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Hello! I apologize in advance if I ramble on or if this becomes too long. My husband is an active duty Marine who may be getting orders as an ROTC Instructor at Illinois Institute of Technology. We are currently living in San Diego and would not be moving until this coming summer. We both grew up 3 hours away from Chicago in the Quad Cities (Iowa). Chicago was one of our favorite place to visit with our children throughout the years. Of course, visiting Chicago as a tourist and living there are two separate things. I also have family who currently live in Chicago, but they are single and our expectations for a neighborhood will be different than a single person. So, we need all the help we can attain in order to find a suitable neighborhood for our large family.
We have 3 children who will be in 9th grade, 4th grade and 1st grade next school year. I have visited different neighborhoods in the past, while visiting my family, and I have found each to be great, but as I've said before my expectations will be different if we are living in one.
Our first priority is to have a safe family-friendly neighborhood for the children. I understand that it doesn't matter if you live in a small town or a large city, there will always be crime and violence, but I would like a relatively safe area that has plenty for my children to do (playgrounds, green space, activities, skate board park (if even possible), etc). I am not looking for a yard, as long as we have playgrounds and green space within walking distance, my kids will be happy.
Our second priority is education. If possible, I would like my children to attend good public schools. I know the CPS system is tricky and we will have to deal with that issue when we find out if we are moving to Chicago. My 9th grader and 4th grader both have special needs, but academically they are both honors students. My 1st grader has been in Montessori since he was 3 years old, so this will be his first foray into public schools. To me a decent school is not just about academia, but also well rounded to include the arts and teachers who are willing to work with each child's individual needs. We have been sorely lacking in those areas in San Diego, other than my youngest's amazing Montessori school, so I think anything will be an improvement over California schools! My youngest has no special needs and is quite academically advanced and may need a program that will actually challenge him.
We don't need a neighborhood with a great nightlife since we tend to spend most of our time at home in the evenings with our children. My husband and I both enjoy cooking at home, so a grocery/food market and/or farmers markets close by would be wonderful. A variety of dining options would be great (and not fast food) for the times we don't feel like cooking! We would like these things to be within walking or short driving distance if possible. It currently takes a 1-hour round-trip to go to the closest grocery store, gas station and schools where we live. Everything in California is so spread out it often feels like we are living in the country although we live in the city!
Oh! We are looking to rent a 3-bedroom home/apartment. Four would be lovely, but we currently live in a 3 bedroom, so we are use to be cramped. Our budget would be about $2,000, give or take so we know we cannot afford anything fancy, but that is okay. We are very laid-back, jeans and Converse kind-of people and would feel most comfortable in a laid back neighborhood. So a neighborhood where we could afford a 3-bedroom within our budget would be wonderful. I would like to keep the commute simple for my husband although he says that he doesn't mind a commute as long as the neighborhood is fine for his family. I am a stay-at-home mother and college student, but I am attending classes online, so I do not need to worry about a commute.
Again, I apologize for the long post and I appreciate any and all feedback! Thank you in advance!
Welcome! Don't worry about the long message..we understand.
It looks like you have a little grasp on Chicago and how the CPS isn't perfect or anything. I will just say what others may say regarding education in that for public schools, the suburbs are better than Chicago itself. Your money will also go further. I think you'll find that some of the suburbs are a lot more urban than your typical suburb. In this case, I would honestly look at Forest Park. I kind of fear your budget might be on the low end, but it might be possible. Forest Park has the Green Line near it (you'd probably have to drive to the station if you don't live close to it). It goes directly to IIT. The commute would probably be 35-40 minutes at minimum if you did this (and remember it goes through a few bad neighborhoods).
For the above though you might want to check with the suburbs forum. I have a sense that it might be kind of on the low end of things..
Here's my thoughts keeping in mind where IIT is on the south side (not that far south though) and on the Green and Red Lines of the train.
1) Some might see this as a bit of a stretch, and it semi is, but in the long run it can work. While IIT is on the south side, there is one neighborhood I have to recommend in your case which is on the north side. The area of Ravenswood up north is very family oriented and the rent is not that expensive on average. A handful of parks around, things to do, and yes grocery stores near. I know of one building that fits your budget (no idea how good it is).
