How is Morton Grove and the surrounding area? (Chicago, Waukegan: houses, unemployment)

[StuckInIllinois]

Feels like it should be pricier than it is simply due to proximity to the city. Why does it feel pretty desolate for being so near to the city? How's it compare to Glenview, for example?

Thinking about searching around this area for a home in the future, want to start getting a better feel for the area.

If anyone has any other suggestions, I'm looking for an area that is ideally within commute distance to downtown and also fairly easy access to Wisconsin border (<1 hour) and <25 or so minutes to Jefferson Park. Budget probably <$800k but ideally lower is better.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by StuckInIllinois

Feels like it should be pricier than it is simply due to proximity to the city. Why does it feel pretty desolate for being so near to the city? How's it compare to Glenview, for example?

Thinking about searching around this area for a home in the future, want to start getting a better feel for the area.

If anyone has any other suggestions, I'm looking for an area that is ideally within commute distance to downtown and also fairly easy access to Wisconsin border (<1 hour) and <25 or so minutes to Jefferson Park. Budget probably <$800k but ideally lower is better.

I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. How is Morton Grove desolate? It's a smaller version of Skokie and is a very established suburb. Most homes in Morton Grove are under $800k, but there have been a fair amount of pricier new builds that have replaced the typical 50s tract homes it was known for. It has highly reputable schools and is adjacent to the North Shore.

[StuckInIllinois]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. How is Morton Grove desolate? It's a smaller version of Skokie and is a very established suburb. Most homes in Morton Grove are under $800k, but there have been a fair amount of pricier new builds that have replaced the typical 50s tract homes it was known for. It has highly reputable schools and is adjacent to the North Shore.

I should have prefaced my post with that I'm speaking from a bit of ignorance. I live in the city and head up to the area for very specific things. I just remember last time I was there it felt not as developed as some other suburbs I've been to, but perhaps I was not in the "downtown" area of Morton Grove? I was by the Home Goods. I guess I just meant in comparison to other suburbs that are even a bit farther away. Why do the home prices just seem more affordable? What are the other suburbs nearby providing that Morton Grove isn't? For example, Glenview is farther away yet has higher incomes, lower unemployment, higher home values, etc.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by StuckInIllinois

I should have prefaced my post with that I'm speaking from a bit of ignorance. I live in the city and head up to the area for very specific things. I just remember last time I was there it felt not as developed as some other suburbs I've been to, but perhaps I was not in the "downtown" area of Morton Grove? I was by the Home Goods. I guess I just meant in comparison to other suburbs that are even a bit farther away. Why do the home prices just seem more affordable? What are the other suburbs nearby providing that Morton Grove isn't? For example, Glenview is farther away yet has higher incomes, lower unemployment, higher home values, etc.

Morton Grove has been developed for decades. It certainly has not been a farming community or rural by any stretch since before 1950. Morton Grove's downtown is fairly subdued, but the Home Goods is definitely NOT in Morton Grove's downtown.

I doubt that there is a very large per square foot price discrepancy between Morton Grove and Skokie. Glenview has neighborhoods that are significantly more luxurious than Morton Grove and far above your $800k budget. It has a totally different housing stock. Morton Grove's property taxes are very high, significantly higher than Glenview's and that might depress the values slightly, but I doubt very much, if at all.

I can't imagine that unemployment statistics are very accurate for a small municipality.

[Suburbanmom76]

My impression is that people like Morton Grove for the very things you're talking about: it feels like a small, quiet town just outside the big city. It is quite a bit smaller than Skokie or Glenview, and the forest preserves running through it give it a very peaceful feel relative to other similarly-situated inner ring suburbs.

Like Hiruko said, Glenview has areas which are totally different than Morton Grove. I think if you consider similar houses in similar neighborhoods, the pricing would be similar. The schools in some neighboring towns may be considered more prestigious, but my understanding is that D219 and its feeder schools in Morton Grove are great.

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by StuckInIllinois

Feels like it should be pricier than it is simply due to proximity to the city. Why does it feel pretty desolate for being so near to the city? How's it compare to Glenview, for example?

Thinking about searching around this area for a home in the future, want to start getting a better feel for the area.

If anyone has any other suggestions, I'm looking for an area that is ideally within commute distance to downtown and also fairly easy access to Wisconsin border (<1 hour) and <25 or so minutes to Jefferson Park. Budget probably <$800k but ideally lower is better.

Morton Grove is an established town with close proximity to the city, and a particularly strong k-8. It feeds into the Niles high school system, and it my experience, the only real downside to Morton Grove is that it loses some families who prefer their kids to go neighboring New Trier or Glenbrook South or Maine South.

Not sure why you'd consider it desolate.. It's quite dense, and Dempster/Waukegan have a ton of strip malls, restaurants, etc. The only "thing" missing is a proper downtown/main street (which is too bad, because Lincoln Ave. has the perfect set-up for it).

Now, would I spend $800k in Morton Grove over some others north? Probably not, but it's more for artificial reasons than livability reasons.

As far as I can tell, Morton Grove is amongst the best kept secrets in Chicagoland.

[Pseudonym18123]

Morton Grove is nice. It’s surrounded by Skokie, Golf, Niles, and Glenview. Schools are decent; you get Niles West, although they’re not the most desirable in the area. Glenview is a definitely a more desirable suburb; it’s wealthier, and Glenbrook South is definitely a higher rated high school than Niles West, although NW is still quite good. Glenview is far more expensive, although it’s definitely still in your price range. It’s commutable to the city, and as an added bonus, closer to Wisconsin.

Cheers!

[G in MP]

Back in the mid 80's, my parents bought their first house in the burbs and moves us over there in MG, by what's now Home Goods. It was a Handy Andy back then. That area is perfectly fine, and looks more/less the same as 40 years ago. Your high school kids would be going to Maine East, not great but not terrible lol.

Their next house was in unincorp Glenview, over there by Milwaukee and Glenview Rd.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by G in MP

Back in the mid 80's, my parents bought their first house in the burbs and moves us over there in MG, by what's now Home Goods. It was a Handy Andy back then. That area is perfectly fine, and looks more/less the same as 40 years ago. Your high school kids would be going to Maine East, not great but not terrible lol.

Their next house was in unincorp Glenview, over there by Milwaukee and Glenview Rd.

Yes, but to be clear, most of Morton Grove's high school students are zoned to Niles West High School, which is ranked amongst the highest in the state.

[G in MP]

Yeh, but I mean where he was looking, over there by Dempster & Harlem. That part of MG and Niles across Dempster, that's all Maine East over there.