Medical professional working at Loyola hosp. needs advice regarding loctation and purchase vs. renting (Chicago: best neighborhoods, apartment)
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I know. My property taxes are too high. I'd feel more comfortable if I could drop $1,500 to $2,000 off the bill to stay more competitive in the market relative to other suburbs.
That said, we are a very "high amenity" village. We have good schools with well-furnished, well-maintained buildings and well-paid teachers. We have a great park district with 30 parks for 27,000 residents, updated facilities, and extensive programming. We have streetscaping, fancy signs, and a well-funded forestry division. We have a public golf course and a nature preserve. Our library is currently being rehabbed, even though it isn't that old. We choose to spend money on these things to a higher degree than, say, Downers Grove.
Chet and Lookout Kid, your finer points are well-taken and understood. I do have to factor in the surrounding house's tax rates, number of prior house owners, along with the sometimes crazy way assessments are assigned. There are soooo many factors to include - and some we just cannot realize until we're actually exploring the particular house in the particular neighborhood in a village.
And yes, Chet, I recall reading a post of yours from a couple of years ago that spoke to the listing price as compared to the tax rates, "2.2%" and so on- what you said here is spot-on (I just couldn't find your old post again...).
Also, knowing the "mileage to driving time ratio" was extremely helpful as a starting point to reference for DH. So, if I include Glen Ellyn in our search, some parts of Wheaton would make sense.
Now, the point about unincorporated vs. incorporated brings up another set of factors we must take into account. Also, in someone's older post, there was a mention of the northern part of Downers Grove vs. the southern part. As we don't know these subtleties yet, can you all give us some general advice on "better" areas to concentrate for each of the towns we've been speaking about? For instance, I was charmed by some period houses in various villages within 2-8 blocks of the downtown areas. Is this a good idea, considering all of our parameters as well as resale?
Along these same lines, what are the downsides of living in other parts further away in each village (besides having to drive to services, the train, etc.?) Are, for instance, certain unincorporated areas subject to changing school boundaries? Take much longer for emergency or fire dept. services? More dangerous/isolated?
So, if you can suggest areas within the various towns either to focus on and/or avoid, that would be very helpful!
Also, can any of you recommend specific realtors to us for any of the towns we've been discussing? (Please DM me!!!)
Honestly, this house-buying process is very different from what we've encountered in other areas of the country! Maybe it's because also of the density and proximity to such a major city, as was mentioned.
Again, if anything else pops up in your mind that you think would help me in this "quest", please post- I'll be checking CD every day. I'm sure this is helping so many others as well. You guys and gals have been absolutely amazing and generous with your time and assistance! I feel so incredibly fortunate. ...Also wonder how on earth we all managed before the internet and forums such as these.
I remember living in Germany and beginning our search for our house in Texas- it was during the first couple of years of the PC and internet being used for similar research. I actually found our dream home that way, and called my DH to go view the house, as he was there for a continuing education course!!! We marveled at seeing the information and photos posted on a house-searching engine from halfway across the globe! Couldn't have imagined the flood of information that came to be...
Have a great (and warmer) day!!!
Thank you so much!
Closer in to Chicago in Cook County, the suburbs basically run together, with boundaries like industrial areas, water ways, and forest preserves breaking things up a bit. As you get further west, the incorporated villages, cities, etc. developed around the train stops and spread out from there. As the trains routes are sort of "radial" running out from the loop, the distances between train lines get larger as you get further out, and the "in between" areas sometimes got developed without being within a municpal boundary. Some are subdivisions, and others are sort of "rural remnants" that have survived as one-off houses on county roads.
Being "unincorporated" isn't always a good or bad thing, as different unincorporated areas have sometimes negotiated things like sewer service, water service, trash pickup, etc. with nearby incorporated areas. But you'll want to make sure to learn about all of these types of services before getting too serious about a house in an unincorporated area. Little things like library or park districts can also affect your quality of life.
Closer in to Chicago in Cook County, the suburbs basically run together, with boundaries like industrial areas, water ways, and forest preserves breaking things up a bit. As you get further west, the incorporated villages, cities, etc. developed around the train stops and spread out from there. As the trains routes are sort of "radial" running out from the loop, the distances between train lines get larger as you get further out, and the "in between" areas sometimes got developed without being within a municpal boundary. Some are subdivisions, and others are sort of "rural remnants" that have survived as one-off houses on county roads.
Being "unincorporated" isn't always a good or bad thing, as different unincorporated areas have sometimes negotiated things like sewer service, water service, trash pickup, etc. with nearby incorporated areas. But you'll want to make sure to learn about all of these types of services before getting too serious about a house in an unincorporated area. Little things like library or park districts can also affect your quality of life.
You're spot-on with the amenities...I'm searching for a "community" and looking both for things to do, as well as contribute. So, being near libraries and parks are pretty high on our list. DH likes to bike, so the biking paths were also of interest to us.
I'd like to as well, but don't know if motorized bikes or 3-wheelers (more "bike" with an add-on motor, rather than a Vespa or similar...) are allowed on them. I'd love to be able to accompany him, but my balance from the Mus. Dys. along with my weakness won't allow me to go more than a block or two...on a level path. Hills? forget it!