My girlfriend used to live in the area and it was very quiet. Lot of kids around and what not, and for an urban area it was pretty green. Very safe.
Commute wise, it's on the Brown Line. If you wanted to get to IIT, you'd have two options. First is to basically ride the Brown Line down to the loop and then transfer to the green line. This is a minimum of 40 minutes riding time on the train. Could be more if you go during a busy time and add time for the transfer from brown to green (you have to go to the other side of the tracks for that). The other is similar, but instead of Green Line, you transfer to Red Line..same deal though. Both are popular morning commute trains in the city. So that's kind of the tradeoff here for one of the better neighborhoods in the entire city. There might be some decent public schools up there too, not too sure though.
2) Check out the neighborhoods of Bridgeport, McKinley Park, Hyde Park, or Kenwood. Bridgeport and McKinley Park are just west of IIT while Hyde Park is a little SE of it. Bridgeport certain has more than McKinley Park but you will find a number of families there. For McKinley Park, it's quieter, but you'd want to stay away from the Southern and maybe SW corners of it due to the fact they border with some shady neighborhoods. The Orange line train goes through these neighborhoods. Hyde Park doesn't have a train that goes through, but you can easily get to IIT by bus. All three areas are going to have food stores and what not..Hyde Park and Bridgeport with more. I believe your budget would work in these areas for sure (maybe harder in Hyde Park, but still doable).
Hyde Park is where the University of Chicago is and the community is semi diverse. The White Sox essentially play in Bridgeport too (on the border). Obama lives in Kenwood (when he's not in the White House that is). The thing is about these areas and kind of like the south side is that you have these islands of real good neighborhoods like mentioned above, but go too far and you're in a bad neighborhood.
You could also try Chinatown which would be a little more urban, but not sure about these things. I know they advertise for apartments in Chinese and what not, so who knows. Great food in that area though of course and Chinatown is on the Red Line.
The schools thing is the unknown though. I have a friend who grew up in Bridgeport I actually went to college with in Iowa. He seemed pretty well educated, but I'm not sure which High School he actually went to.
3) Suburbs. Check out some of the burbs closer to Chicago. Cicero might be a little weird, don't know a lot about it, but somewhere like Forest Park might be doable. Although I fear your budget may be on the low end of that in Forest Park, but it's on the Green Line so you can take it right to IIT. Keep in mind it does go through a few bad neighborhoods, but the community itself is good. It's next to Oak Park which is a good suburb (Oak Park is probably too expensive for you).
I think you'd be pleasantly surprised how urban some of the suburbs here are. There's a few of them where if you never saw a sign and didn't know any better, you wouldn't know you actually left Chicago.
I doubt that anyone would really prefer Forest Park to other towns with signficantly better schools an extra couple of minutes away -- Berwyn pops instantly to mind as do Brookfield and even parts of Countryside...
I doubt that anyone would really prefer Forest Park to other towns with signficantly better schools an extra couple of minutes away -- Berwyn pops instantly to mind as do Brookfield and even parts of Countryside...
Yeah, those are good ones too. I was just going from a public transit kind of commute instead, but definitely. I thought Brookfield was semi expensive, or maybe I'm thinking of just Riverside (do they even have apartments there?)
In either case, if I was in that situation, I'd probably live in a good, close suburb like that. I think the OP will be surprised at how urban-ish some of these are and how some suburbs still seem like they're Chicago (but the less dense Chicago).
Yes there are apartments in Brookfield as well as Riverside, and Riverside is generally a bit more expensive for purchases than Brookfield. Rental proces tend to have more variation by size than location when it comes to places that are appropriate for a family -- a three-bedroom unit in nicer town is typically within a couple of hundred dollars of one in an area with schools that are not as desirable..
