Incorporated vs. Unincorporated (Naperville, Kane: real estate, insurance, house)

[MovingUs]

We are finally in IL and narrowing down our home search. We have a home that we love in unincorporated Naperville. From the east coast I have no idea what that means and it seems like everyone says..."well you don't get..." Is there a comprehensive list somewhere? A chart of the differences? Loved the country feel of it with close amenities nearby. Thanks!

[Lookout Kid]

It just means you don't have a city or village government. But that can mean different things for different unincorporated areas. Some have sewer and water, some don't. Some have park and library districts, some don't. Some have responsive snow removal, some don't. So if you are buying in an unincorporated area, you will need to make sure you know where your services are coming from and which ones you will be personally responsible for.

For example, a builder of an unincorporated subdivision may make a deal with an nearby municipality for certain services. But a one-off house on a country road is less likely to have this type of deal in place, and mostly likely has a well and septic system.

[chet everett]

LK is correct and the difficulty is that EACH HOME can often be under subject to different jurisdiction and utility service. There is no "chart" but a recent copy of the PROPERTY TAX BILL can be requested from the seller / their listing agent and that at least will clearly show which units of governments the property falls under. Most sellers in unincorporated areas will know the status of things like "fire protection district", utilities, and even library / park districts. The major difference is often just police service, with 911 calls from homes in unincorporated areas being routed to the County Sheriff instead municipal police, generally not a big deal. Similarly the there are lots of people that live adjacent to county roads even inside the boundaries of incorporated towns / villages / cities and that does mean an extra layer of communication can be required to get pot holes filled or snow plowed, again rather minor.

In a general sense, there is really no big negative for unincorporated homes and even the positives (which is generally just an elimination of the municipal property tax and maybe parks / libraries, as well as reliance on County zoning instead of municipal regulations) are so minor as to be inconsequential.

[Lookout Kid]

Ah yes, police and fire. Those are big ones! Definitely something to research ahead of time.

[gardener34]

i live in unincorporated, although Kane county. Big thing is that you deal with permits, codes, zoning, etc mostly on a county level. In our county, has proved to be very aggravating at times. And check your zoning, tends to be laxer in unincorporated. See if you can deal with anything that is not specifically forbidden by the codes otherwise you will be like us and have a NFH move in and annoy you because of county zoning loopholes.
I would investigate these things yourself because the real estate agent will not know. and even the previous owner we bought the home from did not know about the zoning craziness in our area. Call the zoning to see a map.
Police & fire I would investigate. Are there hydrants? If not, your insurance may be higher. Do you pay for library or park district in your taxes? If not, if you like things like this, you will have to pay extra.
Find out what township you are in, in unincorporated areas many of your services are provided by your township. Ours happens to give stellar services: plow, brush pickup, etc.