Winfield, Carol Stream, Warrenville, Geneva, Batavia, Wheaton, St. Charles...? (Chicago: apartment complexes, lease)

[NYtoIAtoIL]

This has been very insightful. We are looking for apartments in about a week. We are just planning on being in the area for a year to possibly 4 years , but you never know. As I said, we currently rent a Duplex in Iowa for $650/mo. 2 summers ago we rented a studio apartment in Lincoln Park for the same amount, so I knew things would be more expensive but I am trying to prepare myself. I am guessing we will pay twice as much as we do now for something smaller (i.e. an apt.) We will be looking at 2 and 3 BR apts. in W. Chicago, Winfield and Warrenville, I guess. I heard from another source that Winfield is one of the safest small towns in the US (primarily because they have so many policemen out all of the time.) My husband may also be looking for some small office space to rent. Being close to W. Chicago is very important to us. Thanks for the other suggestions, though. We may end up looking further--checking out these other suburbs--if we don't find anything that suits us nearby.
Feel free to keep the suggestions coming: from specifics about suburbs to specifics about suburb-living. Thanks!

[sickofIL]

Steve-o

Sounds like the same argument as everywhere else. Illinois (Chicago and suburbs) stinks period! It is the highest taxed state in the country. The weather stinks, most of the people don't care about anyone but themselves. None can wait for anything, just me first, everywhare. You can't afford to do anything with your family anymore (if you are middle class) Property taxex are completely unreasonable. Everyone complains about the high taxes but they all vote tax raises for everything.
My taxes raise every year to the max allowed by the tax cap. Now they want to raise that.
Our wonderful school district wanted a new middle school. They determined that it would cost $39M for a new school and $41M to rehab the old one. By the time it got out to vote on it was $54M for the new school. My taxes will go up over $600 in the next couple of years just for thins alone. Oh, they also are going to build it on land that has questionable sutability. Land bought from AMICO where 4 people dies from brain cancer and it also is in the flood plain. I am glad we will not be here for my kids to go there.
You get almost no sun here, just bad weather. It is rainy and cold, rainy and hot, super cold, super hot and humid. Most of the year you don't want to go outside. Kids can't play outside most of the year, unless we are in a drought, because it is always muddy.
Have you ever been to Tucson? Like anywhere else, you need to like it to live there. Yes the green is nice to see, but I can do without it. The desert also has beautiful things. In spring there are beautiful flowers and some things get green. There are the beautiful sunsets, the mountains, many places to go that are actually affordable, and they have over 300 days of sun each year.
And houses here are also built like crap. It is difficult to find good construction anywhere, old or new. Arizona isnt bad, it's different. And yes, if you cannot live without green you shouldn't live there.
I have lived here in the Chicago suburbs all of my life and hate it. Yes the pay is more here, but you need that to pay for the housing and taxes. If you lived most anywhere else (outside of maybe NY city, or LA) you couldn't afford to live at the same level as before.Housing and taxes go up much faster than salaries so you cannot keep up. If you think you can, you are dreaming. Although maybe if you are moving here and looking for a million dollar or more house you won't have a problem. But I know people living like that ant they also complain that cost are rising faster than income.
We are moving so we can relax and actually live.
We want things that you cannot have here. I am a car fanatic. There are only a few months that you can go out with your projects. The resr oif the year you keep it in the garage. You're crazy if you have a pool. During the about 3 months a year you can use it, half the time it's raining.
Everybody has their own likes and dislikes and for me, I have grown to dislike Illinois. (more like dispise it)

[ctseasons]

Originally Posted by sickofIL

It is the highest taxed state in the country.

I live in Connecticut AND BEG TO DIFFER WITH THAT STATEMENT!!!!

Last I checked we had the highest total tax burden of 38.3%! Followed by New York, Vermont and New Jersey. And by the way, Illinois came in around 14th with 33%.

Taxes are high in a lot of places - so everyone knows that! What gives you the right to be so snotty about it? If you hate Illinois so much, why not move and stop complaining?!

