Western or Northern Suburbs?? (Wheaton, Lombard: homes, college, tax)

[sbking]

Glenview is real nice and obviously with the abundance of good schools comes lots of families and family oriented communities/activities. At the top end of your budget you might find something that satisfies your needs. To your concern about commute time though - I have to imagine that 30 minutes door to door is pushing it. When I lived in Lakeview and had to get to the loop it was 10-15 minutes so 30 minutes is basically the outskirts of the city limit of Chicago, IL to inside the loop if you consider getting to/from the train, etc. How stuck are you on 30 minutes to the office?

[847mom]

I think the Glen is a great area, definitely small kid friendly. You are in walking distance to a great park with spray pool, recreation center with indoor pools and water park and gyms with fitness center, Kohl Children's Museum and a fun craft place (though kinda pricey) called Make A Messterpiece. The single family homes are mostly higher than your cap. but here is one 2506 West Lake Avenue, Glenview IL | MLS# 2506WLAKE - Trulia

[Steve-o]

Im biased, but the far western burbs are hard to beat, and here's why, IMO... first off, most are ridiculously safe. Crime in towns like Wheaton, Hinsdale, Geneva, Wasco, Wayne, etc, is non-existant. The schools out here, for the most part, are wonderful. If youre after nice, walkable downtown areas, towns like Hinsdale, Wheaton, St. Charles, Geneva, Naperville, etc, are amongst the best, if not thee best, in Chicagoland. Throw into the mix a hearty dose of nature with dozens of forest preserves and prairie preserves, good wildlife (deer, coyote, fox, fishing, etc), and tons of shopping/dining, and its hard to beat. Plus at night, you can actually see the stars, which you dont get close to the city.

[tomcho]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Im biased, but the far western burbs are hard to beat, and here's why, IMO... first off, most are ridiculously safe. Crime in towns like Wheaton, Hinsdale, Geneva, Wasco, Wayne, etc, is non-existant. The schools out here, for the most part, are wonderful. If youre after nice, walkable downtown areas, towns like Hinsdale, Wheaton, St. Charles, Geneva, Naperville, etc, are amongst the best, if not thee best, in Chicagoland. Throw into the mix a hearty dose of nature with dozens of forest preserves and prairie preserves, good wildlife (deer, coyote, fox, fishing, etc), and tons of shopping/dining, and its hard to beat. Plus at night, you can actually see the stars, which you dont get close to the city.

While all that may be true one of the OPs biggest concerns is commute time to downtown Chicago. Only Hinsdale gets him anywhere near his 30 minute time goal. I love Hinsdale, great town with great schools and it would be on my radar with our next move if most of my friends and leisure activities didn't revolve around the north side.

[chet everett]

The fastest trains from downtown Naperville take 32 minutes to Union Station. Very time efficient. There are trains from Downers Grove Main St and arrive at Union station in 27 minutes. Hinsdale 22 minutes. Lagrange's Congress Park 19 minutes...

These speeds are possible due to the BNSF track configuration that basically allows express trains to run at peak speeds from the last stop until they enter the Union Station switches -- very few grade crossings, essentially all above grade from Cicero.

[kindrakindra]

Originally Posted by chet everett

The fastest trains from downtown Naperville take 32 minutes to Union Station. Very time efficient. There are trains from Downers Grove Main St and arrive at Union station in 27 minutes. Hinsdale 22 minutes. Lagrange's Congress Park 19 minutes...

These speeds are possible due to the BNSF track configuration that basically allows express trains to run at peak speeds from the last stop until they enter the Union Station switches -- very few grade crossings, essentially all above grade from Cicero.

How many trains a morning run from Naperville to Union Station at 32 minutes? And how many a night? IF you miss those limited options, your train commute is LONG . . .

[gkoepke1]

Hinsdale does look attractive on paper so once we see it in person that will help a lot. How is Morton Grove as a city? Also for houses in The Glen what is the price range I will need to spend? Looks like the post code for it is 60026 but not too many houses available right now that look attractive.

[sbking]

I looked around on realtor.com and I would think you could find something that satisfies most of your requirements in the Glen throughout your price range. Keep in mind the real estate season tends to ramp up in the spring so after you decide what area(s) you are interested in watch the market as new homes will come on more frequently than they have in recent months because of winter (I will admit inventory is probably a little picked through at this point). Also keep in mind that although the housing market is considered 'bad' - good deals in desireable areas do not last long here. If $850 is your top end I would do a search @ $900 and see what comes up because you will certainly be able to negotiate down from the list price. Realtors can help you set up a search that will email you whenever something comes on the market or a property changes (price drop) that matches your criteria. I highly recommend you get that set up as soon as possible for the areas you are looking at. As for what you find attractive, only you can decide that. I can afford a fraction of what you are willing spend so all the homes in this price range look attractive to me.

Good luck.

[divakat]

My husband takes the express train from downtown Naperville every single day and it is only 32 minutes to downtown Chicago. There are lots of express trains in Naperville. Plus, imho, Naperville has the best downtown area of all of the suburbs mentioned here. There are a mix of newer subdivision-based homes as well as older more "charming" type homes within walking distance from the train. The schools can't be beat and you get a lot more for your money than Hinsdale (which I also love).

We were looking at Glenview and Wilmette as well, and chose Naperville because we got more for our money, top schools, and the commute time was the same.

[cubssoxfan]

The Glen in Glenview is nice except it reminds me of the old Wendy's hamburger commercial "Where's the trees?" The trees are still young because the entire development is relatively new. My preference would be to look in an older section of Glenview with more, larger trees. The Glen reminds me of living in the Dallas area

Morton Grove is ok. I don't think its as charming as Glenview and most of the other north, northwest and western suburbs others have suggested.