Chet, Holl1ngsworth, and Lookout Kid (posts #98 and on...) how on earth did I miss these posts? I think I posted, and went on to other threads to comment...didn't see the tax rates and the maps until just now.
Goldmine! Golden nuggets! You've saved me hours of searching...Bless you and thank you!
Seeing these finer points (and understanding them more, now...) REALLY helps me fine-tune my searches!
I found a cute listing in Glen Ellyn (near Lake GE) that states it "fought taxes" and won. Any comments on the success or lasting effects of this action? I would wonder if the taxes would jump up in the future, depending on surrounding house prices and taxes.
There's another house listed that claims it's 3400 sq. ft, and is asking a price in the mid 600's - yet it seems disingenuous to me, as half of the sq. foot and bedrooms are in the basement!!! Only 1700 sq. ft. are above grade! Yet, they're trying to price the house similar to other houses nearby that have 2800-3500 above grade! How often does this happen? I figured out the comps based on all of the real factors, and figured out it's work about 507K-520K at best. Hmmmm...Otherwise, the house would work for us.
Finally, what are your thoughts of Lake Ellyn area vs. closer to town? Can you further separate the great living areas of GE?
"Fighting taxes" is really just an overly bellicose way of saying "appealed property tax assessment". In DuPage Co the process is largely straightforward. The homeowner or their hired representative gathers data that shows the assessment is not supported by things like the description of the property (mistakes in measurement / room count are rare, but they do creep in...), sales of similar property (where similar is sometimes very hard to find in areas with mostly custom homes -- if the online photos show that the place that sold for significantly less than your assessment was in desperate need of updating / repairs that is not really apples-to-apples) or the trickiest category "inequity of assessment" where one most show : " When unequal treatment in the assessment process is the basis of the appeal, the inequity of the assessments must be proved by clear and convincing evidence. This evidence must demonstrate a consistent pattern of assessment inequities within the assessment jurisdiction." You get 15 minutes to show such patterns. That means you need to show the MANY homes with more living space / higher value are assessed at values significantly less than your own. Not impossible but not a slam-dunk by any means, the township assessor will have LOTS more data and LOTS more experience showing that things are fair, accurate and uniform...
Thanks, Chet. This is another valuable link! If we eventually did buy one of the houses with such a claim, these rules and procedures would definitely help.
So far, there have been at least 3 different homes, in La Grange and Glen Ellyn, that stated something to the effect that the high RE taxes were appealed and successfully challenged. So, I'd want to ensure that was the case, first.
One of the homes was in a very exclusive area, with houses in the 800+ range, and well-over 3000+ sq. ft above grade. The house is listed in the mid-600's, but with half of the sq. foot actually existing in the basement.
It sounds like the owner wanted the best of both worlds - the lower taxes commensurate with his actual above-grade living description and size of the house, but is trying to ride the higher-price wave of his neighbors by claiming his overall sq. footage is comparable...not!
Extrapolating this further, if there was a heavy rain with flooding, this house would have 1800 sq. ft of its stated living area possibly compromised...whereas his neighbors still had everyone safe and dry in all of the bedrooms upstairs!
There is no easy way to get a perfectly clear picture of the tax situation in any given town, but I remember using Blockshopper and Zillow to work out data that gave me a rough idea what tax rates looked like in each town my wife and I liked. I was okay with tax rates up to about the low 2% range. Dividing median tax data via Blockshopper by the Zillow Home Value Index for each town gives the following tax rates:
Lowest Tax Rates
1.5%: Clarendon Hills
1.5%: Hinsdale
1.6%: Downers Grove
1.7%: Western Springs
1.8%: Elmhurst
1.9%: La Grange
2.1%: Wheaton
2.2%: Glen Ellyn
At the same price point, you would on average pay a lot less tax in Clarendon Hills versus Glen Ellyn, but theoretically you would have much more house for your money in Glen Ellyn. And then there is the question of schools, size and breadth of city services, park district, fire, police, libraries, etc. There are trade offs.
For extra fun, here are the current foreclosure rates as well:
Lowest Foreclosure Rates:
1.37%: Clarendon Hills
1.99%: Hinsdale
2.25%: Downers Grove
2.88%: Elmhurst
3.46%: Wheaton
3.81%: Glen Ellyn
4.85%: Western Springs
7.09%: La Grange
Hi H'worth...just wanted to tell you that DH and I are looking at houses and various resources, and your post above has been extremely helpful. We're using it to both expand/change our potential towns, as well as possibly alter our budget.
Chet, all of your comments and info are also invaluable and many steps "above"...you've helped us "fine tune" our parameters- the extremely important ones!!!
thanks!
I appreciate your advice, and may ask more as we continue this process. Many thanks again!
Cheers,
Dandiday
The taxes in the towns listed are all going to be high. You are not going to find desirable places in the western suburbs that have "low" taxes. I suggest looking into several towns and focusing on a search there. All the places listed are nice. Wheaton and Glen Ellyn would be my top choices. I would not buy a house with bedrooms in the basement....just not my preference and would maybe be hard to resell. I'd stick away from any unincorporated areas.
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How'd I miss these posts???