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by sickofIL

Steve-o

Sounds like the same argument as everywhere else. Illinois (Chicago and suburbs) stinks period! It is the highest taxed state in the country. The weather stinks, most of the people don't care about anyone but themselves. None can wait for anything, just me first, everywhare. You can't afford to do anything with your family anymore (if you are middle class) Property taxex are completely unreasonable. Everyone complains about the high taxes but they all vote tax raises for everything.
My taxes raise every year to the max allowed by the tax cap. Now they want to raise that.
Our wonderful school district wanted a new middle school. They determined that it would cost $39M for a new school and $41M to rehab the old one. By the time it got out to vote on it was $54M for the new school. My taxes will go up over $600 in the next couple of years just for thins alone. Oh, they also are going to build it on land that has questionable sutability. Land bought from AMICO where 4 people dies from brain cancer and it also is in the flood plain. I am glad we will not be here for my kids to go there.
You get almost no sun here, just bad weather. It is rainy and cold, rainy and hot, super cold, super hot and humid. Most of the year you don't want to go outside. Kids can't play outside most of the year, unless we are in a drought, because it is always muddy.
Have you ever been to Tucson? Like anywhere else, you need to like it to live there. Yes the green is nice to see, but I can do without it. The desert also has beautiful things. In spring there are beautiful flowers and some things get green. There are the beautiful sunsets, the mountains, many places to go that are actually affordable, and they have over 300 days of sun each year.
And houses here are also built like crap. It is difficult to find good construction anywhere, old or new. Arizona isnt bad, it's different. And yes, if you cannot live without green you shouldn't live there.
I have lived here in the Chicago suburbs all of my life and hate it. Yes the pay is more here, but you need that to pay for the housing and taxes. If you lived most anywhere else (outside of maybe NY city, or LA) you couldn't afford to live at the same level as before.Housing and taxes go up much faster than salaries so you cannot keep up. If you think you can, you are dreaming. Although maybe if you are moving here and looking for a million dollar or more house you won't have a problem. But I know people living like that ant they also complain that cost are rising faster than income.
We are moving so we can relax and actually live.
We want things that you cannot have here. I am a car fanatic. There are only a few months that you can go out with your projects. The resr oif the year you keep it in the garage. You're crazy if you have a pool. During the about 3 months a year you can use it, half the time it's raining.
Everybody has their own likes and dislikes and for me, I have grown to dislike Illinois. (more like dispise it)

Wow, so Tucson has mountains, beautiful sunsets, and a few short weeks of where things actually bloom before everything goes back to brown. That MUST mean that its a great place to live, right? Houses might be decently cheap there, but the city is a dangerous dud, and the jobs dont pay squat. If youre gonna get stuck in that area, make sure to get stuck out near Oro Valley, the only decent place near Tucson that I found. And the 300 days of sun? Wonderful. Be prepared to sit inside most days until the sun goes down, because the high temps (very unbearable at times) will cook you alive and lack of humidity will dehydrate you faster than you can say the word. Do I need to mention the worst schools in the nation and the highest skin-cancer rates in the world (gotta love that sun though )??? And also be prepared for sky-high temps and high humidity come monsoon season down there. Yes, Tucson gets quite steamy contrary to popular belief. And then when monsoon season hits, expect to get stranded at times because the roads are completely impassable at points due to deep, filthy, rushing water that has nowhere to go (no drainage in Tucson). And watch your step at night (daytime too), youre in rattler, scorpion, black widow, javalina, mountain lion, bobcat, etc, country.

Have you even been to Tucson before, or are you one of the sheep who follow the blind sheep? You know, the "me like sun, me no like midwest, me know grass greener on udder side, me like desert me thinks" crowd? Make sure you visit the area MANY times before settling down. All but 2 of my family that have moved down there have come back.

I had the "pleasure" of getting stuck in Tucson on I-10 on a "beautiful" 110 degree day, while they routed traffic through neighborhoods (real brilliant idea ADOT!) due to construction on I-10. While not even in a bad neighborhood, it was still very run-down looking. And the towns outside of Tucson? Yeah, some of them are about the freakiest things Ive ever seen. Here is your average Tucson neighborhood (read: affordable). The new areas are ok, but theyre cookie-cutter hell.
//www.city-data.com/forum/tucso...hood-tour.html

[NUman]

What town do you live in SickofIL? Maybe you should consider moving to a different suburb? Try another western suburb, a northern, northwest, whatever. There are endless possibilities in Chicago. If you cannot stand the traffic and commute. Try to get a suburban job and move to a community like Plano or Yorkville. They have very affordable housing and there are many jobs in Aurora and Naperville.

