Question for Chicago Dissers!

[HannaBelle]

My DS22 has accepted a position in Chicago with the Americorps. He is looking for housing in the North Lawndale area of Chicago. He was looking online at apartments last night and having serious sticker shock. We live in North Texas and have very low real estate costs. He was paying $400 a month for his room in a 3 bedroom duplex. The cheapest apartment he has found so far is $850 for 1 bedroom in a shared apartment.

Any suggests of where to look? He is going up in a couple of weeks look for an apartment. He needs something for August. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

 

[SEA333]

I feel for your son. It's not going to get much lower. Chicago is very expensive.

We live in a western suburb about 20 miles west of the city and rental prices for a non-air conditioned, 3 story flat, non-renovated 2-bedroom apartment in the "wrong side of the tracks" part of our village are $1200 minimum. Come onto my side of the village, and you are looking at upwards of $1800 for a 2 bedroom condo - and that is the low end. When we first moved here from out of state, we rented a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom 1300 sq foot house and paid $1961/month.

I honestly don't know what to tell you other than be prepared to pay a lot of money for rent in any area of Chicago that you want to live. I don't know of any area in the city or out in the suburbs (that is not a bad neighborhood) where rent will be much lower.

 

[gwynne]

Does he have someone from Americorps in Chicago that he is in contact with? Has he asked them what most folks do for housing in the area?

 

[ariel71]

I don't mean to be alarmist, but in terms of safety North Lawndale has some of the highest crime rates in the city. Given what he's doing, he'll probably be working in a low-income area, so he'll need to find a balance of cost, safety, and commuting distance. Hopefully the program has information about housing. Have they sent out anything that has contact info for the other people in the program? He could see if anyone's looking for a roommate and they could look together. Does he know what he'll be doing and where?

 

[HannaBelle]

There are 4 other people starting this fall. Americorps has given him a small amount of information about housing. He has a neighborhood map with short descriptions. They also provided links to websites to hunt for apartments.

One of the new "hires" sent an email saying they were looking for a roommate, but he is hesitant to share an apartment with someone he does not know and will be working them. It could be awkward if things go badly.

I am concerned about him going to Chicago. He will be working with a non-profit called Turning the Page. The goal is to encourage parents to take a more active role in their kids education. He will be hands on with intercity families.

I just have to trust that he will be smart about when and where he goes.

I think he will know more after his visit in a few weeks. =|

 

[Dan Murphy]

I've been here for 70 years. Not sure I would look to reside in North Lawndale. Working there is one thing, living another.

http://crime.chicagotribune.com/chicago/community

http://crime.chicagotribune.com/chicago/community/north-lawndale

 

[ariel71]

I understand the hesitation to have a stranger for a roommate, but this might be one of those situations where the pros outweigh the cons, especially if it means that a safer/better location would be more affordable. At least in a program like his, you already have some big things inherently screened for you - job, educated, an element of selflessness, etc. There wouldn't be any harm for him to at least talk/Skype with the other person to see if they click.

He might want to think about expanding his search to the neighborhoods to the east of N. Lawndale - Pilsen, Little Italy, etc.

 

[gwynne]

There are 4 other people starting this fall. Americorps has given him a small amount of information about housing. He has a neighborhood map with shirt descriptions. They also provided links to websites to hunt for apartments.

One of the new "hires" sent an email saying they were looking for a roommate, but he is hesitant to share an apartment with someone he does not know and will be working them. It could be akward if things go badly.

I am concerned about him going to Chicago. He will be working with a non-profit called Turning the Page. The goal is to encourage parents to take a more active role in their kids education. He will be hands on with intercity families.

I just have to trust that he will be smart about when and where he goes.

I think he will know more after his visit in a few weeks. =|

His decision, but I think it's a mistake to hesitate about calling the new Americorps person who is looking for a roommate. That was a nice gesture, and could be very helpful for both new hires.

 

[EpiStitch]

I also live in Chicago, so I'm aware that it is expensive to live here, but $850 for one room in a shared apartment seems a little steep for North Lawndale. I know people with roommates that pay that much for nice, shared places on the North side. I second the suggestion of looking in Pilsen, which is rapidly gentrifying, but safer, and would not have an unrealistic commute.

Good luck to him! Chicago has its problems, but it's really an amazing city.

 

[SEA333]

Will he have a car? If he doesn't mind commuting a little, I would have him look at the west suburbs. They are still going to be expensive, but a whole lot safer than Lawndale.

If his Lawndale work is close to a Metra station, he could check out any town/city on the BNSF line of the Metra system. Brookfield/Riverside/LaGrange/etc are beautiful suburbs on the Metra line that are very safe and might have people looking to share rent on an apartment. It would be a 10-15 minute train ride to the Lawndale area.

 

[HannaBelle]

I've been here for 70 years. Not sure I would look to reside in North Lawndale. Working there is one thing, living another.

http://crime.chicagotribune.com/chicago/community

http://crime.chicagotribune.com/chicago/community/north-lawndale

That is not giving me the warm fuzzies, but I appreciate the link! I will make sure he takes a look at them.

Will he have a car? If he doesn't mind commuting a little, I would have him look at the west suburbs. They are still going to be expensive, but a whole lot safer than Lawndale.

If his Lawndale work is close to a Metra station, he could check out any town/city on the BNSF line of the Metra system. Brookfield/Riverside/LaGrange/etc are beautiful suburbs on the Metra line that are very safe and might have people looking to share rent on an apartment. It would be a 10-15 minute train ride to the Lawndale area.

He won't have a car and is planning on using public transportation. TY for the suggestions!

I also live in Chicago, so I'm aware that it is expensive to live here, but $850 for one room in a shared apartment seems a little steep for North Lawndale. I know people with roommates that pay that much for nice, shared places on the North side. I second the suggestion of looking in Pilsen, which is rapidly gentrifying, but safer, and would not have an unrealistic commute.

Good luck to him! Chicago has its problems, but it's really an amazing city.

He is excited about living there and living in an area different that home. Everyone talks about how great it is, I just hope he finds somewhere nice/safe.

 

[NotUrsula]

In any major city, you really need boots on the ground to find a good affordable place to live. Tell him to just walk or bike through decent neighborhoods he can commute easily from (I'm not a Chicagoan, but even I've heard to avoid the Lawndale area when visiting.) There will be signs in windows put there by folks who don't wish to advertise outside of the neighborhood. There are many parts of Chicago that are not wealthy or fashionable, but are solid working-class neighborhoods; he should be able to find a reasonable rental in one of them. (Well, probably not the sort of "reasonable" that you are used to, but reasonable for Chicago.) Parts of my DH's extended family live in Pilsner, where they have been since the 1920's.

Chicago is a great city and very diverse, he will learn a lot and probably have a great time in his off-hours.