white family moving to Humboldt park. advice? (Chicago, Berwyn: lease, homes)

[prairiestate]

Originally Posted by oakparkdude

A minor correction: Oak Park is about 20% African-American, not 50%.

Sure enough. I just checked the census website. I'd swear every time I see an article about Oak Park it boasts that the village is half white and half black. And most of my experience with Oak Park has been in the south end of the village, which is where most of the black population is. That might have thrown off my perspective as well. Well, that's good news for the OP if they decide on Berwyn, they'll be near the south end of Oak Park!

[James_Carmona]

Humboldt Park is pretty dangerous, its leading in Homicides again of all Chicago neighborhoods as it has for decades.

[cubssoxfan]

10 pages and only 3 posts really talking about schools. FOCUS ON THE SCHOOLS YOUR KIDS WILL ATTEND. Chicago Public Schools run the gamut from dreadful to excellent and unless your neighborhood school is good, trying to get into a magnet school can have its challenges.

[knitgirl]

Originally Posted by cubssoxfan

10 pages and only 3 posts really talking about schools. Focus on the schools your kids will attend. Chicago public schools run the gamut from dreadful to excellent and unless your neighborhood school is good, trying to get into a magnet school can have its challenges.

she home schools!!!!!!

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by knitgirl

she home schools!!!!!!

And if she goes into buying a home thinking "The schools are not that important becaus I home school" and then her situation changes and she is now thinking "Wow, I want to send my kids to middle school (or high school) but the local schools really suck; now what do I do?" that would be called penny-wise and dollar foolish. Or a short-sighted decision.

[eevee]

Originally Posted by cubssoxfan

And if she goes into buying a home thinking "The schools are not that important becaus I home school" and then her situation changes and she is now thinking "Wow, I want to send my kids to middle school (or high school) but the local schools really suck; now what do I do?" that would be called penny-wise and dollar foolish. Or a short-sighted decision.

IIRC, she was looking to rent, not buy

[charadeiam]

Well I'll go ahead and say it since no one else will: Those latinos and blacks you're so fond of--they don't like you. To them you are just some naive white folks who are probably carrying an iphone or laptop and who probably have some expensive stuff in their apartment. Your kids will go to school with kids who have grown up WAY faster than them to put it mildly. The city has an unspoken agreed upon segregation that works fine. If you must live in Humboldt, the area around Iowa/Campbell which is largely Ukrainian is probably best. Or you can do the unthinkable and live with your own kind in Wicker Park, Lincoln Park, Ukrainian Village, Bucktown, River North, Old Town, etc.

[Humboldt1]

Charadaiem,

Not all minorities are hostile towards yuppies and whites. I have great relationships with my hispanic renters.

I have certainly had my challenges with some of the poorer and less educated in Humboldt Park but for the most part the residents are good people, many of whom would notify you if you dropped your smartphone or ipod instead of taking it. There are certainly quite a few bad apples but thoses bad apples should mostly be pushed out over the next 10-20 years as the area gentrifies.

I think it is very possible that in 20-30 years Humboldt Park will no longer be considered the Hood. This is my hope.

[prairiestate]

Well, do you need to be white? If not, that could help a lot if you move there.

[chet everett]

Once upon a time I too had all kinds of hope for crummy areas, but a more sober analysis of just what anomaly the multi-decade run up in national real estate represents gives one pause. The south suburbs, the south east side, the well worn inner ring suburbs, the post WWII ranch heavy near northwest burbs, former industrial area along the north lake front of the Fox River... Just too many places that have too much entropy to fight...

Now don't get me wrong, there are always way for a local development effort to help pop some real estate prices, and if you don't mind shopping for properties in poor condition and/or listed by sellers in financial distress INDIVIDUAL efforts at speculation can still be lucrative...

I just doubt that the forces for widespread price run-ups will occur in the next decade / dozen years (and I kinda thought you posted something in the 15 years of sinking real estate thread, which is decidedly more pessimistic than I am comfortable with) -- I see LOTS of areas that will be flat or declining and a far narrower number of places that will continue to grow in desirability.

Originally Posted by Humboldt1

Charadaiem,

Not all minorities are hostile towards yuppies and whites. I have great relationships with my hispanic renters.

I have certainly had my challenges with some of the poorer and less educated in Humboldt Park but for the most part the residents are good people, many of whom would notify you if you dropped your smartphone or ipod instead of taking it. There are certainly quite a few bad apples but thoses bad apples should mostly be pushed out over the next 10-20 years as the area gentrifies.

I think it is very possible that in 20-30 years Humboldt Park will no longer be considered the Hood. This is my hope.