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we are about to put an offer on either of the two properties we saw last week, one in aurora (sd 204) at montagamery/normantown rd near gombert elementary school another one in naperville steeple run division (SD 203).Our budget is 320k with taxes around 6-7k. we are getting bigger home at great price with a good lot size at aurora SD 204, where as in naperville steeple run its a smaller lot, very old looking neighbourhood and its at the very top end of the budget. we like the proximity to naperville downtown though. we have a new born, schools are important for us but not so much in the immediate future. we are having hard time making up our mind which one would make a good purchase. One of the most important points for us would be the upside potential for the property to increase in market price in the next 4-5 years, also how easy it will be to sell the property 4-5 years down the line. I was under the assumption that properties in naperville will raise faster and would be better investment, but im not quite sure after looking at zillow for forecast. Zillow says naperville steeple run zip code will only go up by 0.1% every year, where as aurora 2%. Would appreciate any suggestions/advice from the forums members.
I think you should go with the house in Aurora because it seems like you would get more for your buck while still in a good school district. Steeple Run is still a few miles away from downtown Naperville, so it wouldn't be worth it to get less house and less land for at the top of your budget. Also, you'll have a better profit when you sell the Aurora house.
First, I wouldn't trust Zillow on anything regarding current or future home prices, appreciation/depreciation, etc. Just seems wildly inaccurate whenever I've looked at their data.
As to 204/203 and Aurora/ vs Naperville... we're currently in a similar situation (though we are restricting ourselves to the 204 District). From my perspective, there are a few things to consider along with just prices :
- commute to work or shopping
In Aurora, you may be stuck having to take Eola Rd or Rt 59 for N/S travel - quite congested. In Napervile, you may be stuck w/Ogden/Rickert mess. Look carefully at the locations of the two houses and think about how you would get to work, shopping, restaurants, etc from each of them
- taxes
I think taxes in Aurora are higher for the same price home
- subdivision/neighborhood type
In Naperville, esp 203, the neighborhoods (and houses) tend to be older, more mature trees, maybe more a sense of neighborhood; in Aurora the subdivisions are newer, not as many mature trees, perhaps less of a community feel, but more mdoern homes with "update" features
- proximity to downtown Naperville
Matters if you want to take advantage of the amenities there (restaurants, shops, Riverwalk, etc.). Shopping in Aurora is more spread out (strip malls, or Fox Valley mall), unless you consider downtown Aurora (but I'd drive to downtown N'ville before downtown Aurora)
As far as long-term appreciation, I think Naperville would fare better, especially if the house you are considering is near or close to the Metra - maybe not an issue for you but for a future buyer. But if you are planning to stay for more than a few years, think mostly about where you'd be happiest in the long term. If you are in the positive earnings growth stage of your career, then it's not necessarily a bad idea to spend a bit more now for the better "package", as the financial burden will decrease over time. A few years after I bought my first house I wished I would have went of the slightly more (10%) expensive one I was also considering (it was a fair bit nicer, etc. and probably appreciated more) because the cost differential in terms of my monthly cash flow became meaningless after a couple of years. You can also upgrade features in your home over time.
First, I wouldn't trust Zillow on anything regarding current or future home prices, appreciation/depreciation, etc. Just seems wildly inaccurate whenever I've looked at their data.
As to 204/203 and Aurora/ vs Naperville... we're currently in a similar situation (though we are restricting ourselves to the 204 District). From my perspective, there are a few things to consider along with just prices :
- commute to work or shopping
In Aurora, you may be stuck having to take Eola Rd or Rt 59 for N/S travel - quite congested. In Napervile, you may be stuck w/Ogden/Rickert mess. Look carefully at the locations of the two houses and think about how you would get to work, shopping, restaurants, etc from each of them
- taxes
I think taxes in Aurora are higher for the same price home
- subdivision/neighborhood type
In Naperville, esp 203, the neighborhoods (and houses) tend to be older, more mature trees, maybe more a sense of neighborhood; in Aurora the subdivisions are newer, not as many mature trees, perhaps less of a community feel, but more mdoern homes with "update" features
- proximity to downtown Naperville
Matters if you want to take advantage of the amenities there (restaurants, shops, Riverwalk, etc.). Shopping in Aurora is more spread out (strip malls, or Fox Valley mall), unless you consider downtown Aurora (but I'd drive to downtown N'ville before downtown Aurora)
As far as long-term appreciation, I think Naperville would fare better, especially if the house you are considering is near or close to the Metra - maybe not an issue for you but for a future buyer. But if you are planning to stay for more than a few years, think mostly about where you'd be happiest in the long term. If you are in the positive earnings growth stage of your career, then it's not necessarily a bad idea to spend a bit more now for the better "package", as the financial burden will decrease over time. A few years after I bought my first house I wished I would have went of the slightly more (10%) expensive one I was also considering (it was a fair bit nicer, etc. and probably appreciated more) because the cost differential in terms of my monthly cash flow became meaningless after a couple of years. You can also upgrade features in your home over time.
