Berwyn, the most underrated suburb of Chicago (Cicero, Oak Park: middle-class, crime)

[TGPII]

Sw suburbs Orland Park, Palos Park, Oak Lawn not thar bad.

[ToriaT]

Berwyn is not bad, not bad at all but it is not perfect. The previous poster who moved said that "none of the people moved in from nicer suburbs" Why would they move to Berwyn from nicer suburbs anyway? Mostly they move in from the city and are drawn to it because of affordable homes and its great transportation routes.

[sfcambridge]

Originally Posted by ToriaT

Berwyn is not bad, not bad at all but it is not perfect. The previous poster who moved said that "none of the people moved in from nicer suburbs" Why would they move to Berwyn from nicer suburbs anyway? Mostly they move in from the city and are drawn to it because of affordable homes and its great transportation routes.

Actually, many move from Oak Park to Berwyn once they are empty nesters or retiring, to take advantages of the location while saving a bundle on property taxes.

[kzav311]

Originally Posted by David2300

I do! I lived there until I was 7. Now I live in an undesirable area of North Riverside. I always wanted to move back, I visit there often.

hello,

I just moved to north riverside what part you live in ? west or east or south towards riverside border?

its a suburb and has the quiet peaceful leave me alone feel.. lol
I grew up in palos hills so it reminds me of it the diversity and amenities near by in surround surburbs a bike away or short walk or drive.

if you have came from Berwyn I guess it makes sense it gets boring but my girl came from Chicago and she didn't want to move to Chicago and was not sold in Berwyn and I have to say I liked the area but the value of the houses haven't recovered in todays market and the taxes too high close to palos hills made it a big no

[kzav311]

honestly when looking for a home anywhere you want to look at the homeowner/renting ratio and population

when any suburb have more than 30 percent renting its not very good and creates instability in the housing market

in Berwyn the pop. is 52k
2k own those homes
lets say those 2k homeowners have others(mom pops kids grand parents) living with them
that's at least 20k average live in their own homes and not renting

the rest are renting...
and yes I saw a home in Berwyn as I looked for my first home with my fiancé and there was at least 7 Mexican guys in one house.

it made me look in home disclosure and find more info and Berwyn is looking to be the next cicero
people are renting and cashing in their homes to make a buck and making the neighborhood less desirable

I liked the homes but the market value told me to look elsewhere

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by kzav311

honestly when looking for a home anywhere you want to look at the homeowner/renting ratio and population

when any suburb have more than 30 percent renting its not very good and creates instability in the housing market

in Berwyn the pop. is 52k
2k own those homes
lets say those 2k homeowners have others(mom pops kids grand parents) living with them
that's at least 20k average live in their own homes and not renting

the rest are renting...
and yes I saw a home in Berwyn as I looked for my first home with my fiancé and there was at least 7 Mexican guys in one house.

it made me look in home disclosure and find more info and Berwyn is looking to be the next cicero
people are renting and cashing in their homes to make a buck and making the neighborhood less desirable

I liked the homes but the market value told me to look elsewhere

Berwyn is a destination suburb by many families who can't afford to buy but want to be in a good school district. It's also popular with first time home buyers on a budget (a pool which seems to be getting bigger and bigger). Berwyn suffered from a lot of foreclosures during the housing crash and the community did a great job using Home Link and other programs to get them back on line.

The rental and housing market there are thus strong right now. However, taxes have increased markedly in the past 7-8 years, and they are going to keep going up because the schools are underfunded and the town is very union friendly generally speaking. I'm wondering how the younger homeowners and renters are going to be able to absorb the increasingly higher taxes, and what effect those taxes will have on future property values.

[ToriaT]

Statistics do not check out with what you are saying KZAV311. Home prices have rebounded in Berwyn and are on the upswing.

Real Estate Overview for Berwyn, IL - Trulia

I'll grant you there are a lot of multi family dwellings especially in north Berwyn but there are also a lot of homes...

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by ToriaT

Statistics do not check out with what you are saying KZAV311. Home prices have rebounded in Berwyn and are on the upswing.

Real Estate Overview for Berwyn, IL - Trulia

I'll grant you there are a lot of multi family dwellings especially in north Berwyn but there are also a lot of homes...

It's borderline hot right now. Property values are up 18% and rents up 13% this quarter per Trulia. It was starting from a much lower point but you cannot deny that it's outpacing nearby suburbs, including Oak Park and Brookfield, because there is strong demand from low/mod income families and a lot of incentives available to these first time home buyers. I also think Pzaz is right on there being a lot of rentals available, and families are also willing to pay a lot to rent there too. Hopefully it can sustain this momentum, as well as the growing tax bills!

You just hope this isn't the Chrysler Effect. That's when you incentivize the snot out of something and it sells, but when you take the incentive away, the sales tank. Hopefully that isn't the case here as the foreclosure incentive programs wind down.

[ToriaT]

Also I can't believe the number of new restaurants/stuff happening in Berwyn. Starbucks, Home Run Inn Pizza, zacatacos going into Seneca space, Olivers, The Garage smokehouse, the Lavergne, and more. I've seen this growth and slow gentrification going on over the past two years. Strong Arts and preservationist community is growing there with the designation of the Central Berwyn National Historic district. Also everywhere you look there is a large dumpster with people re doing houses. That is kind of plus and minus cause some are being stripped of history. Still its an indication people are buying and are interested in the community.

[BRU67]

It isn't really gentrification. It's that more families are moving there, to go with the DINKs who have historically located there until their kids hit school age. Chicago has become so family-unfriendly on the west side that they are leaving there and going to places like Berwyn and Bungalow Belt neighborhoods on the northwest side.

I also think retailers are abandoning their traditional income models and looking at density in terms of where to locate. Starbucks for years resisted coming into Berwyn because of the income levels, but now they have one of their busiest stores there. All of the stuff is great for that community so long as they can keep their taxes in check.