Need help! Relocating job to Glenview (Chicago, Arlington Heights: best town, short sale, rent)

[BunnyJav]

Hi!

I am relocating from Southern Indiana, and my new office is in Glenview. We cannot afford to live in Glenview, Glencoe, Wilmette, or anywhere where you have to spend in the high six-figures to get a decent house. We are both in our mid-late thirties and have a 13-month-old, so proximity to the city isn't really important to us (we never get out!).

So please help me with some suggestions as to where to look. Here are some of my criteria:

1) Affordable housing (4-br. houses around $300-350k -- I'd buy a short sale or forecloure, though). We would also rent a 4-BR house, but can't spend more than about $2,500/mo.
2) Good school district for elementary school
3) Reasonable commute to Glenview (up to 45-50 min)
4) A good place to raise a family. We live in a town now that feels plucked out of the 50's (kids playing in the streets, neighbors stopping by), and it'd be nice to find another place like that.

Any suggestions as to where to look? Some of my coworkers are looking as far north as Kenosha, but that seems too far away for me.

Can you please help? I've never been to Chicago!

[chitown85]

It really depends what you are looking for. Do you want to be in a very developed suburban area or do you want to be in a less developed suburban, yet more rural area? Where do you feel comfortable? A newer or older neighborhood? It also depends if you are willing to purchase a townhome or single family home in the area where you are working. 3 bedrooms townhomes can be had in Glenview for your budget.

[BunnyJav]

For sure we'd like a single-family home... my husband won't do a townhome because there's not enough yard for him and our dog :-)

But you ask a great question! I guess I would feel more comfortable in a newer home (<10 years) because I work too much and too many hours to then work on a house on the weekends. I have lived in both newer and older neighborhoods, and I can be happy in either. But I would want a house that doesn't require too much work, regardless of neighborhood.

Any thoughts as to regions to start looking? The school district is pretty important to me, as is safety (if that's at all an issue in the NW suburbs)

[chet everett]

If you want the newish house in a subdivision you might look toward Grayslake, Lake Zurich, Mundelien, Gurnee. In some of those towns $350k buys a lot of house, but I would aim for the best town /schools and also try for a subdivision where there are more houses above you than below...

Most points in those towns will keep you under 45 mins from Glenview.

[chitown85]

Since you want a newer single family home, you will need to look north into the central part of Lake County. The newer homes in the north and northwest Chicago suburbs in Cook County are too highly priced. My suggestion would be Round Lake (the part that has Grayslake schools), Grayslake, maybe even Gurnee. The thing to look out for is that the school districts do not line up with municipal boundaries. There could be multiple school districts serving multiple municipalities.

[pvande55]

Crime is not a big issue, but traffic is. Try to stay within 12 miles of work or on the same Metra line. The train to Glenview runs to Libertyville and Grayslake, so they are worth checking out. Another thing is that most of the highways run north-south, so travel to the west (you can't go too far east before you need a boat) is slower. If you visit and try to time the drive, make sure you do it at the actual time of commute, a 10-minute trip at midnight can easily run 40 minutes in rush hour. But check out the trains. Even if you are afraid of them, ride it once.

[jenalove]

I used to live near Gurnee – Lindenhurst area. It was a very safe and quiet area to grow up in. I used to have friends in Kenosha and it is also a lovely area. Personally I would hate to make the commute from Kenosha. I have relatives in Glenview and the schools there are definitely very good. Might want to keep searching to see if you can find something in your price range there. I also have relatives in Lake Zurich and really like that area as well.

There are a lot of fun activities for kids in the Gurnee. We used to get season passes to Six Flags. The huge Gurnee outlet mall is also right there if your wife likes to shop. Gurnee has an indoor skating rink and a year round indoor baseball facility.

Gurnee is kind of spread out, but it has maintained a small town feel. Here are some links I thought might help in your search.

Interactive Illinois Report Card

Best High Schools Search - US News and World Report

[cubssoxfan]

Try Arlington Heights, Prospect Heights or Mt Prospect. If you don't mind a 20-30 year old house, you can find one in your budget that has been updated/remodeled. If you focus on Elementary Districts 25 in Arlington Heights, 23 for Prospect Heights and part of Arlington Heights and District 57 in Mt. Prospect, combined with Hersey or Prospect High School you will have excellent schools. Plus you will have no more than a 30 minute commute. You also have towns that are walkable with good parks, libraries and infrastructure.
The towns mentioned in previous posts are nice but IMO put you farther from work than I would want to be.

[BunnyJav]

Thanks so very much for the advice!!!