Job in Morton-where to live? (Chicago, Peoria: real estate, insurance, credit)

[krwsmom]

What cities/towns are best for young family of 5...homes in the $400K range. Christian schools nearby...Anyone??

thanks!

[linicx]

Please understand that Peoria dominates the area in shopping, sports, performing arts, park district, events, history, culture, hospitals, doctors and religious diversity. The question is, do you want to be where everything is conveniently located, or how do you want to drive to Peoria? . The Village of Morton will meet your needs as far as church and schools very nicely. On the other hand, so will the Village of Peoria Heights. They both offer a K-12 schools. The difference is VPH is in the county and does not support Peoria schools.

Taxes in Peoria, Tazewell and Mason Counties are obnoxious. My real estate taxes are 5 times more than what I paid in SW Missouri. The trade off is I get 5 times better medical care. The new Children's Hospital of Illinois is under construction in Peoria. The nearest hospitals are in Peoria. If you have a child in the hospital and you live in Morton, you will be driving 20 miles. If you live in VPH, it will 10 minutes. And you have to consider ice and snow. Winters can be brutal. The good news is Peoria has four hospitals, a medical school and 4 times more doctors than the national average. VM and and VPS are both upscale communities; both are desirable addresses, both are conservative and both are wealthy, although VPH is much older and has more old wealth.

Moving to a new community is always a gamble. If you live in the small town in the country you will like Morton. If you like cities and city convenience, then you will prefer VPH. The one thing you do need to understand is rural Internet is not nearly as fast or as reliable as it is in Chicago or Los Angeles.

Illinois is a farm state and because much of it is open farmland, it is a tornado magnet. Do not live on the SW side of Morton, and DO buy a house with a basement. Tornadoes move in a SW to NE direction. Do have a house inspection and a MOLD Inspection. Mold will make your children sick and it is expensive to remove. You cannot do it with a bottle of bleach when he hides behind walls. You cannot escape mold. You breathe it every time you open a door or window. You cannot hide from it as mold is in every state in the USA. It is in sandy soil too.

If you are moving from the south you will experience some culture shock. You won't find Grits, Spaghetti Red or Sweet Tea on a menu. Most restaurants open for dinner serve liquor. You'll find Walmart and Sam's Club, but not Cosco or Trader Joe's. You will find upscale shopping and dining, country clubs, many of the national box stores and restaurants, national pharmacies, a public federal credit union and banks as well as natural food stores, health clubs, river cruises, fish market, farmer markets, river cruises, casino, and furrier. If you cannot find it in Peoria, you can find it in Chicago. .

[Scio42]

Originally Posted by krwsmom

What cities/towns are best for young family of 5...homes in the $400K range. Christian schools nearby...Anyone??

thanks!

The cost of living in the Peoria area is quite inexpensive compared to most, so $400K will buy you ALOT of house just about anywhere you want to live in the area.

Morton is a fairly conservative and religious town if that's what you're looking for.

Some other suggestions:
Washington
Germantown Hills
Metamora
N Peoria & Dunlap
Peoria Heights

There are a number of private Christian schools in the Peoria area. The ones I can think of off the top of my head are Peoria Christian and Notre Dame high school. There are several others though.

[katiem8]

Morton is a great town to raise a family in. The Christian schools in Morton are Bethel Lutheran & Blessed Sacrament (Catholic). They are both great schools. I am the oldest of five children and we all attended Blessed Sacrament and we loved it. Morton's public schools are also among the best in the state. With 400k you would have MANY options in Morton, most likely on the north end of town, Hyde Park or Thornridge subdivisions.

[linicx]

Tazewell County taxes are no less obnoxious than those in Peoria County. Real Estate taxex support the City departments, hospitals and and schools. Morton is no less expensive than Peoria Heights which has no hospital and two schools. The big difference is PH is one stoplight from the nearest hospital versus 20 miles from Morton. The gifted schools and the non-denominational private schools are all in Peoria.

