Might move to Wisconsin with an easy commute to Arlington Heights.

[sub]

Originally Posted by brrabbit

Illinois State Income Tax - 4.95% (flat)
Wisconsin State Income Tax - 6.27 (for salaries 32K-300K)




Sales tax:
Illinois Sales Tax - 6.25-9.75.
Wisconsin Sales Tax - 5-5.6%





Therefore, it is cheaper to live on the IL side of the border and shop in Racine county for big items

Property taxes in Illinois are much higher in that area, sometimes double that of Kenosha or Racine Counties.
Depending on the situation, that might be enough to offset.
Then there's the reality of actually having to live in Illinois.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by brrabbit

Illinois State Income Tax - 4.95% (flat)
Wisconsin State Income Tax - 6.27 (for salaries 32K-300K)




Sales tax:
Illinois Sales Tax - 6.25-9.75.
Wisconsin Sales Tax - 5-5.6%





Therefore, it is cheaper to live on the IL side of the border and shop in Racine county for big items

I forgot that Wisconsin has a fairly steep income tax at relatively low income levels. Thanks for reminding me...

[RemoteInWisco]

Originally Posted by sub

Property taxes in Illinois are much higher in that area, sometimes double that of Kenosha or Racine Counties.
Depending on the situation, that might be enough to offset.
Then there's the reality of actually having to live in Illinois.

Along these same lines, here is my last property tax bill from Illinois (Lake County) before I moved to Wisconsin.

https://imgur.com/R81Zedt


And mind you, this was a modest 3 bedroom home in Wauconda. My property taxes into escrow each month were more expensive than my principal and interest payment for my actual mortgage. I pay about 1/3 of that now in Wisconsin, and for a much larger home I might add. Ask literally anybody who lives in Lake or Mchenry County in Illinois and they will complain about property taxes. Unless you just happen to be loaded, 10K or more for property taxes is a major chunk of a persons salary. At least it was mine. Not worth it IMHO.

[Drewjdeg]

Originally Posted by sub

Then there's the reality of actually having to live in Illinois.

TBH, I like the Illinois side better; better amenities, housing stock, schools. If it weren't for the insane property taxes in Lake County, I'm not sure why anyone would choose to live near the border in Wisconsin (no offense). If you want rural, there are far better places in Wisconsin.

But, I can obviously understand not wanting to pay the property tax on the Illinois side.

Originally Posted by glass_of_merlot

We found this small town Genoa City right on IL state line. It's 36 miles to the address of my husband's work. They have a few places on sell . Right now, 520 pm it would take an hour to drive. That's how long it takes to drive 9 miles in the city sometimes..lol

One thing to be aware of is that small towns in Wisconsin can be extremely insular. When you're an adult, it doesn't really matter, but you definitely can feel it when you are a kid.

I went to middle school 20 min outside of Madison, and some of my classmates had never left the state, never tried Chinese or Mexican food, etc. I remember being looked at like an alien when I said my favorite was pierogies (lol). I'm not trying to diss anyone here, but I heard some WILD these from these people about politics and the world.

I point this it mainly to say your kids may experience some culture shock coming from Chicago to small town Wisconsin.

[RemoteInWisco]

Originally Posted by Drewjdeg

TBH, I like the Illinois side better; better amenities, housing stock, schools. If it weren't for the insane property taxes in Lake County, I'm not sure why anyone would choose to live near the border in Wisconsin (no offense). If you want rural, there are far better places in Wisconsin.

But, I can obviously understand not wanting to pay the property tax on the Illinois side.



One thing to be aware of is that small towns in Wisconsin can be extremely insular. When you're an adult, it doesn't really matter, but you definitely can feel it when you are a kid.

I went to middle school 20 min outside of Madison, and some of my classmates had never left the state, never tried Chinese or Mexican food, etc. I remember being looked at like an alien when I said my favorite was pierogies (lol). I'm not trying to diss anyone here, but I heard some WILD these from these people about politics and the world.

I point this it mainly to say your kids may experience some culture shock coming from Chicago to small town Wisconsin.

What’s concerning is that Lake County keeps getting worse as far as property taxes. Mine went up 26% in 3 years. I also know plenty of people who still live in the area. They just got their assessments recently and they went up again! It’s beyond ridiculous.

Honestly, there is little cultural difference as far as living conditions up near the border. Someone who owns a house in Lake Villa, Spring Grove or Antioch in Illinois is going to feel right at home someplace like Twin Lakes, Trevor, Wilmot, etc. in Wisconsin. Same outdoorsman and lake style vibe among the people. Same dive bars and mom and pop restaurants. Same tight knit neighborhoods where everyone knows everyone.

Big difference is they will have spotted cow on tap now and pay a hell of a lot less in property taxes.

[glass_of_merlot]

Originally Posted by Drewjdeg

TBH, I like the Illinois side better; better amenities, housing stock, schools. If it weren't for the insane property taxes in Lake County, I'm not sure why anyone would choose to live near the border in Wisconsin (no offense). If you want rural, there are far better places in Wisconsin.

But, I can obviously understand not wanting to pay the property tax on the Illinois side.



One thing to be aware of is that small towns in Wisconsin can be extremely insular. When you're an adult, it doesn't really matter, but you definitely can feel it when you are a kid.

I went to middle school 20 min outside of Madison, and some of my classmates had never left the state, never tried Chinese or Mexican food, etc. I remember being looked at like an alien when I said my favorite was pierogies (lol). I'm not trying to diss anyone here, but I heard some WILD these from these people about politics and the world.

I point this it mainly to say your kids may experience some culture shock coming from Chicago to small town Wisconsin.

Im.not really not too worried about the kids having a culture shock. We have lived in Oklahoma, Mississippi, Seattle and Chicago. We travel to Europe almost every year or every other year and a half. So my kids have seen a lot. But one thing they have never had is a back yard. Their own piece of grass to walk on or be able to be outside and play on their own. I grew up in a large city and I never had any of these things either. Also, we can easy drive to Chicago or other cities if we want culture. This last year and a half have been horrible living in the city. I couldn't take my daughter to the park because of covid. They closed the park. My kids haven't been to school and seen their friends since early 2020.

We are.ready to get out of Chicago, and Illinois.
We are looking to spend 3 to 400,000 on a house.

[Bitey]

Unfortunately there's no easy commute to Arlington Heights from anywhere in Wisconsin. If your workplace were somewhere closer to the I-94 corridor it would be doable. As it is there's just no quick direct way to get from WI to AH or vice-versa. You'll either have to take a circuitous route on the main highways or slog through street traffic through towns whose road infrastructure has not kept up with the growth rate and thus are choked with traffic during commute hours. It's a minimum one-hour drive just to the border; add more the further north of the border you live.