[nanannie]

I like "ctseasons" idea better.

[BUalumni]

Originally Posted by sickofIL

Steve-o

Sounds like the same argument as everywhere else. Illinois (Chicago and suburbs) stinks period! It is the highest taxed state in the country. The weather stinks, most of the people don't care about anyone but themselves. None can wait for anything, just me first, everywhare. You can't afford to do anything with your family anymore (if you are middle class) Property taxex are completely unreasonable. Everyone complains about the high taxes but they all vote tax raises for everything.
My taxes raise every year to the max allowed by the tax cap. Now they want to raise that.
Our wonderful school district wanted a new middle school. They determined that it would cost $39M for a new school and $41M to rehab the old one. By the time it got out to vote on it was $54M for the new school. My taxes will go up over $600 in the next couple of years just for thins alone. Oh, they also are going to build it on land that has questionable sutability. Land bought from AMICO where 4 people dies from brain cancer and it also is in the flood plain. I am glad we will not be here for my kids to go there.
You get almost no sun here, just bad weather. It is rainy and cold, rainy and hot, super cold, super hot and humid. Most of the year you don't want to go outside. Kids can't play outside most of the year, unless we are in a drought, because it is always muddy.
Have you ever been to Tucson? Like anywhere else, you need to like it to live there. Yes the green is nice to see, but I can do without it. The desert also has beautiful things. In spring there are beautiful flowers and some things get green. There are the beautiful sunsets, the mountains, many places to go that are actually affordable, and they have over 300 days of sun each year.
And houses here are also built like crap. It is difficult to find good construction anywhere, old or new. Arizona isnt bad, it's different. And yes, if you cannot live without green you shouldn't live there.
I have lived here in the Chicago suburbs all of my life and hate it. Yes the pay is more here, but you need that to pay for the housing and taxes. If you lived most anywhere else (outside of maybe NY city, or LA) you couldn't afford to live at the same level as before.Housing and taxes go up much faster than salaries so you cannot keep up. If you think you can, you are dreaming. Although maybe if you are moving here and looking for a million dollar or more house you won't have a problem. But I know people living like that ant they also complain that cost are rising faster than income.
We are moving so we can relax and actually live.
We want things that you cannot have here. I am a car fanatic. There are only a few months that you can go out with your projects. The resr oif the year you keep it in the garage. You're crazy if you have a pool. During the about 3 months a year you can use it, half the time it's raining.
Everybody has their own likes and dislikes and for me, I have grown to dislike Illinois. (more like dispise it)

Lets not get carried away here. First of all, putting all of Illinois in with Chicago and its ugly sprawl is not correct. Chicago, Rockford, and everything in between may be big, but they in no way represent the rest of the state. Second of all, it is no use telling residents of Chicagoland that there is better in other places. For what ever reason they just don't seem to get it. I mean, four of there five big cities outside of Chicago are junk, but that still doesn't give them a clue. Have you thought about trying to live downstate. Bloomington and Normal are very suburban in nature and mirror the suburbs in many ways. Job are plentiful, taxes are low, schools are great, and housing prices are rising, but not still less than the average Dupage county home. If you are looking for more urban than Peoria can give you a good amount. Not to mention that is is surrounded on all sides by "suburban" cities and towns that have a great quality of life with the same caliber of schools, and everything else that the Chicago suburbs can offer, except for proxmity to Chicago. Plus you are only 2-3 hours away. I used to live in Downers Grove and on bad days it could take me close to 2 hours to get into the city. Just a suggestion.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by BUalumni

I mean, four of there five big cities outside of Chicago are junk, but that still doesn't give them a clue.Not to mention that is is surrounded on all sides by "suburban" cities everything else that the Chicago suburbs can offer

First off, are you calling Schaumburg, Naperville, etc, "junk"?? Excuse me?

