Please Select a Point on This Screenshot (Chicago, Arlington Heights: crime, mortgage)

[dinajju]

Hello my fellow forumers, I would really appreciate if you can point/type your neighborhood recommendation from this map. I am moving to Chicago in about a year and need to know a few good places (that I can further research). I am well aware there are numerous threads discussing the best and worst places to live, but personally I can put things in perspective a lot better with visuals. I will do my best to make it easy for you.

Please only pick neighborhoods that are visible on the attached map. I chose the map radius strictly because that is the extent of how far and wide I want to live from the downtown.

Please pick your neighborhood(s) based on these 4:
1. Excellent or Good school district
2. Affordable housing for a family of 4 with approx. income of 250k/yr
3. Lower the crime the better
4. Proximity to major highways

Thanks in advance!!.

[chet everett]

That is probably over 300 sq miles in that shot -- if your family income will exceed $250K/yr that would allow you to afford most any town, assuming appropriate down payment. Basically no town with excellent school system is going to have any serious widespread crime issue, and the handful of town with some localized issues also have some very lovely homes that are in neighborhoods where your $250K would be on the low end and better schools can be found in adjacent areas (Evanston & Oak Park fit that unfortunate category...)

That leaves "proximity to major highways" and believe me if you NEED to get to downtown Chicago on a regular basis you will NOT want to drive from outside the City limits both because Metra rail service is far superior and because time / costs of driving are brutal. An express train from a desirable town like Hinsdale (which is at the southern edge of your map, but is actually quite centrally located with the region) would be about 20 minutes and the drive would be at least triple that in the best weather and probably over two hours in the worst...

If you need to drive to someplace near the center of your map you are almost certainly living some place near the center of your map and Park Ridge fits the bill as it is close to 90 as well as 294. Schools are excellent and housing is available that would suit a family of four making $250K.

Good Luck!

[dinajju]

Chet Everett, thanks for the quick reply. Yes the screen shot does show a lot of towns sorry. So are there any other public transportation systems (not buses) besides the Metra to get to downtown from suburbs?

Any others willing to offer their perspective?

[Drover]

Will you be working downtown? If not, then where?

[skipcromer]

Originally Posted by dinajju

Chet Everett, thanks for the quick reply. Yes the screen shot does show a lot of towns sorry. So are there any other public transportation systems (not buses) besides the Metra to get to downtown from suburbs?

Any others willing to offer their perspective?

The El goes into a few of the inner suburbs, but thats about it.

[thePR]

What's your idea of affordable housing?

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by thePR

What's your idea of affordable housing?

The OP said "affordable for a family of 4 with household income of $250K/yr" which is pretty open ended. The mortgage they could qualify for would be north of $700k assuming normal levels of debt, and with a sizable downpayment they could easily be in the range of $2M...

[cubssoxfan]

I'll stick to a few towns I know fairly well. Arlington Heights (Elem School District 25 or 23; Hersey or Prospect HS), Mt. Prospect (SD 57 and Prospect) and Prospect Heights (SD 23 and Prospect) will give you good proximity to 1 or 2 Metra lines, good schools, park districts and libraries. Plenty of good housing without having to go to the high end of your housing budget. Proximity to Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg also provides additional shopping and restaurant choices beyond the plentiful local choices.
Being a cycling and running "nut" I would also investigate Lake Forest near Old School Forest Preserve (St Mary's road between IL rte 176 & IL rte 60). If you could find a home within walking/cycling distance of the preserve, you have access to a wonderful trail for cycling, running, xc skiing and horseback riding in addition to some good roads for road biking. Schools are going to be good. Homes and property taxes are on the higher end and Metra train to Chicago may take longer and require longer drive to station, BUT it provides more rural and wooded location with larger lots

[chisub]

Any idea where you would be working or is it too soon to know? That would make a world of a difference on where I would be living. The Metra can be great, but not if it takes you into a station that isn't convenient to your work and then you need to catch a bus, etc. (just speaking of my husband, we live by an express train that takes about 40 min. to the Loop, but then it's another 20-30 min. for him to get to work so he just drives after rush hour instead).

[dinajju]

@Drover, skipcromer, Chet, thePR, chisub- Thank you all of you for the replies.

Its too early to say where I'll find a job, I will seriously start looking when I have 6 months or so before the move.

I think IT jobs in Chicago are sort of spread all over, if there is an IT "hub" then I'm not aware of it.

Anywhere between +/- $300 - $600k would be my idea of an affordable house.

@Cubsoxfan- Thank you for the excellent description. I'm not a running or cycling nut but have started swimming as an exercise for the last 5 months and love it.