May be moving from Texas to Deerfield. (Chicago, Buffalo Grove: for sale, how much)

[Travelupnorth]

My wife currently works out of her home office for a company in Deerfield. We suspect that we may be moving to the Chicago area in the near future for her job. At this point it is not a forced move, we have a choice to stay put in Austin. We love it up there in Chicago and deep down really welcome this move but we have some reservations.

First, we don't pay a state income tax in Texas. This will change in Illinois. Also the cost of living is considerably higher in the Chicago area. Our house here in Austin is worth about $230,000 but for the same house up north we would pay between $400,000 to $600,000. That is quiet the jump in expenses.

Has anyone else had to deal with this change in cost of living? How was it? Should it discourage us in moving to an area we know we love?

We would only be interested in living in the Deerfield area. My wife wouldn't like to go from no commute to a long commute.

[ofcjim40]

Honestly I don't see the point. 5% State Income Tax, gas is $.40 a gallon higher, property tax on a house in that price range is $12,000 a year, crappy winters, a State that's broke. Of course I don't know how stable her job is but what if the company folds, etc? You plan on getting a job here? You have family up here or some other "pro's" that would make it worth it? Would your wife's salary jump $17,000 a year to balance the cost of living you are used to? If you would give us your income range, we could probably tell you how realistic it is.

[Vlajos]

I would never live in Texas, income taxes or not.

[chicagojlo]

A lot of people leave Chicago for Texas these days.

Unless you really have a hard time living there I can't see why you'd want to move. Or at least you'd have to adjust your standard of living - 2 people don't need a $600,000 house. If your income currently covers a $230,000 home, there are plenty of those here. They just won't be of the size you're used to. But if you want everything to be the same here as it is there, why move?

[Travelupnorth]

It may come down to a forced move at some point. So in our minds if we move soon we are just getting it over with now. We have two children one in 5th grade and then a 2 year old. Income is about $200,000 a year and the company is very stable. We don't exactly want everything to stay the same as we have it here. I'm just looking for the perspective of someone that has made this move already. What issues did they deal with and what advice can they give us? We do like it up there. It's too damn hot here in Texas and I'm sick of watching every plant die from the drought.

[nowincal11]

Originally Posted by Travelupnorth

It may come down to a forced move at some point. So in our minds if we move soon we are just getting it over with now. We have two children one in 5th grade and then a 2 year old. Income is about $200,000 a year and the company is very stable. We don't exactly want everything to stay the same as we have it here. I'm just looking for the perspective of someone that has made this move already. What issues did they deal with and what advice can they give us? We do like it up there. It's too damn hot here in Texas and I'm sick of watching every plant die from the drought.

If your wife will be making $200K, plan on 5% state income tax, higher gas prices (depends on how much you drive the cost of this annually), and food prices being about 25% higher.

For the big item, property tax. Property taxes I'm told are massive in some parts of Texas, in fact, somewhat higher than in some Chicago suburbs. However, Chicago home prices are much higher. If you have 2 kids and want a decent house in a good school system (i.e. Deerfield), plan on $500K minimum for a single family home. With your wife's salary, you can afford that especially once you sell your home in Texas.

The winters in Chicago are brutal, but I suppose you get used to them. Traffic is huge, way worse than anywhere in Texas even Houston. Chicago is a massive city and there is just suburb after suburb after suburb, a bit different than Austin and Houston where things can get a bit more rural right outside the central city.

The only other thing I can think of about culture shock is just the people. Chicagoans in that area are very tolerant of others (people from all over), but also very materialistic (I grew up in the NW burbs not far from the north burbs of Deerfield) and care about your house, your cars, restaurants you eat at, etc.

In terms of the people, Chicagoland is very diverse. Deerfield is heavily Jewish and some Asian. In your specific area of the northern suburbs, you are close to a huge Jewish population (Highland Park & Northbrook), Russian and Russian Jewish population (Wheeling, Buffalo Grove), Hispanic population---might be used to that from Texas (in many northern and NW burbs).

In any case, it's not a bad place to raise a family.

[chicagojlo]

You don't need to spend $500k or even $400k to live in this area - there are several nice 4 bed homes for sale under $350k in the area. Yes property taxes are high but I hear they're worse in TX. You're also guaranteed a top notch high school in any of the North Shore towns surrounding Deerfield - Deerfield High, Buffalo Grove High, Highland Park High, New Trier, Lake Forest High, Stevenson - all considered to be excellent schools. The elementary and middle schools are all well-regarded too.

There are actually a lot of people from all over living in the area because so many companies are headquartered here. You certainly wouldn't stick out. And it's not as snobby as some would have you believe.

[Travelupnorth]

As far as property taxes go it may be a wash because of the higher property value near Chicago. I've heard that the property taxes in Texas are higher but I'm not sure about that. I'd have to check my escrow account to see what I'm actually paying per year in property taxes. The state income tax will be a very new thing for us. We are looking at all the areas mentioned. We don't want to go any further north than Libertyville. Her job is on 294 and 94, so we want a very short commute. Although, that might still take a lot of time with traffic being so bad. High today in Austin 102 degrees. I'll make it there if I don't melt first. Thanks for all the help.

[knitgirl]

We make up for our winters by having much pleasanter summers than you have in Texas.

[Travelupnorth]

I would much rather have the harsh winter. At least I can add more clothes. But I can only remove so much in the Texas summer before everyone starts to complain.