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Boston, Now you are starting to see the primary reason Hinsdale, Western Springs and La Grange are so desirable... The connection to big city is an unbeatable element for many of us that work in the loop... if you miss a train to WS/HD/LG you can easily catch a 25$ UBER and still be home in 25 minutes- not the case with Naperville/GE/Wheaton....
On the flip side Naperville/GE/Wheaton has a much better connection to more green instead of the big city... so personal preference... All the towns being mentioned here are truthfully top notch...
We do have UBER in Naperville/GE/Wheaton, but it won't be 25 from the Loop during rush. Closer to 50. But with such frequent Metra service during rush, why would anybody take an UBER home? Regardless, that little time savings comes at a big premium. Especially in Hinsdale.
It's probably accurate to assume an equivalent $650k home in Glen Ellyn costs $850k in Hinsdale. At current rates, and over the life of a 30-year mortgage, a buyer will pay roughly $340k more for the Hinsdale home. That's roughly $11,300/year. With 240 working days in a year (assuming 2 weeks off) that $11,300/year becomes $47 per day in the office. If you're not full time in the Loop, the price goes higher. Since Metra service to/from the Loop is just 15 minutes quicker from Hinsdale than Glen Ellyn, that $47/day becomes a rate of $94 per hour of commute! That's a steep price -- a pay rate of $195k/year! Living in Glen Ellyn, you literally put $47 in your pocket every time you get home from work -- more if you aren't full time in the Loop.
Obviously schools, services, amenities, etc. are all held constant. This is assuming the two towns are equally loved and the determining factor is commute alone. Personally, I think Glen Ellyn has a landscape that is greener and hillier, and neighborhoods that feel more coherent. The attractiveness of the high school and Lake Ellyn, as well a downtown with so much historic character intact, really puts Glen Ellyn over the top in the aesthetic department.
We take UBERs to city all the time, there and back... Agreed at 5PM traffic is hard and why would you UBER if train runs so often and just as fast... but there is those late days at office (say 630/730 or you miss express) where uber does become an option if you don't feel like waiting...
I also completely agree you pay a huge premium for the location which is not as pretty as GE/Wheaton. But people love to be close to the BIG city (in nice burbs that almost don't feel like burbs because you can still see the skyline) and prices reflect that...
Here is an absolute KILLER home in a TOP TIER location in Hinsdale that has a kitchen that you better have a six figure budget to "make right" but then you end up with a MILLION DOLLAR slam dunk -- https://www.redfin.com/IL/Hinsdale/5.../home/14060151
What does one get in Glen Ellyn for about $150k less? Well this is a similarly charming vintage home, not staged quite as well, but really move-in ready. The question, I suppose, : would a kitchen redo (probably requiring a full blown addition...) really gonna bump you up to the next price bracket -- https://www.redfin.com/IL/Glen-Ellyn.../home/12559041
Hinsdale has a higher average household income and more expensive housing. Glen Ellyn is decidedly more "middle class", though it is increasingly "upper middle class". As a result, Glen Ellyn has been described by some as more "down to earth" for whatever that is worth. Chet usually challenges assertions like this.
And Hinsdale a bit more compact and consistent, as it is more "hemmed in" by surrounding towns. Glen Ellyn kind of falls apart at the fringes. The "neatest" border is to the west with Wheaton, but the eastern border falls off to marsh and the DuPage River and things like high-voltage transmission lines and I-355. The south kind of turns in to post-war unincorporated subdivisions and the Morton Arboretum. And then the north has a somewhat crummy unincorporated zone transitioning to Glendale Heights, with more high-voltage lines and a mish-mash of housing, apartments, and retail/light industry. Some may see this as a positive, as it does allow some feeling of openness. But yes, it is less consistent.
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Originally Posted by chet everett
The lay out of each town has SOME similarities BUT ALSO some key differences -- though in some ways the effect of arterials slicing the towns into more / less desirable sub-neighborhoods is a factor. In my view, the postives mostly are with Hinsdale, and I suspect that is reflected in the higher housing costs. As I earlier alluded to, the relative range of homes that can be considered "core" in Glen Ellyn is rather limited, in Hinsdale, the fact that there are three train stations greatly enhances the walkable reach for rail commuters. Together with the way that homes north of Ogden are literally closer to the nice amenity of Fullersburg Woods / Graue Mill (which is a more "programmed" Forest Preserve than those north of Glen Ellyn) and 55th St is not really commercial at in through Hinsdale, contrasts to the heavily retail oriented Roosevelt makes dipping into the southern reaches of town more of choice for the more "estate sized" lots than a concession to dealing with traffic and other negatives of College of DuPage in GE...
The "Grand Canyon" of Glen Ellyn is Roosevelt Road. It divides elementary and high school districts, and predominantly "pre-war" neighborhoods from predominantly "post-war" neighborhoods (though every available lot north of Roosevelt seems to have had infill development in the 1950's).
More houses are probably walkable to a train station in Hinsdale, though it is much easier to DRIVE to the station in Glen Ellyn. This is a popular option.
College of DuPage traffic is mostly a non-factor, unless you live in the shadow of it. Lambert, Farwell, and Park don't exactly jam up with bumper to bumper traffic because of the college. Living north of Roosevelt, it hasn't affected me even one time in nearly three years.
I take issue with Chet's assertion that there is "more programmed" natural space in Hinsdale. What? It's not even close. We have a full-fledged educational nature center within Glen Ellyn called Willowbrook, and full access to amenity rich outdoor areas like Danada Woods and Cantigny (which include an equestrian center, museums, gardens, etc). And then of course, the crown jewel of the Western Suburbs in terms of "programming", The Morton Arboretum's entrance gate is a straight shot down Park Blvd., where we have a membership and spend lots of time. The options for programmed outdoor activities FAR surpass anything further east.
