I see a home with clients that may not speak to them but definitely does to me. Sometimes it is a home I can see potential in and other times it is an appreciation for craftsmanship. The home I liked the best (9 S Monroe, Hinsdale) in your stated areas with that price range fell into the latter category. It had all my must haves:
Architectural details - helped that it was in one of my favorite styles (craftsman/prairie)
Some Newer mechanicals
Higher end finishes
4 bedrooms
2.1 bathrooms
First floor office with easy access for clients as opposed to living room which I find is wasted space
Taxes around 10K
Laundry where the bedrooms are (usually that means second floor)
Finished basement with bath
Nice back patio or low maintenance deck with yard just big enough to play ball but small enough not to take a whole day to maintain
Attached 2 car garage for our brutal winters/no huge driveway to shovel
Highly rated schools using the most recognized polls/sites/report cards
Walking distance to town/train for resale/kids and close to a 294 exit for my husband
What I would change - shower in master (It was too modern/spaceship for me), street (passed over tracks which meant more traffic), cement board siding would have been preferred over cedar siding

[DandiDay]

Originally Posted by chet everett

There are plenty of home built more recently in towns closer in -- the only issue is that the COST of them is going to be a whole lot higher...

If they are in nicer towns and are still affordable they may be adjacent to a more heavily traveled road -- https://www.redfin.com/IL/Downers-Gr.../home/18030666 Worth the trade-off?
https://www.redfin.com/IL/Downers-Gr.../home/18028559

Nicer? https://www.redfin.com/IL/Clarendon-.../home/18022796
https://www.redfin.com/IL/Clarendon-.../home/14177412

Well, I do like the space in most of these...but is the space "overkill"? I think families with several children would do the best in these. But, oh, the price of the third one!!! The fourth is far from town, and very near a cloverleaf. I'd wonder about traffic noise.

What about in a more restrictive price range...a range that seems to appeal to most buyers right now. I'd say that 800K is probably a limit the average family could reasonably and comfortably afford. BTW, some of your listings needed some updating as well! I see a lot of wallpaper removal there, not to mention the old oak kitchen in the first one.

Which brings me to this question - what's the current kitchen style and type of cabinets most of you have? Do you prefer natural stained wood? What kind? Painted cabinets? What color?

I'd take the first listing, paint the cabinets white, install a beautiful granite with a rounded edge for a bar. Put some interesting tumbled marble and glass tile backspash and some new pendant lights for a newer look! Chet, are there any houses (even already sold) that catch your eye further east? Hinsdale? WS? LG?

thanks,
Dandiday

[DandiDay]

OK - Now here's one that fits most of my criteria.

This one is in Hinsdale, over 2500 sq. ft above grade, partially finished basement. Some updating needs to be done. However, it's very close to town, has the space, some room in the basement, and reasonable taxes. All for 645K (down from an OLP of 769k!)

In fact, looking at the solds in Hinsdale and WS, most of the houses were too pricey at the beginning, and came down 50K to over 100K. Very interesting when you look at the final sold prices in each of these areas:

https://www.redfin.com/IL/Hinsdale/2.../home/18020871

Cheers,
Dandiday

[DandiDay]

https://www.redfin.com/IL/La-Grange/.../home/14062189

This one has 2500 sq. ft above grade, and decent sized rooms. It does need updating in the kitchen, baths, and better finishing in the basement. But at 550, and 11-12K in taxes, it was a great buy and value! Love the radiators and stained wood trim.

Or this one for 715K:

https://www.redfin.com/IL/La-Grange/.../home/14065460

with 2280 sq. ft above grade, decent eat-in kitchen, office on 3rd, porch, and a great basement with dry bar!
10+K taxes.