Investigating Villa Park, Lombard and Glen Ellyn (Evanston, Wheaton: for sale, houses)

[Zoodle]

My husband will be working right above the Ogilvie station and he wants a total commute time of under an hour. We want to spend less than 600k, preferably between 400 and 500. Our kids are in college, so schools are not a priority for us.

I just spent 5 days looking at Oak Park, City neighborhoods, Evanston, Willemete, LG, LGP, and Westchester.
I could not afford the type of house we want in most of those places - I did see a nice house in Westcheser, but the development was right adjacent to huge office building.

We have lived the last 11 years in suburban (boarding on rural) Connecticut in a house that was new when we moved in. We like being near places where we can hop on a bike for a long ride or go running easily and proximity to the train is also very important.

I will be returning in a couple of weeks and would like to investigate some other towns, preferable on the train lines that go in to Ogilvie. It seems that I may be able to find some acceptable houses in Lombard, maybe in Glen Ellyn and maybe in Villa park. My husband vetoed these on the first trip because he was afraid of airport noise/fumes, but my reading has suggested that it is not a problem in these towns.

I have not seen much discussion here on the merits or lack thereof of Lombard or Villa Park.
I would consider Wheaton, but the train trip is a little too long.

Can anyone offer any advice on this?

[holl1ngsworth]

I work down in the south Loop (10 minute walk from Ogilvie) and door-to-door from Wheaton is under an hour. My inbound train is 42 minutes and my outbound train is 34 minutes.

On biking, Wheaton is the hub of the Illinois Prairie Path. All three branches originate at the center of the downtown district, creating endless route options: IPP Full Color Map.

I would not spend $600k in Villa Park or Lombard. Try Elmhurst, Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, or Downers Grove (BNSF, which empties into Union). They are much more stable at that price point -- and much more charming.

[Zoodle]

Can you be more specific on what you mean by "much more stable at that price point"?

Also, am am trying to spend less closer to 400-500k (college payments are eating a lot of cash right now)
Does that change your advice?

thanks

[RJA29]

Originally Posted by Zoodle

Can you be more specific on what you mean by "much more stable at that price point"?

Also, I am trying to spend less closer to 400-500k (college payments are eating a lot of cash right now)
Does that change your advice?

thanks

By stable, I believe he means that the prices are less likely to fluctuate because they are more "desirable" suburbs with better schools, amenities, etc.

The commute from Lombard might not be any shorter than Glen Ellyn or Wheaton, if you catch the right express trains.

How big of a house are you looking for? If you want a new 4BR 2BA it's going to be at least 500K in these locales. Lombard you might get something cheaper, but the prices of your investment might fluctuate more.

Glen Ellyn might be worth a look, especially if you can go a bit over 500.

[holl1ngsworth]

Only very recently have any Lombard homes traded at prices in excess of $500k. And there's less than two dozen such sales over the past two years. In Villa Park, those prices are nonexistent.

OTOH, Elmhurst, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn and Downers Grove homes have traded above $500k for decades. There are literally hundreds of such sales each year, and prices frequently approach $2mil.

Furthermore, Elmhurst, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn and Downers Grove are generally more charming, with vibrant downtown districts, abundant amenities, robust park districts, outstanding schools, and award-winning libraries. All-around more stable plays.

[Lookout Kid]

Parts of Villa Park look downright dicey, though it's far from a dangerous place. Lombard is definitely a step up, which a variety of income levels living there happily. Glen Ellyn and Wheaton are a bit more upscale, and have stronger school systems. And on the eastern side of all of this, there's the increasingly upscale Elmhurst, which is many people love for it's location at the junction of major highways and easy access to the city.

[Zoodle]

Thanks, It is good to know that Villa Park has dicey areas. I noticed there were few houses for sale in my price range, but there was at least one New Construction house and that had peaked my interest.

I will have to rethink Lombard then. It has been hard to find a newer home with at least 2.5 baths in our price range in many of the towns we have looked as so far.
Downers grove is on the train to Union, so I was trying to stay into Ogilvie.

Are you familiar with Westchester? I know it is not as well thought of as La grange, but living there would we would be using the la grange train station and be near it's DT area.

[aga412]

Is there a way where you can do Lombard and get away with being in one of the better Glenbard HS districts? Not too familiar with the borders of that district to make an informed opinion.

[RJA29]

Originally Posted by aga412

Is there a way where you can do Lombard and get away with being in one of the better Glenbard HS districts? Not too familiar with the borders of that district to make an informed opinion.

Yes, Lombard pretty much necessitates being in the less affluent pocket of the high-schools there. Lombard near the train for 400K would be a *very* nice house and a pretty quick commute.

[aga412]

Originally Posted by RJA29

Yes, Lombard pretty much necessitates being in the less affluent pocket of the high-schools there. Lombard near the train for 400K would be a *very* nice house and a pretty quick commute.

Not really much of a unity of Glen Ellyn and Lombard if the high schools actively keep the two towns apart... lol.