Job Offer in Westchester IL (Chicago, Oak Park: best town, apartments, rentals) - Chicago Suburbs - Illinois - City-Data Forum

chatterbox2525 · 02-14-2011, 09:55 AM

My husband has been given a job offer in the Westchester area and we are trying to figure our if this is the right move for us. We are looking at renting and need the rent to be below 1300 for a 2 Bedroom. I would like to pay less if possible but we need it in a good school district I have one daughter who is in 5th grade and would be going to public schools. I would like the commute to be less than 45 min. and the place would have to be in a safe area. Will this be possible and if so what area do I look at. Thanks

chet everett · 02-14-2011, 04:05 PM

Westchester may not be the best town to live due to the situation that has developed with Proviso West High School being a very undesirable place to send one's children, but it is a very easy commute from almost any direction with excellent access to 294, 290 and numerous arterial east- west and north- south streets.

Due west of Westchester lies Oak Brook, a town that is veery affluent and has few rentals but excellent schools. I doubt you could find a place for $1300/ mo but I would guess it would be fairly easy to do in Elmhurst which is north of Oak Brook. Similarly due south of Westchester lies LaGrange and Western Springs, towns that mostly are single family residential and pricey, but with a smattering of rental units and excellent schools. To the east you could look in LaGrange Park or Brookfield where some rentals are available.

Now none of the towns are going to have a huge number of giant apartments, but the are places that should suit a family of three and be affordable in all those towns and have schools that are quite good. Safety in all those towns is a given and total commute might be under 20 minutes. Should you need to expand your search radius towns like Countryside, Indian Head Park, LaGrange Highlands, Lombard, Downers Grove, Willowbrook, Westmont, Hinsdale and Clarendon Hills might also be worth looking at...

rmarquez · 04-18-2011, 08:02 AM

Hi everyone, I'm going to move to Westchester, IL the next month (May), I was wondering if someone could help me with a few questions: 1) I'm going to work on 5 Westbrook Corporate Ctr, Westchester, IL, 60154. What is a good neighborhood to live ?
2) I'm not planning to buy a car so, Can I get public transportation to Westbrook Corporate Ctr ? or the car is a mandatory issue ?
3) Where can I rent with a $600/Month budget or less ?
I think my biggest issue is the public transportation to Westbrook Corporate Ctr so I need to find a place where I'll be able get public transportation to work. Is that possible ?

chet everett · 04-18-2011, 01:27 PM

It would be extremely confining to live in Westchester without a car. Even though there are town houses within a walkable distance to the Corporate Center it is literally a GIANT suburban style set of office buildings that link to NOTHING else in the area. I honestly can say that even if you were to live a walkable distance from the Dominicks or Jewel that walking across either 22nd or Wolf Rd is something that happens so infrequently as to be "odd"...

Yes, there are buses that would technically link the Metra station in Western Springs to the Corporate Center but the schedule of those Pace buses is quite limited. Your options for "nightlife" of even the most bland type in Westchester is almost non-existent. If you rely on Pace and Metra it would add hours to both end of your day coming from Chicago but at least you would not live like a hermit...

I would further caution that rents in Westchester and not cheap. If you find some place that is $600 it is almost certainly in an area that is neither close nore safe. There are probably some places in LaGrange or Brookfield that technically could be connected to Westchester via a combination of rail and bus that DO offer some options for a friendly beer but I would increase my budget by about 50% AND really plan to have at least a modest Smart car or Volt to get around. The weather is quite a challenge,today there was snow on the ground when I woke up, a week ago it was 80 degree on Sunday. Gotta be a real glutton for punishment to walk with such sudden extremes...

pvande55 · 04-18-2011, 05:37 PM

Transportation to Westbrook Center is the 322 bus. It runs reasonably frequently during rush hour. Westbound usually reliable but eastbound is subject to delays. It connects to the pink line. If you can find anything under $600 a month chances are you can get there on public transportation. There is a Jewel at Mannheim and Cermak, a mile east.

chet everett · 04-18-2011, 08:37 PM

I can't imagine why anyone with any kind of a job would willing ride the 322 from the end of the pink line at 54th & Cermack the 13 miles or so to 22nd and Wolf for about 40 minutes ...

tonythetuna · 04-18-2011, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chet everett

I can't imagine why anyone with any kind of a job would willing ride the 322 from the end of the pink line at 54th & Cermack the 13 miles or so to 22nd and Wolf for about 40 minutes ...

Hungry people do.

oakparkdude · 04-18-2011, 08:48 PM

I wouldn't want to make that commute without a car, but if I was forced to live without a car and commute to that location, I'd consider living in Oak Park. Its fairly densely built community and its one of the few suburbs where living without a car is a real possibility. Shouldn't be too hard to find a 2 bedroom in that price range.

As for the commute, you could take the Harlem Ave Pace bus south from Oak Park to Cermak avenue then transfer to the Cermak ave bus to get to work.

chet everett · 04-18-2011, 08:53 PM

Oak Park is probably the closest place where you could at least think about living day-to-day without a personal vehicle.

rmarquez · 04-19-2011, 08:14 AM

Thanks a lot to all of you for taking your time and post answers to my questions. All answers are really usefull. I understand what Chet says about having a car, I think it's the best option as well but, this is going to be my first time in the States and I don't have an American driver license so I think I am going to be a while without a car.
Oakparkdude I was checking on internet and Oat Park looks like a really nice area, in fact, I found many cool apartments (Of course over $600). Thanks for the commute explanation.
Thanks a lot again, I appreciate your answers.