If you moved out of Illinois... (Chicago, Naperville: insurance, crime, homes)

[Drover]

I left Illinois for Madison WI. Ended up coming back.

Then I left for Pittsburgh. Ended up coming back.

About the only thing keeping me in Illinois is Chicago. I'd be thrilled if Chicago and Milwaukee could swap places.

[Katarina Witt]

As for housing in TX, it is notorious for being less expensive than in a lot of places, and not all of it is cheaply constructed. (Yes, I've been there.)

I'm not a native of Ill, but lived there for 7 yrs in my 20s. Left when DH graduated from grad school at UI, went to Colorado. Colorado was DH's idea, but we were both looking for a change. He is not a native, either.

[2beamissourian]

We moved from Illinois - military reasons
we had children and moved back to "be closer to family"

We want to move out again - price of living is high - taxes for the most part are high we have a farm so they are not to bad .... but for the most part .. I think some of the reasons we are wanting to move are life style... and we feel ppl in Illinois are not as friendly .. we live in a small town and its all about who you know and what your last name is!

[shadow91]

I moved to AZ two years ago, do I like it? Absolutely not!!! Do I miss IL and wish I could go back, Abosulety!!! Will I? Probably not. There are more job opportunities with better pay for RN's in AZ than IL. My teen loves it here, but not where we are living. I moved here to a small community, little did I know that it was "high income" people that lived here. We just don't seem to quite "fit in." I don't like that this is a right to work state as I have seen many good people get fired from their jobs from "personality conflicts" with the supervisors. My house is for sale in IL, not selling, and I am going to have to rent it out again, I don't know if I am relieved or what that it is not selling. I need to sell it financially, but want to keep it as it will be paid for in 10 years. Opportunity to move back? I don't think anywhere one moves they are truly happy. You just go day to day to get along.

[Drover]

You're confusing "at-will" employment to "right-to-work." Illinois is an "at-will" employment state and people can get fired for the most trivial reasons here just as sure as they can in Arizona.

[shadow91]

I had an attorney tell me here in AZ that if he doesn't like what his secretary has on and he feels it is hurting his business whether she does a good job or not, he can fire her for no reason. I don't like that.

[Drover]

Hate to break it to you, but that's the case in most states. The same flexibility that gives employers the right to fire someone at will also gives the employees to quit at will. It's a two-way street.

[ccjarider]

One could change this thread a bit and ask if you moved TO IL and specifically Chicago, why?

We moved here from Milwaukee WI this year for a better job.
Jury is still out on whether it was a good move.

Traffic in Chicago area is ungodly. Glad I ride a bike to work. If I had to sit in this traffic I would go back to WI for minimum wage.

[Careless]

Originally Posted by Dariusz

September is the best month of the year for Illinois period. I do not recall ever having snow in September. Maybe once every few years it will snow at the very end of October but that is RARE. Also, I don't believe Illinois EVER had a windchill of -80 degrees (I think -40 would be the coldest).

I believe it got close to -50 in 1993 or 94. On a day off of school (because of cold) we discovered that our sisters' plastic dolls, while not normally brittle, will shatter when you combine extremely cold temperatures with small fireworks. Also, my eyelids froze shut.

As someone who's lived in a few parts of the country but is back in Illinois, I'd say if I left, it would have to be for another place that has all four seasons.

[katmoney]

Moved to Denver almost a year ago from Chicago. Lived in the metro area/city for the majority of my life.

Not sure if I'll ever be back, but never say never.