25 year old girls moving to Bloomingdale! Or Chicago? Help! (St. Charles: living in, commute)

[JBVirtuoso]

Originally Posted by marothisu

I have a friend in Schaumburg, who I referenced in my first post, who has a nice semi modern 1 bedroom that's close to 800-1000 sq feet and he pays around $800/month for it.

That I believe. I just don't think there are many offerings in the suburbs for people who want to pay less than that. This is what I meant in my post. The apartments in the suburbs will probably be modern and larger than comparably priced city apartments, but someone looking to move to the suburbs to find a $500 apartment is probably going to be disappointed. In any case, for the OP this shouldn't matter too much, as $1200 for a 2BR is definitely realistic for many suburbs.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by JBVirtuoso

That I believe. I just don't think there are many offerings in the suburbs for people who want to pay less than that. This is what I meant in my post. The apartments in the suburbs will probably be modern and larger than comparably priced city apartments, but someone looking to move to the suburbs to find a $500 apartment is probably going to be disappointed. In any case, for the OP this shouldn't matter too much, as $1200 for a 2BR is definitely realistic for many suburbs.

I think for a 2 BDRM you can find it (you can find it in Chicago in areas like Pilsen and Bridgeport afterall). If it was $600 for a 1 bedroom, you could find it but not in every suburb for sure..probably not Schaumburg. I think 2 bedroom you will have more luck than just 1 bedroom for $600.

[Larry Siegel]

You crazy suburbanites :-)

These girls are 25 years old. They want to come to Chicago to participate in the life of the city. If I understand the OP correctly, the jobs are ways of making a living, not career moves.

When my wife was single, she commuted from New Town to Valparaiso, Indiana (!) before finding a job in the city. She could have lived in Valpo but she wouldn't have recognized it as living. She spent every spare minute in the clubs.

Answer: Ukrainian Village/East Village/Wicker Park. Quick drive to the Ike. Plenty to do at all hours. Not an easy commute to Bloomingdale but not impossible either.

P.S. They may have to spend a little more than $1200 for a 2 bedroom. This is Chicago, not central Washington.

[nikitakolata]

Originally Posted by Larry Siegel

You crazy suburbanites :-)

These girls are 25 years old. They want to come to Chicago to participate in the life of the city. If I understand the OP correctly, the jobs are ways of making a living, not career moves.

When my wife was single, she commuted from New Town to Valparaiso, Indiana (!) before finding a job in the city. She could have lived in Valpo but she wouldn't have recognized it as living. She spent every spare minute in the clubs.

Answer: Ukrainian Village/East Village/Wicker Park. Quick drive to the Ike. Plenty to do at all hours. Not an easy commute to Bloomingdale but not impossible either.

P.S. They may have to spend a little more than $1200 for a 2 bedroom. This is Chicago, not central Washington.

Yeah, I get that they want the city life, but if you can't afford it, you can't afford it. It sounds to me like these women both work for retail chains. Getting a transfer to a store in Chicago is not out of the realm of possibility. It is also possible that one or both of them could get a transfer to a store closer to Chicago to make the commute better after gaining some local recognition.

IMO, whether the city will work depends on whether that budget is actually flexible and how terrible of a commute these ladies are willing to endure.

[55degrees]

compromise: get a 1 BR in Oak Park

[ToriaT]

Oak Park is pretty far from Bloomingdale. I think staying closer by at least for a year or so would be better and then they could explore whether they wanted to stay in the suburbs or move to the city. If they have cars its not so hard to drive into the city everyday. If they work retail, they will have to be on time for their jobs and traffic can be a real snarl up. Schaumburg is a possibility but do not discount Wheaton or Glen Ellyn. Good transportation via 355 or 1-88 to various places and on the train line to the city. Both have cute downtowns and a variety of shopping and retail. I am not such of fan of Schaumburg..no town and just malls, subdivisions, and chain restaurants.

[JBVirtuoso]

Originally Posted by 55degrees

compromise: get a 1 BR in Oak Park

No. This means they would have a small apartment, a long commute, and they'd still be a pretty significant distance from anything they'd want to do in the city. They may as well satisfy at least one of their criteria.

[Larry Siegel]

Originally Posted by nikitakolata

Yeah, I get that they want the city life, but if you can't afford it, you can't afford it. It sounds to me like these women both work for retail chains. Getting a transfer to a store in Chicago is not out of the realm of possibility. It is also possible that one or both of them could get a transfer to a store closer to Chicago to make the commute better after gaining some local recognition.

IMO, whether the city will work depends on whether that budget is actually flexible and how terrible of a commute these ladies are willing to endure.

I agree that you shouldn't spend money you don't have. However, most of us are not completely at the mercy of circumstances beyond our control. If you want something, you have to take the steps necessary to make the money to get it.

My wife had 9 jobs in her twenties. She started out in some rathole and ended up in a gorgeous 3 bedroom apartment on Newport Avenue in the best part of Boystown. I had about 5 jobs in the same period and ended up in the same apartment on Newport (that is what happens when you get married!). But neither one of us started at the top.

[mayhem_223]

Please don't live in Chicago or halfway, the commute on Eisenhower is horrible.

Schaumburg is better place to live than Bloomingdale, but just because its closer to CTA Blue line doesn't mean its worth moving to. It takes forever and it stinks. I'd pick it to live it only because it is better developed, but Bloomingdale has a few good restaurants, bars too. Remember though that in rush hour, there is also some traffic on I290 W between Lake and as far as I90. You may also consider moving to Roselle, its more isolated village but fairly close to Bloomingdale and it has nice Metra train. Even though it just takes as long as CTA from Rosemont, the commute on it is at least more bearable and shorter car commute to the station.

[oakparkdude]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Pretty sure a 1 bedroom apartment in Oak Park would cost around $1100+, wouldn't it?

You can probably get a 2 bedroom apartment in Oak Park for $1200 (won't be the nicest, most up-to-date). Parking will cost extra of course. Forest Park will be cheaper still.

While living in Oak Park or Forest Park would be a bit of a drive to Bloomingdale, it would offer a more "city" experience than Schaumburg, and especially if the OP is working a non 9 to 5 schedule (likely in the retail industry), rush hour traffic may be less of an issue. You can probably get the commute to under 30 minutes in light traffic (obviously dependent on the location of the origin and destination.)

Also, I'd recommend that where they end up living, they should try to find a walkable neighborhood, preferably a historic town center with a Metra station so they can get a taste of city living (call it urban-lite) and decide if that's what they really want. I'm not familiar with the NW burbs, but a place like downtown Elmhurst has a pretty decent array of amenities (for a suburb).