I am a prospective student for UCHI and these tips are so helpful! I just came back a few days ago and the thought of not having a car is going to be an adjustment since ATL transportation is not good at all. I also used CTA for the first time and wow! Aside from NY, that was the best feeling not having to drive haha. I hope I can call Chicago my new home!
So, I was born in the outskirts of Chicagoland (Aurora). Moved away as a little kid to Michigan and then Tennessee. Never experienced downtown. Came back to visit as an adult (I’m 26 right now) and what an awesome city Chicago is. I absolutely loved it. And the more data and factors I look at, it becomes more and more attractive. Big city with world class amenities, but not too big and very clean for its size, chill Midwest people who are highly educated, sports fanatics. Seems exactly my vibe! But I think it will take 5 years to make that move. Need to build up more equity in my current house, because when I look at the properties downtown, they seem to have very high fixed costs, mainly taxes and HOA fees. So I need to have a large down payment to soften that monthly blow. At least 50%, I’d say. Plus, I need to change departments at work. I’m currently a white collar worker in automotive manufacturing and that is not an urban profession lol. If I move to Chicago, I want to go all the way. I want to live and work in the city plus stop using cars. I hate cars lol which is ironic because I help make them for a living. I will also say that there are a ton of people from Illinois moving to Nashville lol. Maybe the data doesn’t say so, but there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t see multiple Illinois license plates on the road. We also have an Italian beef/Chicago hot dog place in the Nashville suburb I live in. Haha!
I lived in Uptown back in the 1970s, and it was a Hillbilly ghetto, and I was poor. It is a little gentrified now, but still noticeably poorer than other northside lake front neighborhoods. The best thing about it was so many stops on the red line (and the cheap rents).
What is the number of former Californians and Angeleno, like me, moving to Chicago? I am currently living in Colorado Springs(close to Denver) and looking to buy house in Chicago. I was considering Cincinnati, but I've always loved the history of the Windy city. Hard working. Blue Collar. Great Food. It ain't New York or LALA LAND. It's like the better version of the two cities. As a former Angeleno, I would feel more comfortable living in a "down" to Earth city.
I was born and raised in California, spent my twenties and thirties in Chicago, and now I live just north of Denver. Because of my job and technology, I've traveled all over the world. Chicago is, hands down, my favorite city. It's only drawback is weather. If you can dress for the snow, if you don't mind summer humidity, it's an amazing place to live.
This is a super, super optimistic video, especially the weather portion. If I could summarize weather in Chicago in one word it would be "bipolar." We have miserable days pretty much every month, be it too hot, too cold, too rainy, and of course too windy. It's a city of extremes when it comes to everything.
As someone who’s grown up in Iowa all my life I’ve always been stuck with a lack of stuff to do (people in Iowa drive around for fun and eat Casey’s pizza) so how would you say entertainment factors into budget? On a weekly or monthly basis (I’m a senior in college and hoping to move out to Chicago at the end of next summer)
Great question! This great depends on your definition of a Social Life. If you were to go out 1-2 times per week for things I'd consider entertainment you can likely plan to spend $25 mininum if you're getting a drink or two with friends to upwards of $150/$200 for a nice dinner or comedy show etc. I factor about $100/mo for Entertainment purposes but I'm somewhat of a home body :)
I lived in Chicago from 1981 to 1993, and I go back to visit frequently. You can have a great time spending no money at all. Just walking around, the parks, the beaches, the people watching is amazing. If you're on a tight budget, you read the local entertainment paper and catch yourself some coupons of restaurants running specials. Happy hours abound with cheap drinks. Of course there are pricey options, but there's plenty of cheap fun to be had. I miss Chicago everyday. I'm taking care of senior family in the Denver area right now, and when I'm done with that obligation I'm moving back to Lincoln Park. Best neighborhood in the whole city. I lived everywhere from Evanston to Hyde Park, Lincoln Park is amazing.