And saying that downstate cities offer all that Chicago suburbs do is kinda silly. While you have some things that we do (ie chain stores, etc), you also dont have tons of things that Chicago burbs do. Last I checked, Effingham (as an example) doesnt have any public transportation, no childrens museums, no arboretums, no art museums, no choice of community colleges, no water parks, no place to take in a Nascar/drag racing/private track day event, no bustling nightlife districts, no Frank Lloyd Wright homes, no horse racing tracks, no amusement parks, no mega-shopping experiences (ie Woodfield, Stratford Square, Westfield Shoppingtown, etc), no historic shopping areas (ie Long Grove), no access to professional sporting events, no mega car shows (ie Bloomington Gold, etc), etc. Heck, you cant even swing into a Gino's East, Lou Malnatis or even a Portillos for that matter. I could go on and on with things that the Chicago burbs have that downstate cities dont. This isnt a knock on downstate suburbs at all, as many people prefer them, but everyone knows that Chicagoland offers much more to do.

[BUalumni]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

First off, are you calling Schaumburg, Naperville, etc, "junk"?? Excuse me?

And saying that downstate cities offer all that Chicago suburbs do is kinda silly. While you have some things that we do (ie chain stores, etc), you also dont have tons of things that Chicago burbs do. Last I checked, Effingham (as an example) doesnt have any public transportation, no childrens museums, no arboretums, no art museums, no choice of community colleges, no water parks, no place to take in a Nascar/drag racing/private track day event, no bustling nightlife districts, no Frank Lloyd Wright homes, no horse racing tracks, no amusement parks, no mega-shopping experiences (ie Woodfield, Stratford Square, Westfield Shoppingtown, etc), no historic shopping areas (ie Long Grove), no access to professional sporting events, no mega car shows (ie Bloomington Gold, etc), etc. Heck, you cant even swing into a Gino's East, Lou Malnatis or even a Portillos for that matter. I could go on and on with things that the Chicago burbs have that downstate cities dont. This isnt a knock on downstate suburbs at all, as many people prefer them, but everyone knows that Chicagoland offers much more to do.

Why is it that everytime I post in the Chi-town suburb forum, I am followed up by a remark by you?

The cities that I was talking about as junk are Joliet, Aurora, Elgin, and the great gem of Gary. Yes, Gary is a suburb of Chicago. Last time I checked Shaumburg wasn't as big as the others, and although it is nicer than Joliet by a long shot, it isn't anything to write home about. Peoria is vastly more interesting, with superior amounts of character. So what was your point?

Please. I'm sorry, but suburban cities cannot compete with actual cities like Peoria or Springfield. Heck, Bloomington might as well annex the whole city of Naperville since they are almost identical. Who said anything about Effingham? I was talking about central Illinois cities. Southern Illinois really doesn't have any. Comparing Effingham to Chicago suburbs is just as strange as comparing Pekin to Chicago suburbs. It just doesn't work that way.

Here is a list of Peoria does have on your basis of what makes the suburbs "so much" better.

Public transit-check, Peoria serves a Tri-County+ radius
Children's museums-check
Arboretums-check
Art museums-check
Community colleges-CHECK!, that is a weird one
Water parks-check
No place to take a Nascar track day event-LOL! well you got us there
Bustling nightlife districts-check
Frank Loyd Wright Homes- why doesn that even begin to matter
Horse racing tracks-check
Amuzement Parks-check, but no we don't have Six Flags, but neither does Naperville
Mega-Shopping "experiences"- LOL! Well we have three malls just in Peoria itself and that doesn't even begin to describe all the other "shopping experiences" in the city and surround areas, or Bloomington. By the way, most people don't consider having a massive mall in town as good thing.
Historic Shopping areas-check
No access to pro sports-well, the Tri-County area isn't that far from Chicago or St. Louis. As far as access goes, I think we might have more.
Mega car shows-Once again, how is that a positive or unique trait to Chicagoland? We have some pretty big ones though. In fact most of what you guys get goes to the burbs, and then coems down here.
Restaurants that we don't have-Well I think Portillos is overates anyway. Besides, we have tons that are singular to the Peoria/Bloomington experience. How that does that make us any different?

I'm not trying to attack you, but your argument is a little out there!

[Joe107]

Peoria is soooo Ghetto vs. Naperville

Crime rate (lower better, US avg=323)
Peoria 581.3 Naperville 90.9


Household income
Peoria $40,276 Naperville $93,338

% residents in poverty
Peoria 15.8% Naperville 2.5%

Bachelor's degree or higher:
Peoria 28.0% Naperville 60.6%