Chicago, America's best city for the price? (Madison, Pittsburg: apartments, house)

[Lucky Clover]

The weather (in the winter) is over exaggerated IMO. It's not the arctic. It's not even nearly as bad as Wisconsin, Michigan, or Minnesota. In the midwest, you get the advantage of 4 seasons.

[urbanlife78]

Originally Posted by tawfiqmp

The weather (in the winter) is over exaggerated IMO. It's not the arctic. It's not even nearly as bad as Wisconsin, Michigan, or Minnesota. In the midwest, you get the advantage of 4 seasons.

People in NYC act like Chicago is the Tundra in the winter, but paying attention to the weather in both cities, they have both been fairly similar. The only real difference is Chicago usually gets whatever front is moving through the country before NYC gets it.

[Lucky Clover]

Originally Posted by urbanlife78

People in NYC act like Chicago is the Tundra in the winter, but paying attention to the weather in both cities, they have both been fairly similar. The only real difference is Chicago usually gets whatever front is moving through the country before NYC gets it.

Definitely. I think even the snow levels over the last couple of winters has evened it out more some. It's not a major difference anyway.

[HomeIsWhere...]

Originally Posted by MikeNigh

From what I've been researching... Chicago is one of the world's few Alpha + cities (from Global city - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) and on that scale it is only under New York. It seems like the value of the home is incredibly low compared to San Fran or NYC. What exactly is the catch? Just colder weather and being mid west?

Simple, elegant, and a world class global city. It is by far one of the best places in the country for value and bang for your buck, bar none.

Best regards, sincerely

HomeIsWhere...

[MassVt]

No question that Chicago has great economic, bang-for-your-buck value, perhaps due to its non-coastal location. But as I tell Northeasterners here, Lake Michigan is a pretty good-sized lake, as you can't see the Michigan "coastline" from the Chicago shores. One has to wonder how large Chicagoland will grow, as the economy contines to be a huge factor, and more Americans may choose to live in a large urban area ( with job opportunites) with a lower cost-of-living, and yet still have a shoreline...

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by MassVt

No question that Chicago has great economic, bang-for-your-buck value, perhaps due to its non-coastal location. But as I tell Northeasterners here, Lake Michigan is a pretty good-sized lake, as you can't see the Michigan "coastline" from the Chicago shores. One has to wonder how large Chicagoland will grow, as the economy contines to be a huge factor, and more Americans may choose to live in a large urban area ( with job opportunites) with a lower cost-of-living, and yet still have a shoreline...

My ex girlfriend grew up in Hawaii and, well never went to Chicago. I was showing her pics of Chicago's coastline via Facebook once and she actually thought I switched to another city. She said something like "oh nice beaches" (one of the iconic aerial pics of the beaches. She said that the pics I showed her of the beaches and coast reminded her of Waikiki, which is kind of true. Obviously different architecture, but I actually tricked her without trying that Chicago was in some warm climate with ocean beaches. The lake is pretty big

[Lucky Clover]

Originally Posted by marothisu

My ex girlfriend grew up in Hawaii and, well never went to Chicago. I was showing her pics of Chicago's coastline via Facebook once and she actually thought I switched to another city. She said something like "oh nice beaches" (one of the iconic aerial pics of the beaches. She said that the pics I showed her of the beaches and coast reminded her of Waikiki, which is kind of true. Obviously different architecture, but I actually tricked her without trying that Chicago was in some warm climate with ocean beaches. The lake is pretty big

From certain angles in summertime shots, you can mistake it for being Miami. (I've had several people mistaken some pictures I've taken from LSD for Miami)

[Heyooooo]

Originally Posted by marothisu

My ex girlfriend grew up in Hawaii and, well never went to Chicago. I was showing her pics of Chicago's coastline via Facebook once and she actually thought I switched to another city. She said something like "oh nice beaches" (one of the iconic aerial pics of the beaches. She said that the pics I showed her of the beaches and coast reminded her of Waikiki, which is kind of true. Obviously different architecture, but I actually tricked her without trying that Chicago was in some warm climate with ocean beaches. The lake is pretty big

Nice. Its not til you tell them its a lake that they their mind changes. Proves its all in their heads.

My brother lives in Hawaii and when I told him that people get picky over oceans/lakes, he laughed. People talking down on Chicago having Lake Michigan instead of an ocean.

"Its a lake not an ocean!" I actually prefer lakes to swim in.

[urbanlife78]

It is definitely one impressive lake, for me I like being near some form of body of water.

[It'sAutomatic]

I could be wrong but I don't think there's any city in the country that's more intimately connected with its waterfront than Chicago. It's flat as hell which is great for biking. It's not quite as historic as I'd like but there's still a LOT of history everywhere. It's got a lively downtown and huge entertainment scene; there's almost nothing you can't do in Chicago. No rent regulation keeps the cost of living comfortable and eases the rat race of finding an apartment like in NYC and SF. It's not fun being outside for a few months of the year but the amount of snow in winter is reasonable and the summer rules.

Chicago is the bomb.