Following up on my thread about putting my house on the market, I've accepted a job in Chicago and start in a month. I know absolutely nothing about the city, and wanted to find out if there are any CF posters that live in CHI that could dole out some advice on where to find a reasonably priced apt near one of the commuter trains into downtown (I'll be working off the loop downtown). Also any other tidbits about the city would be helpful. I start work in 4 weeks, so I have to sell my house, find an apt/condo in CHI, and move my belongings up there in a month.
I stayed in the Lincoln Park area several times. Its a clean city and that area was walking distance to Wrigley. Great bars. Another time I stayed in the burbs. The company I worked for were out in the Chicago burbs. Great city.
I live in Peoria, il which is 2-1/2 hrs from CHI. However, my wife is from there, and my sister lives there as well. Tell me about your personality and I will tell you if you are a north sider or a south sider. Overall, north side is more yuppie, hence more expensive.
I was there two weekends ago and completely fell in love with the city. If you have a car, sell out. You can practically mass-transit your way to just about everywhere.
I lived in Chicago for 2.5 years, moving back to Houston a year and a half ago -- feel free to message me if you have any specific questions or want more info. In terms of living, if you can afford it, you should definitely live in the city. Lincoln Park is a great area to live, but it can be sort of expensive. Just north of Lincoln Park is a neighborhood called Lakeview. Lakeview is cheaper than Lincoln Park, and is a pretty good area. Wrigleyview is a really fun area as well, and you can find some really good deals there. One caveat -- if you live in the city and you have a car, it can get very expensive to park every month. Most apartments don't bundle parking with the rent (it's usually between 50 and 125 each month, depending), but many buildings don't have parking. Street parking is a good option, but can be really hard to find sometimes, especially in Wrigleyville. There are lots of other good areas to live -- Streeterville, Craigslist is THE place to look for apartments. If I were you, I'd try to get a sublet that has 3 to 5 months remaining. That will give you time to figure out the city, and what area is best for you. If you can't afford to live in the city, I'd recommend Oak Park. It's the first suburb west of the city, and has both the Green and Blue line trains going to it. It's a really neat area -- Frank Lloyd Wright lived there, and the whole area is very artsy. You'll get more for your money in Oak Park, but you miss out on living in the city. I lived in Oak Park at first, and then moved into the city after about 2 years. I really wish I'd moved into the city to begin with. I saved money, but life is just a lot more fun in the city. Let me know if you have any questions -- I love Chicago, and I'm sure you will too.
