Apt prices in Chicago (Evanston, Palatine: transplants, home, neighborhoods)

[greenlite]

Originally Posted by Lorielicious

You can get nice units with in-unit washer/dryer for far less than $1300 if you don't insist on living in Lakeview, or wherever. Someone I used to know has a pretty sweet-ass one bedroom in Irving Park with granite kitchen counter tops, a small deck, and in-unit laundry for like $950/mo. I suppose the catch is there's nothing exciting about where he lives. It's a perfectly nice and safe neighborhood, but it's not hopping or filled to the brim with the cool kids. So it really boils down to where you want to live. You can still live in the city in a nice neighborhood and find what you seek for under $1,000, just not if you want to live in transplantville.

doesnt matter to me

[greenlite]

I been looking and haven't really seen these kinda apts for 1k even in the nearby suburbs, only farther out

[treemoni]

Originally Posted by greenlite

I been looking and haven't really seen these kinda apts for 1k even in the nearby suburbs, only farther out

Here is a property in Berwyn ("nearby suburb") that's $875 with an in-unit washer/dryer:

**Fully rehabbed, condo quality 1br. Heat incl! In-unit washer dryer!

Of course if you ask most people here, Berwyn is not a place you'd want to move. I disagree. Lori has the best comments in this thread. Personally, I think if you're paying $1000 in rent in the Chicago area/surrounding suburbs, your apartment better be luxurious or come with at least one extra bedroom. It's crazy to spend $1000 on a one bedroom in Chicago because you absolutely do not have to and can still live in a nice area. My rent is $800 and I live in a very safe area. I don't have an in-unit washer and dryer (not necessary for me) but we have laundry in our building. Anyway, looking online will not yield the best results, especially when it comes to single-owner properties (and those will likely yield the better rates). You will have to canvass neighborhoods.

[greenlite]

Originally Posted by treemoni

Here is a property in Berwyn ("nearby suburb") that's $875 with an in-unit washer/dryer:

**Fully rehabbed, condo quality 1br. Heat incl! In-unit washer dryer!

Of course if you ask most people here, Berwyn is not a place you'd want to move. I disagree. Lori has the best comments in this thread. Personally, I think if you're paying $1000 in rent in the Chicago area/surrounding suburbs, your apartment better be luxurious or come with at least one extra bedroom. It's crazy to spend $1000 on a one bedroom in Chicago because you absolutely do not have to and can still live in a nice area. My rent is $800 and I live in a very safe area. I don't have an in-unit washer and dryer (not necessary for me) but we have laundry in our building. Anyway, looking online will not yield the best results, especially when it comes to single-owner properties (and those will likely yield the better rates). You will have to canvass neighborhoods.

i usually dont take listings without phone numbers seriously, and this is weeks old

[treemoni]

I've viewed that property before when I was hunting, and I have a friend that lives there. It's legit, and it looks like the photos. Regardless, I posted it as an example of what you're looking for, and it's well under a grand.

[greenlite]

Originally Posted by treemoni

I've viewed that property before when I was hunting, and I have a friend that lives there. It's legit, and it looks like the photos. Regardless, I posted it as an example of what you're looking for, and it's well under a grand.

ok, cool
whats exactly wrong with berwyn that some people dont like it?

[treemoni]

LOL!! I don't want to open that debate. But you can check crime statistics yourself. Last time I checked (and it has been at least a year), crime was lower than neighboring and more desirable Oak Park.

[greenlite]

Originally Posted by treemoni

LOL!! I don't want to open that debate. But you can check crime statistics yourself. Last time I checked (and it has been at least a year), crime was lower than neighboring and more desirable Oak Park.

there is no debate, im jus seekin information and u mentioned berwyn so might as well elaborate

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by greenlite

ok, cool
whats exactly wrong with berwyn that some people dont like it?

Berwyn is not a bad suburb. I don't think many people on here would debate that. If it was Harvey or Maywood then there would be a debate.


In the end it depends on what your needs are, like where you'll be working. You could damn well be working in Hoffman Estates and Berwyn and a lot of other good neighborhoods in Chicago would just be bad advice. Chicago is a huge area and in physical area it's only about 2500 sq mi less than NYC's metro area.

I'd say to start by giving your requirements like what your commute requirements are if you have any (i.e. what suburb or part of Chicago you'll be working in), a budget, and all the stuff that matters to you (i.e. you want a walkable area, or you just don't care about walkability, nightlife, etc). Not a knock against Berwyn here, but if you ended up living there and working in another suburb that has to take you between about 8 different bottlenecks on the freeway system and takes 3 hours out of you in travel time everyday, you probably wouldn't be happy. Chicago area may not be as big as NYC area where you are now, but there's still 10 million people in the area here with some bad traffic and the area is not that much smaller than the NYC metro area.

[lycos679]

Originally Posted by treemoni

Here is a property in Berwyn ("nearby suburb") that's $875 with an in-unit washer/dryer:

**Fully rehabbed, condo quality 1br. Heat incl! In-unit washer dryer!

Of course if you ask most people here, Berwyn is not a place you'd want to move. I disagree. Lori has the best comments in this thread. Personally, I think if you're paying $1000 in rent in the Chicago area/surrounding suburbs, your apartment better be luxurious or come with at least one extra bedroom. It's crazy to spend $1000 on a one bedroom in Chicago because you absolutely do not have to and can still live in a nice area. My rent is $800 and I live in a very safe area. I don't have an in-unit washer and dryer (not necessary for me) but we have laundry in our building. Anyway, looking online will not yield the best results, especially when it comes to single-owner properties (and those will likely yield the better rates). You will have to canvass neighborhoods.

Studios aside, just the basic 1 bedroom apartments will be pretty close to $1000 unless you are looking on the south side.