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Originally Posted by chet everett
My gut feeling is that overall more folks in Hinsdale are more likely to feel connected to / comfortable with Chicago. Partly this is reflective of the fact that the eastern part of Hinsdale is in Cook Co, so vital records / voting requires knowledge of how things "work" in Chicago. The speedier trains to the Union Station are probably a bit of the appeal too.
In contrast Glen Ellyn residents probably feel a bit more comfortable with things in neighboring towns like Wheaton and Naperville, where the abundance of local dining options and such makes that subregion a bit more vibrant than the "average" suburb. The excellent access afforded by I-355 to the NW and SW suburbs also contributes a different mix of employment options to Glen Ellyn residents...
This may be true, but you can't really draw a hard line of separation. I certainly know plenty of people who commute downtown regularly and who enjoy everything Chicago has to offer. Glen Ellyn is 36-50 minutes by train, and Hinsdale is 23-51 (looking at morning trips). I'm not sure that ten more minutes on a train really causes a drastic change in this attitude, but Glen Ellyn certainly provides an easy launching pad for jobs in the office parks of Naperville, Downers Grove, Schaumburg, and Oak Brook and probably has more suburban workers. And if you're like I was, your office may be closer to Ogilvie than Union Station, basically negating that commute difference by adding to your walk.
Last edited by Lookout Kid; 12-14-2015 at 01:11 PM..
We take UBERs to city all the time, there and back... Agreed at 5PM traffic is hard and why would you if train runs so often and just as fast... but there is those late days at office (say 630/730 or you miss express) where uber does become an option if you don't feel like waiting...
I also completely agree you pay a huge premium for the location which is not as pretty as GE/Wheaton. But people love to be close to the city (in nice burbs that almost don't feel like burbs because you can still see the skyline) and prices reflect that...
Gotcha, thanks for clarifying. During non-rush hours the drive time out to Glen Ellyn is closer to 40 mins. So times are actually narrower. And, hey! We've got a view of the skyline, it's just obstructed by all the greenery.
The access to Graue Mill and Fullersburg Woods I was thinking of was more for walking to them from the northern parts of Hinsdale, across Ogden. It is a neat area that some families really do enjoy. I'm well acquainted with Morton Arboretum (picked up a minor in Botany when I was a teacher mostly because I so enjoyed taking groups of advanced students for field trips there so much...) but it is primarily a resource that pretty much all visitors have to drive to, except for the handful of souls brave enough to bicycle along Rt 53... In terms of the broader reaches, I can say nice things about the equestrian opportunities at Danada that have largely dwarfed even the rich heritage that Oak Brook has ...
Really, there are nice things about each area, and it is hard to say anyone that can afford a home in either community is "going wrong" but the are some (mostly subtle) difference in "vibe" that probably do make it a highly personal choice...
If you can swing a larger housing budget than Glen Ellyn and are looking for an older home, I STRONGLY recommend the historic district of La Grange.
The primary advantage of Hinsdale over La Grange is Hinsdale Central High School. The elementary and middle schools of District 102 in La Grange are excellent by nearly every measure.
And of course there is Cook County. Which for someone living in La Grange, Western Springs, Wilmette, or Winnetka is just more uncertainty about taxation. I wouldn't necessarily call it a game changer in any of these upscale suburbs.
The access to Graue Mill and Fullersburg Woods I was thinking of was more for walking to them from the northern parts of Hinsdale, across Ogden. It is a neat area that some families really do enjoy. I'm well acquainted with Morton Arboretum (picked up a minor in Botany when I was a teacher mostly because I so enjoyed taking groups of advanced students for field trips there so much...) but it is primarily a resource that pretty much all visitors have to drive to, except for the handful of souls brave enough to bicycle along Rt 53... In terms of the broader reaches, I can say nice things about the equestrian opportunities at Danada that have largely dwarfed even the rich heritage that Oak Brook has ...
Really, there are nice things about each area, and it is hard to say anyone that can afford a home in either community is "going wrong" but the are some (mostly subtle) difference in "vibe" that probably do make it a highly personal choice...
The walkability and outdoor opportunity of Fullersburg and Graue Mill are almost identical to Glen Ellyn's Lake Ellyn and adjacent Churchill Woods. BUT Glen Ellyn has the added benefit of the Illinois Prairie Path, which connects the downtown district -- by foot or bike -- with over 60 miles of green trails and an endless number of parks, preserves, forests, and more programmed opportunities like those found at Blackwell or Danada in Wheaton.
If you can swing a larger housing budget than Glen Ellyn and are looking for an older home, I STRONGLY recommend the historic district of La Grange.
The primary advantage of Hinsdale over La Grange is Hinsdale Central High School. The elementary and middle schools of District 102 in La Grange are excellent by nearly every measure.
And of course there is Cook County. Which for someone living in La Grange, Western Springs, Wilmette, or Winnetka is just more uncertainty about taxation. I wouldn't necessarily call it a game changer in any of these upscale suburbs.
If you really love older homes AND there is something in your price range in Riverside or LaGrange OR Western Springs OR Hinsdale OR Clarendon Hills OR Downers Grove OR Naperville OR Oak Park or River Forest OR Elmhurst OR Glen Ellyn OR Wheaton it is really splitting hairs to say one town is truly the smarter choice -- for folks shopping the real charmers from pre-civil war era through the "Atomic Ranch" days it really does come down to what is available.
If you are only "so-so" on older homes and want to include newer homes in the mix then you probably can focus more on which town has more positives overall for your situation, but again, none of these are going to result in scorn or cries of "poor choice" from smart home shoppers that understand the region.
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I tend to agree...
