Best place for a 22 year old to live in Chicago? (Lincoln: apartment, rental)

[jessicaisrad]

Hi! I plan on moving to Chicago either this summer or next and I was wondering where the best place for a 20-something to live was? I want somewhere cheap but not in the ghetto (low crime would be a plus). I love the city and the more diverse an area the better!

[knitgirl]

There are about 1,000 threads on this, why don't you do a search and then ask specific questions.

[aragx6]

What's "cheap" to you? That would help us a lot!

[soulful]

Many 20 somethings start out in Lakeview. Urban, walkable, tons of restaurants and shops. You can check apt. listings on craigslist by keyword search "Lakeview". Lots of young professionals and probably about 20 percent gay.

If you want cheaper, you could go to Edgewater or Rogers Park. Both have a mixture of whites and people of color and gays. You mentioned diversity. I would say Edgewater and RP are more diverse than Lakeview.

You could also consider Ukrainian Village, Logan Square, Wicker Park.

good luck with everything

p.s. There are so many neighborhoods and it will depend on your budget and where you plan to work/school/etc , but these will get you started with your online search

[soulful]

You may want to use the "Find a Neighborhood" feature on this apartment rental site. It will give you rental ranges and a brief neighborhood synopsis:

Chicago Neighborhoods | Domu Chicago

[Alacran]

My bed

[chrawnick]

Originally Posted by Alacran

My bed

[P Daley]

Lakeview or Edgewater. Much cheaper than Lincoln Park or Loop, safe for the most part and lots of nightlife.

[Vlajos]

Please define cheap. But good places to start are lake view and edgewater.

[ChiGuy2.5]

Im a 23 year old. I started off in Wicker Park in a 3 bedroom with 2 roommates. My rent was $775. I enjoyed the area, it was fairly safe and full of good night life, but the people were usually tatted up and very grunge.

For reference, I own a lot of ralph lauren and usually wear dress shoes. The crowd in Wicker Park was not for me. So I eventually ended up moving to Lincoln Park. As a whole, the area is usually more expensive, but I now have 5 roommates and only pay $534 a month. Basically, you can find whatever fits your needs and budget depending on what you are looking for.

In my opinion, Lincoln Park is one of the best places to live. Its not as expensive as Gold Coast or River North, but the people tend to be a little bit more classy, unlike in Wicker Park.