The funny thing is it sure seems like JoePO is laying out a pretty solid case to prefer 203 but they are focusing on 204? Not sure how that makes sense.
The funny thing is it sure seems like JoePO is laying out a pretty solid case to prefer 203 but they are focusing on 204? Not sure how that makes sense.
Quite simple really - we're looking at Naperville homes (addresses) in the 204 district, as opposed to Aurora ones, as proximity to downtown Naperville is preferred. Since my daughter has special needs, we prefer 204 over 203. If it wasn't for the 204 vs 203 preference, we'd probably look in 203 to be closer to downtown.
Quite simple really - we're looking at Naperville homes (addresses) in the 204 district, as opposed to Aurora ones, as proximity to downtown Naperville is preferred. Since my daughter has special needs, we prefer 204 over 203. If it wasn't for the 204 vs 203 preference, we'd probably look in 203 to be closer to downtown.
Did not mean to come across as an "indictment" just wanted to be sure you didn't make a typo (goodness knows I do that often enough...).
I have friends / colleagues that live in both the 203 & 204 portions of Naperville as well as the other towns served by both districts (like Lisle for 203 and Aurora, Oswego, Bolingbrook, etc for 204). Mostly satisfied parents BUT would caution that the majority of parents in all but the most miserably run school districts seem generally pretty content. That is one big reason that I like to try to stick with the hard numbers from sources like the US News high schools, that focus heavily on college readiness as measured by SUCCESS on AP tests and the weak but at least uniform data from the Illinois Interactive Report Card. That said I understand that these may not be the ideal yardsticks for parents of children having special needs...
That is one big reason that I like to try to stick with the hard numbers from sources like the US News high schools, that focus heavily on college readiness as measured by SUCCESS on AP tests and the weak but at least uniform data from the Illinois Interactive Report Card. That said I understand that these may not be the ideal yardsticks for parents of children having special needs...
We've done exactly that (looked at the IIRC, other metrics, etc.), but as you can imagine, for a child w/special needs there are aspects of the school system performance that do not appear on these metrics (degree of inclusion or mainstreaming, availability of para pros/aides, use of adaptive technology, staff dedication and willingness to work with parents in the IEP process, etc.). So for that assessment we must rely upon solicitation of information from the parents who have special needs students in these districts. We also got useful feedback from parents of a special needs child who are both teachers (one in 203, the other in 204). Finally, we will visit and talk with the staff at the schools that serve the homes we will be interested in - since my wife is a licensed Sp Ed teacher (in Illinois and Virginia), she'll know the questions to ask and what to look for.
Bottom line is it pays to use a variety of sources of information in order to make the best decision you can in this regard (as a scientist I value multiple sources of data, and also recognize that one must attempt to gauge their validity - not all data are created equal!). Oh, and I didn't see your response as an indictment, it was a honest question.
We live in Aurora with 204...kids have been thru elem, middle and high school. Have had a wonderful experience. My son went to Gombert and then Owen elem, middle school Still and High school Metea. My daughter is at Owen right now. Let me know if you have any school specific questions. I would go with Aurora with dist 204. We don't live far from the location you are looking at.
Good luck!
We've done exactly that (looked at the IIRC, other metrics, etc.), but as you can imagine, for a child w/special needs there are aspects of the school system performance that do not appear on these metrics (degree of inclusion or mainstreaming, availability of para pros/aides, use of adaptive technology, staff dedication and willingness to work with parents in the IEP process, etc.). So for that assessment we must rely upon solicitation of information from the parents who have special needs students in these districts. We also got useful feedback from parents of a special needs child who are both teachers (one in 203, the other in 204). Finally, we will visit and talk with the staff at the schools that serve the homes we will be interested in - since my wife is a licensed Sp Ed teacher (in Illinois and Virginia), she'll know the questions to ask and what to look for.
Bottom line is it pays to use a variety of sources of information in order to make the best decision you can in this regard (as a scientist I value multiple sources of data, and also recognize that one must attempt to gauge their validity - not all data are created equal!). Oh, and I didn't see your response as an indictment, it was a honest question.
@JoePO - What were the results of your family's meeting with the districts. We are also relocating for work. Kindly PM me if you wish.
@JoePO - What were the results of your family's meeting with the districts. We are also relocating for work. Kindly PM me if you wish.
We haven't done that yet - we are going to wait until my daughter's school year is over in MI, then meet with schools here once my wife and daughter relocate here. So probably around the mid-June timeframe.
We do not have an offer on our present house yet, so we haven't actively looked at any homes either (other than online), let alone made an offer on anything. So we aren't in a position know e.g., which elementary school my daughter would attend. So far we also haven't gotten enough information with sufficient granularity to allow us to favor one elementary school over another, though I'm sure there are definite opinions out there.
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Very solid advice! But the conclusion???