Thank you for your answers. We can go up in rent, if need be. We would rather keep it at $2,000, but if we find an area that meets our expectations, then we are willing to pay more in rent. I will look in these suburbs, as an option, but would rather live within the city if possible. I have found some properties that are under $2,000 for 3 bedrooms on padmapper. I found a few in LaGrange. What is this area like? I also found a few in Lincoln Square and the Gold Coast. Is anyone familiar with these areas or their schools?
I also found a few in Lincoln Square and the Gold Coast. Is anyone familiar with these areas or their schools?
I live in the Gold Coast and I would be very skeptical of a 3 bedroom apartment for only $2000/month. I pay between $1300 and $1400/month for a 1 bedroom, and the 2 bedrooms in my building are $2000-$2100/month...and my building is in no way considered at the expensive end for the area. There are some buildings that are way cheaper, but they're usually worse and older (my friend has a studio for $775/month but the building is not good compared to all the others in the area). I don't think your budget will work with that unless you happen to find a really nice condo owner who wants to rent it out for cheap (cheap for the area).
The schools in the area...well there's Walter Payton Prep which is one of the best in the state/nation, but it's a selective enrollment school. Kind of a "good luck" getting in there. There's also the Latin School of Chicago which has a probably $20,000-$30,000/year tuition..... There is the Ogden International School (primary school) in the area which is supposed to be good, but no idea if that's public or not. It opened within the last year or year and a half.
Lincoln Square is pretty much what I was talking about before with Ravenswood. They're neighbors. Great area if your husband doesn't mind a 45 - 60 minute commute to IIT each way via the L. One of my favorite neighborhoods in the city actually. The primary schools up that way are supposed to be good, not sure about the high schools. Northside Prep is up there...Northside Prep and Walter Payton Prep which I mentioned above usually go #1 and #2 in the state, but again it's selective enrollment. Not sure about the other schools there. There's also Lane Tech High School a little west of it which is pretty good and possibly easier to get into than Northside or Walter Payton Prep.
I agree with marothisu -- apartment prices that seem "too good to be true" almost certainly are a scam. As mentioned a safe comfortable one bedroom in a desirable part of Chicago is not over priced at $1400, a two bedroom would scale to around $2500 with some very small three bedrooms probably right at the same price point but true family of five sized places more...
I suspect the same is true for LaGrange -- it is a very desirable town with vey good schools, super fast Metra service via the BNSF (expresses are under 20 minutes to Union Station), a lovely walkable downtown with many good options for dining with family / entertainment / nightspots / shopping. If the unit really is $2000 it might be right up against the railroad tracks or be on a busy street and have no dedicated parking...
Given that the Fall 2013 applications for CPS selective admission were due in December it is not realistic for a relocating family to consider them as a good option and even trying to locate an apartment inside a "local enrollment area" for one of the better CPS schools is risky -- many of those schools are severely "over utilized" (which is CPS-speak for 'jammed full'...)
I actually found a few in Oak Park, LaGrange and the Gold Coast area for under $2,000 through a military website, where homes owned by military (retired or active duty) are rented to others in the military. That may account for the cheaper rent since they are allowing for our housing allowance. I have heard of Oak Park on similar threads and it seems a good place. It seems most threads regarding living in the city with children focus on very young children and that is where I feel at a loss since my children are between 6 years old and 14 years old. Thank you again for all the information. I truly appreciate it.
I actually found a few in Oak Park, LaGrange and the Gold Coast area for under $2,000 through a military website, where homes owned by military (retired or active duty) are rented to others in the military. That may account for the cheaper rent since they are allowing for our housing allowance. I have heard of Oak Park on similar threads and it seems a good place. It seems most threads regarding living in the city with children focus on very young children and that is where I feel at a loss since my children are between 6 years old and 14 years old. Thank you again for all the information. I truly appreciate it.
Are they Military discounts or something then? I'm not saying in the Gold Coast there aren't places for $2000/month and a 3 bedroom, but they are usually $3100/month or more. I'm kind of interested in the military rent thing though. Hadn't heard of that.
Oak Park is a decent place. A little sheltered sometimes, but my friends who grew up there turned out alright. It's right next to the city too, although it's right next to one of the worst neighborhoods of Chicago. There usually isn't any/much bleed over though so don't worry.
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