Tell me where to move!

bridemcbride

Hello everyone!

I hope you can help me, I moved to Oak Park last year for a job... the job is in Hoffman Estates, and yes the commute stinks.
I absolutely love Oak Park, it is exactly what we were looking for when we moved here: its clean, liberal, historical, well kept, full of cafes and shops - and the part we love the most is that its walkable (we can walk to almost anywhere if we need to run an errand). Oak Park also has this great little city feeling with train access to Chicago which is great for my fiance - who works in the city.?
I bet you can already guess my problem: my commute. it sucks about 2 hours of my life away each day...?
Recently, we've been thinking about buying a single family home or loft for about 250k, but I have no idea as to where to even start looking. We would have to stay in the North West suburb area or have a 35 minute commute to Hoffman Estates. We're also looking to buy in a place that is similar to Oak Park with some of the qualities listed above.?
Can you suggest a few places?

Thanks.

chickaboo1974

I like Elmhurst and am partial to Glen Ellyn.  I don't know if the real estate possiblities in either of these burbs fit your budget or desires.  I just love the tree lined streets esp in Glen Ellyn.

aprilandshane

I'm not super familiar with that general area, but I used to live in Oak Park and now have a long commute to the city from the far north burbs.  If you want to get a house, the burbs are going to be your only option (that's why DH and I moved).  I would suggest looking at the Metra website and checking out some towns that have stations, so that your husband would have the option of taking the train downtown.  It makes for a less stressful commute than driving.

TMDMJAOCT07

We're in a suburb that borders Schaumburg. I work in the far north part of Schaumburg - we border Hoffman and Palatine. DH works in the city.  We're with in walking distance to the Metra. DH spends about 45 minutes or so on the train - sometimes a little more or less depending on if its express or stops at every stop. My commute is about 20-25 minutes depending on the time of day. It works out pretty well for us.  Other areas to consider are Bloomingdale (not with in walking distance to a Metra stop though), Roselle, Bartlett, Palatine and Arlington Heights. 

knmommy

We're in Bartlett and we love it!!!

chillin18

We live in Schaumburg and it's really great!  But not as historical as Oak Park.  Tons of shops and restaurants.  You can also try Bartlett or Hoffman Estates.