head in the clouds? (Chicago, Evanston: middle-class, sales, apartments)

[homesickmom]

I spent my childhood visiting family in Chicago, fell in love with it, and moved there as a young adult. Spent all my 20-something single years there but moved away when I got married and had a family. I have spent the past several years PINING away for Chicago life again, except now I am a (happily!) married mother of three children, two of whom are school-age. I've finally convinced my husband to move back there, but I am secretly wondering if I'm crazy! Is Chicago a family-friendly city for the middle classes? We rent, I stay home with the kids, my husband makes about 70k. My plan is to move within the city (no more suburbs, please!) and hopefully find a roomy rental with good public schools or affordable private schools. Is it going to be the world's biggest mistake to leave our comfy (suburban) existence with good schools and cheap housing to throw my family into Chicago life? I have been round and round with friends and family, know all the pro's (culture, exciting urban life) and con's (traffic, cost of living, school issues) but have decided to ask the people who actually live there. Is Chicago a family-friendly city? Do any "typical" families like ours live there successfully?

[aragx6]

Chicago is a very family friendly city from what I have seen.

As you are well aware you will certainly be giving some things up, but hopefully getting a lot more. Lots of typical middle class families live in the city, and while I don't know a lot about the schools, I have heard that there are some that are perfectly fine. With expectations at home, there seem to be plenty of schools at which a student can succeed.

You'll probably be in a multi-family building and not a single family home, and a four bedroom would be hard to come by without paying a pretty penny, so your kids won't have their own rooms, and everything will be smaller, but you'll have great restaurants and shopping and entertainment for yourself and your kids at your fingertips.

I think your family should really visit and think about if what you'd give up would be worth what you'll get- that's the only way to know for sure.

[oakparkdude]

Sorry to tell you but depending on the quality of schools you are used to/expect it may be difficult to find an acceptable solution within the city of Chicago and within your budget.

[desibear]

Originally Posted by sukwoo

Sorry to tell you but depending on the quality of schools you are used to/expect it may be difficult to find an acceptable solution within the city of Chicago and within your budget.

+1. I believe you will find that the cons will outweigh pros given the budget.

[rgb123]

where are you coming from? I find it a lot easier to measure the pros and cons if I know where you currently live.

[july]

I don't think you could support a family in Chicago on $70,000 a year unless you're very frugal. Have you checked out salaries to see what your husband could expect to make here?

[Frank the Tank]

I love the city, but schools and space would likely be the issues for you. There are plenty of apartments and condos that you could afford within the city proper, but the comfort of that is a lot different if it's just you and your husband versus adding three kids to mix, especially if those kids are used to living in a single-family home or even a townhouse. There is also a significant disparity between the Chicago Public Schools and the suburban schools (there are good magnet schools within the CPS system, but you can't bank on your kids being able to attend them), while quality private schooling is going to cost nearly as much and in some cases more than even college tuition (it's definitely not cheap). If you really want to move back to the area, you may want to look at some of the closer-in suburbs (i.e. Oak Park, Evanston, Niles, etc.) that are not necessarily cheap, but would give you easy access to the city, provide a taste of the urban lifestyle within a suburban environment, have good public schools, and will provide you some more space for the money.

[neonwattagelimit]

I think your husband would have to make more, or you'd have to go to work. There's certainly plenty of families in the city, but I get the impression they have some serious cash. I don't know much about the schools, but I'd study that topic closely if I were you.

Chicago is actually surprisingly affordable for single twentysomethings and empty nesters, but I'm not sure raising a family here is that practical unless you're solidly upper-middle-class, at the very least.

[lenniel]

Gotta agree with the others as they've all been honest. It's going to be impossible to live in the typical city family neighborhoods (Lakeview, Linc Park, Roscoe Village, North Center, Linc Square, Ravenswood) on $70K. You'd likely have to live in the hood and you don't want to do that with 3 kids.

[JanuaryGirl]

Honestly, I think the stress of affording this city would make it not worth it. I don't know if there are decent schools that would actually be affordable. Just remember, EVERYTHING is more expensive here. Sales tax is going up to over 10%; my car insurance increased by almost 35% after moving from the burbs; parking spots (outdoor, reserved spots) range from $100-250/month, and in many neighborhoods it is a necessity. To live on your income with 3 kids, you will need to be in one of the peripheral neighborhoods, either on the north/west sides of the city; some of these areas are ok, but they can get sketchy. At that point, you are pretty far away from the benefits of the city and would probably be better off in a burb. If I were you I would look at suburbs such as Oak Park or Evanston that offer city transportation, ability to walk place, diversity, etc. but tend to have more affordable housing and better schools.