North Shore vs. Barrington area vs. Oak Brook/Hinsdale (Evanston: homes, employment)

[4122]

All of these places are known to be wealthy, prestigious communities with top notch schools. I'm curious to know what's everyone's favorite and why.

[chet everett]

I'm happy to acknowledge that each area involves some trade-offs.

The costs of a nice family sized home that is convenient to the core of Barrington's town center / rail lines is probably the most affordable now. The downsides are mostly that nearby employment is pretty rare and trains are not as swift / numerous as other towns.

North Shore has the lake and what might be the widest range of high performing elementary districts that feed into what is arguably the most desirable high school, New Trier. Downsides are that the range of elementary schools means some towns are quite splintered, some are outrageously costly, are their pockets of truly generational wealth that even in the best circumstances are somewhat of a challenge for raising kids...

Hinsdale is quite different that Oak Brook though the most desirable parts of Oak Brook generally are served by Hinsdale Central. The sorts of developments in Oak Brook are not generally very conducive to walking to any kid friendly places. In contrast Hinsdale (and most of Clarendon Hills which is more and more essentially a sub-area of Hinsdale even though it has its own governance...) are among the most kid-walkable places around. It is often like some kind of "Our Gang" comedy from the 40s-50s, with little "Spankys, Alfalfas, Violets" mixed in with kids whose parents may be from India, Taiwan, or London... Downside is increasingly cost, with even modest Cape Cods seeing pressure from tear down buyers pushing even the smallest lots well north of half a million. In that context it is sort of weird to call Oak Brook a bargain, but there are so many really generously sized homes, with interesting design / features / large lots and very low taxes relative to what one gets that one would be foolish not to give consideration to the excellent amenities.

[JJski]

I don't like oakbrook as place to live (just great shopping) - out of your list: I do like hinsdale, la grange, western springs, clarendon hills, what I consider the very specific pinpoint hinsdale ((area)) referenced here in this post...

So hinsdale area Benefits I see are more central to IL, easier to go anywhere and more vibrant cores. The schools are great and downtown chicago access is a breeze - we uber or take metra all the time to enjoy big city. Its also warmer by like 10 degrees...

I love Lakes (grew up in MI) but NS just does not feel like a beachy traverse city type area (in any part) which is what we enjoy. Although Evanston is amazing on par with naperville.

As frequent travelers to MI (where family still is) hinsdale area is also more convenient in that regard...

[ToriaT]

I picked the north shore. Mostly because of the lake, and I don't really like Oak Brook other than the shopping mall. I do like Hinsdale very much and other suburbs such as La Grange and Riverside, as well as River Forest.