Peoria Heights has not had a direct hit from a tornado, either. East Peoria, Morton, Washington and Metamora are four towns on the NOAA Tazewell County list that have had 47 incidences of tornadic activity within the last 50 years. Morton is closest to McLean County (Bloomington) that had 98 torndoes listed in the same years. .

National Weather Service, Lincoln IL -- Tazewell County Tornadoes Since 1950

[runninfiend]

Originally Posted by krwsmom

What cities/towns are best for young family of 5...homes in the $400K range. Christian schools nearby...Anyone??

thanks!

Uh...Morton itself. Very christian town, 400k isn't all that special in Morton, but you'll find a lot of houses in that range. Sounds like you found your town to work and live.

[katiem8]

uh, if you're worried about tornadoes don't live in the midwest. peoria vs tazewell vs mclean counties isnt going to save you. but then you will have hurricanes or blizzards or wildfires somewhere else. theres always some threat from nature, you just have to live with it. when morton did get damage from a tornado, 5ish years ago, nobody died. just property damage. and thats why you have insurance anyway.

[runninfiend]

Originally Posted by linicx

Tazewell County taxes are no less obnoxious than those in Peoria County. Real Estate taxex support the City departments, hospitals and and schools. Morton is no less expensive than Peoria Heights which has no hospital and two schools. The big difference is PH is one stoplight from the nearest hospital versus 20 miles from Morton. The gifted schools and the non-denominational private schools are all in Peoria.

Peoria Heights has not had a direct hit from a tornado, either. East Peoria, Morton, Washington and Metamora are four towns on the NOAA Tazewell County list that have had 47 incidences of tornadic activity within the last 50 years. Morton is closest to McLean County (Bloomington) that had 98 torndoes listed in the same years. .

National Weather Service, Lincoln IL -- Tazewell County Tornadoes Since 1950

So we have one F0 tornado on the southwest side of Morton in 50 years and that's a reason not to buy a house on that side of town?

It's patently ridiculous to limit yourself anywhere in Illinois because of tornadoes. Your risks are no more or less great pretty much anywhere in the northern 2/3 of the state. There is such a huge land area, your actual risk of a direct hit is very low.

[peoriashows]

Originally Posted by krwsmom

What cities/towns are best for young family of 5...homes in the $400K range. Christian schools nearby...Anyone??

thanks!

Peoria has Peoria Christian School. Nice school, they used to have problems teaching advanced math, but have fixed that over the years.

I always recommend people explore Peoria's historic districts for nice houses. There are two incrediblly large, recently fully restored homes on Columbia Terr in the Randolph/Roanoke historic district one is around 3000 sqrtft for 240,000, the other is about 5000 for $375,000 and is currently being used as a historic Bed & Breakfast, but can easily be a home for a large family with no worries of conversion. Some folks with limited knowledge of the area will tell you it's a bad neigborhood, but it's not. It's behind Methodist hospital, near downtown and most of your neighbors would consist of doctors, lawyers & young professionals.

215 W Columbia Ter, Peoria, IL 61606 - Zillow

201 W Columbia Ter, Peoria, IL 61606 - Zillow

There's another beautiful house down the street too, but it hasn't been as recently restored. It's up for $170,000

209 NE Randolph Ave, Peoria, IL 61606 - Zillow

The taxes in this neghborhood are much lower than the suburban neighborhoods and the houses are much nicer if you prefer old homes.

[peoriashows]

Originally Posted by runninfiend

So we have one F0 tornado on the southwest side of Morton in 50 years and that's a reason not to buy a house on that side of town?

It's patently ridiculous to limit yourself anywhere in Illinois because of tornadoes. Your risks are no more or less great pretty much anywhere in the northern 2/3 of the state. There is such a huge land area, your actual risk of a direct hit is very low.

I've always been told that the lower elevation near a river makes it less likely for a tornado to touch down so, in a sense, downtown Peoria would be a safer place to live than Morton. I would personally stay away from Morton because the taxes are too high, the lawns are too perfect & it's too far away from everything. The local coffee shop is pretty good, though.