Advice on Chicago suburbs for family (Arlington Heights, Evanston: foreclosures, rental, appliances)

[lisaathena]

Hi all,
My husband and I are moving over to Chicago from Ireland next year and I'm looking for some helpful advice. We're trying to look into neighbourhoods and suburbs that would suit us, but it's very difficult to do from a laptop! We are a young family with a seven year old so a nice, safe and quiet area is what we are looking for. Good public schools are high on our list of priorities as my son is gifted and we like to do a lot of outdoor activities so somewhere that has good parks. My husband will be working downtown so somewhere communtable would be ideal, 30-40 mins by train or metra? So far I've been looking into Des Plaines and Park Ridge which seem to be in our budget but I'd love some local advice! I was wondering if I'm looking at the right areas? From what I've read online the Northern belt of subarbs are the nicest. What about Irving Park and Far North Side areas?
Are Edgewater, Rogers Park and Evanstown just college towns for student youth types?
Roughly our budget is 1,600 for a two or three bed.
I'm really swimming in a sea of the unknown at the minute so all advice is helpful.
Thanks in advance

[chet everett]

Edgewater and Rogers Park are neighborhoods in Chicago. While Chicago does have some very high performing schools with selective admissions, the hoops to jump through and lack of consideration for relocation makes this a very long shot for anyone not in Chicago before their kids are school age...

The desirable schools / suburbs around Chicago tend to be laid out along the commuter rail lines, it is not mere coincidence that all such towns are about 40 minutes or so from the employment inside Chicago's Loop. Theses towns all have nice parks and most also have access to forest preserves. The UP-NW line that goes through Park Ridge and DesPlaines also serves Arlington Heights and Barrington, towns that are probably more desirable than DesPlaines. There is a "sciene and math academy" near DesPlaines that might a good option.

Towns on the North Shore , which start at Evanston and run through Lake Co are generally quite desirable too. Prices may be such that your money does NOT go as far, but with foreclosures / shortsales it is worth shopping...

Similarly the desirable Westen Suburbs along the BNSF and UP-W line should also be investigated.

I would caution that since there are NO STATE OR FEDERAL MANDATED levels of funding for gifted education in Illinois / the US, the financial stability of the school district is quite important AND towns need to have a commitment to such programs. There have been already been some changes in schools that are in historical higher performing areas, (the controversy around Evanston's decision to make alterations in how their gifted programs for high school freshmen has been documented on this forum and other places...) and the on going train wreck of financial mismanagement in Illiinois will make things WORSE before they get better...

[oakparkdude]

Will you both be working, or just your husband? Is a pedestrian-friendly environment important to you? (Note: these are relatively rare in the USA.) How many cars do you plan to have?

[lisaathena]

@ Chet Everett, Thank you very much that information is very useful.

@ Oakparkdude, Due to the type of visa we will be getting I will not be allowed to work for the first 90 days, but thereafter I plan on working. A pedestrian environment would be nice as we are used to walking everywhere or having the option to walk everywhere over here. Although from what I have been told by American friends this is highly unlikely to happen when we move. We will probably just have the one car.

[oakparkdude]

One car is probably best, at least for minimizing expenses. Since your husband will be working in the Loop, if you live walking distance to a Metra station, or at least close to a bus route that goes to a Metra station, he won't need a car for his commute. This will let you have the car all day, which is a good thing, as nearly all towns around here are basically unliveable for families without access to a car.

[NYrules]

Originally Posted by lisaathena

Hi all,
My husband and I are moving over to Chicago from Ireland next year and I'm looking for some helpful advice. We're trying to look into neighbourhoods and suburbs that would suit us, but it's very difficult to do from a laptop! We are a young family with a seven year old so a nice, safe and quiet area is what we are looking for. Good public schools are high on our list of priorities as my son is gifted and we like to do a lot of outdoor activities so somewhere that has good parks. My husband will be working downtown so somewhere communtable would be ideal, 30-40 mins by train or metra? So far I've been looking into Des Plaines and Park Ridge which seem to be in our budget but I'd love some local advice! I was wondering if I'm looking at the right areas? From what I've read online the Northern belt of subarbs are the nicest. What about Irving Park and Far North Side areas?
Are Edgewater, Rogers Park and Evanstown just college towns for student youth types?
Roughly our budget is 1,600 for a two or three bed.
I'm really swimming in a sea of the unknown at the minute so all advice is helpful.
Thanks in advance

