Northern Suburb Advice for Wisconsin Commuters (Chicago, Waukegan: rentals, condos, employment)

[emanders]

Hello!

Looking for some advice on the North Suburbs as far as housing/commute.

Unlike a lot of threads I've been reading, my husband and I will be commuting up to the southern WI/Kenosha area for work.

No kids or school concerns...we're in our mid-twenties, just looking for rentals under $1,000/mo and relatively easy access to downtown. We'd actually rather live in the city, but don't want the 1.5+ hour commute.

Thanks in advance for any advice or tips!

Erin

[Orangeish]

Well, what is your threshold for the commute time? Is your hubbys place of employment near I-94?

[emanders]

I'd say an hour max? Yeah, we would both be working in Kenosha pretty close to I-94.

Thanks!

[Orangeish]

Well typically when this type of subject come up, Arlington Heights is a winner, since they have 2 metra stops, a great downtown by burbs standards and it is an overall nice town.

However, I-90 passes through the south end of AH and you aren't close I-94. Really, the issue with the I-94 corridor is you have the hyper-wealthy areas like Winnetka, Kenilworth etc, on the east, and due west are more family type suburbs, like northbrook.

I guess you could look in Libertyville? That might be the best fit, it has access to I-94, and sits on a metra line. It has a decent downtown too, again from a suburb POV. It has good bars, restaurants and even a brewery. You also have mega-shopping just down milwaukee ave in Vernon Hills from there. You are pretty far out from Chicago though at that point, 45-1 hr drive, or 30-45ish by metra. It's not like you are on another planet, but it isn't "quick/easy" access to the City.

With light traffic, you can zip right up 94 to kenosha in probably 20-30 minutes depending on how far away from 94 you actually are from the highway.

Good luck, welcome to IL

[SJaye]

You have some good options depending on who you view the tradeoff between being near your job and easy access to the city, and whether or not you want to be near a train station/ walkable downtown. The first town that comes to mind is Libertyville. The commute from there along I-94 will probably be 30 minutes. Downtown is pretty nice- but the train ride is just over an hour into downtown. Deerfield, Northbrook, Glenview, Arlington Heights and Mount Prospect, would all be closer to the city, but with a longer commute, and it might be a little tougher to find something in your price range.

Note, all are on train lines with other North side stops where you can access buses/CTA lines to get to other Northside neighborhoods. Lake Forest, Lake Bluff and the rest of the "North Shore" are probably out of your price range, and I would not recommend Waukegan/North Chicago. If you don't care about being near a train line with weekend service to Chicago- Wheeling and Prospect Heights can be looked into as well.

[emanders]

Thanks so much Orangeish and SJaye! Incredibly helpful advice....I appreciate it.

[chet everett]

I second the suggestion of Libertyville, but doubt it would take under 30 minutes unless the work site is right at I-94, even getting between Pleasant Praire and the Gurnee Mills area takes that long...

You might want to consider Kenosha's downtown. They do have access to commuter trains into Chicago, a lovely marina and some fairly affordable rentals...

[chisub]

Honestly I'd just live close to work and go to the city on the weekends if that's what you want to do, especially if you are renting and both you and your husband work in WI. I think it would be different if one of you worked in the city and the other in WI. Is there a specific reason you want to live in IL? I'd just save my gas money and commute time/free time (do you go to the gym or want to hang out with your husband after work?) since you are probably working more days per week/month than going to Chicago. In my opinion, there is nothing THAT exciting going on once you cross the WI/IL border as far as suburbs go and it just adds a longer commute to your day.

[Drover]

If you're willing to tolerate an hour commute, I'd sniff around Milwaukee's 3rd Ward or Bay View. You'll have a decent slice of genuine urbanity right outside your door and occasional weekend trips to Chicago are pretty much a snap. And it'll actually be just as easy or easier to get to from Kenosha as from some of the places erstwhile suggested.

That said, I do wonder how long a person can tolerate an hour commute on a regular basis.

[reppin_the_847]

I'd probably consider Libertyville or Lake Bluff. In Lake Bluff you might need to check out the condo's near Knollwood (Waukegan Road). If you can put up with a heavier commute, maybe look south at rentals near Glenview (access to 294) and maybe the condos in Skokie near Old Orchard (access to 94, and real easy access to Chicago).