Honestly, yes northern burbs like Skokie, Park Ridge and all that are fine and all, but you can get more bang for your buck on the south side, yet be in a safe area with decent schools, and you want walkable? Check out Oak Lawn right near 95th Street near its Metra station. There are plenty of homes, tons of shopping, 95th Street is fully sidewalked so you can walk store to store, there are tons of busses (along with a million other cars and trucks) going back and forth on 95th constantly. Use the little google man walker thing and you can see what it looks like there. oak lawn metra station - Google Maps

[chicagojlo]

There are school districts that have their own 'gifted' programs (usually serving the top 5% of students, rather than those who have tested as gifted) but they will not measure up to the schooling that the dedicated gifted schools can provide. Those however are private schools and cost a pretty penny. Chicago Public Schools only test once a year (around January) for gifted school admission and there aren't many places available past 1st grade anyway.

[linicx]

I think first you should understand you are moving into an area of ten million people. It is a high energy, fast paced environment. There are Irish neighborhoods, pubs, restaurants and stores in Chicago. Skokie and Park Ridge are middle class communities. Hillary Clinton was raised in Park Ridge.

I am going to suggest something a little different for a couple of reasons.. The Village of Oak Park
has a Regional Housing Center that can help you find a rental in a good neighborhood. They can help you get settled with utiliies, etc.. You may also be able to find a short term lease while you look for other housing. It is about 9 miles from the Loop. OP has trains and buses, and you can also rent a zip car. I believe there are at least two Catholic churches and one has a school.
Oak Park Regional Housing Center

The K-8 grade elementary schools are very good. Highschool is grades 9-12. The highschool as some issues, but by the time your child is 14 you will know more abou it.

School year begins in August. In most US schools a 7 years old child is in second grade. To be enrolled in third grade, your child's birthday must fall on or before September 5, 2012.. it may be a different date in Chicago. You will need to bring all of his school and health records. Also he will need a physical and eye exam, plus all of the immunization shots must be up to date before he can enter school.

The US Power Grid is different than Europe. You will need to bring a converter if you want to use your hair dryer or any other small appliance. Your Irish cell phone may not work on a US cell phone network. CMDA technology offered by Verizon and Sprint it very popular in America. AT&T and T-Mobile use a different techology.

A car is expensive. You can reasonably expect to pay an additional $200 US per month or more to park it - if you do not find a rental unit that includes parking. Covered parking is better as Chicago winters can be brutal. The Canadian wind whips across Lake Michigan and creates something the local forecasters call the "lake effect."

Appliances are different too. Our cookers are four burner, gas or electric, single oven freestanding Kitchen range with back splash. Oven temperature is measured by degrees. Cakes are generally baked at 350 degrees. Here is a sample of what some of our cookers look like.
Sears: Online department store featuring appliances, tools, fitness equipment and more .

Petrol is sold by the gallon not liter. There is 3.? gallons per liter. Currently our gasoline (petrol) is costing over $4.00 per gallon ( 8 pints). We travel by miles not km and we measure fabric by the inch or yard. (36" = 1 yard). Shoes are sized differently too. A ladies shoe size 8 may be 40 in Europe.

If you have other questions, do not hesitate to ask.

[chet everett]

What the???

EIGHT PINTS?!? Gallons not liters? Cookers ?? kitchen range with backsplash???? Cakes bake at 350° ??? CDMA?? Um, GSM is a WORLWIDE standard...

Dude, she said Ireland, not Pluto. Do you think she used a translation service to go from Gaelic to the language we speak here? Do you SPEAK MORE LOUDLY WHEN YOU MEET SOME ONE FROM FRANCE????


Google???

Oh, and lake effect hit on the EAST side of Lake Michigan about 50x more frequently than west...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake-effect_snow

[oakparkdude]

That's just Linicx being Linicx.