Man Chicago is expensive (gas, rent, parking, food, sales tax, city and state income tax) compared to Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus, Ohio. It's about a five hour drive. Or 1 hour flight.
@@ChicagoRealEstateAgent I guess both. I’m thinking of moving to Chicago next year from Japan but I don’t want to own a car. My biggest concern is A, will I be able to find a job without having a car and B, will I be able to afford a living. I don’t have any high demand skills so that’s another concern. I might become a homeless and freeze to death, but I don’t know. There’s some options that say you’ll be fine, and there’s another opinion that says it’s not affordable. Also I heard that a lot of Americans living paycheck to paycheck. I don’t know who to trust. Oh, another silly question. Are there roaches in Chicago? Because I hate bugs roaming around in a house.
@@english_5359Yes. You can function in the city without a car-depending on the job of course! The city has a decent public transportation system. If you get a job and a home close to an El line, you can definitely live in the city without a car. Owning a car in the city: keep in mind, PARKING downtown is very expensive. Chicago sold a ton of neighborhood street parking spots to Chase bank like, twenty or thirty years ago, so there is also a great deal of 24/7 metered parking where you can’t just park your car and leave it. You might be better off without a car, if you don’t ever have to go to the burbs (where cars are pretty much necessary unless you’re in Oak Park or Evanston).
Thanks for watching! Let me know in the comments what other questions about living in Chicago that you want to know!
I am a prospective student for UCHI and these tips are so helpful! I just came back a few days ago and the thought of not having a car is going to be an adjustment since ATL transportation is not good at all. I also used CTA for the first time and wow! Aside from NY, that was the best feeling not having to drive haha. I hope I can call Chicago my new home!
I'm glad you got some good tips and value from my vids! Wishing you the best as well and hopefully you can join us here in the Windy City!
😅
Great vid, I’m with Compass out in the greater Philadelphia area.
Thanks for watching ! Text me .. 312-805-7074
So, I was born in the outskirts of Chicagoland (Aurora). Moved away as a little kid to Michigan and then Tennessee. Never experienced downtown. Came back to visit as an adult (I’m 26 right now) and what an awesome city Chicago is. I absolutely loved it. And the more data and factors I look at, it becomes more and more attractive. Big city with world class amenities, but not too big and very clean for its size, chill Midwest people who are highly educated, sports fanatics. Seems exactly my vibe! But I think it will take 5 years to make that move. Need to build up more equity in my current house, because when I look at the properties downtown, they seem to have very high fixed costs, mainly taxes and HOA fees. So I need to have a large down payment to soften that monthly blow. At least 50%, I’d say. Plus, I need to change departments at work. I’m currently a white collar worker in automotive manufacturing and that is not an urban profession lol. If I move to Chicago, I want to go all the way. I want to live and work in the city plus stop using cars. I hate cars lol which is ironic because I help make them for a living. I will also say that there are a ton of people from Illinois moving to Nashville lol. Maybe the data doesn’t say so, but there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t see multiple Illinois license plates on the road. We also have an Italian beef/Chicago hot dog place in the Nashville suburb I live in. Haha!
This was amazing information. Everything I wanted to know was answered in one video. Thank you so much!
I completely agree with your neighborhood ratings. (I have lived in Hyde Park, Woodlawn, Uptown and Gold Coast). Gold Coast is the absolute best.
How’s Uptown? I might move there soon, some pretty affordable apartments compared to the Loop and Gold Coast
I lived in Uptown back in the 1970s, and it was a Hillbilly ghetto, and I was poor. It is a little gentrified now, but still noticeably poorer than other northside lake front neighborhoods. The best thing about it was so many stops on the red line (and the cheap rents).
What is the number of former Californians and Angeleno, like me, moving to Chicago? I am currently living in Colorado Springs(close to Denver) and looking to buy house in Chicago. I was considering Cincinnati, but I've always loved the history of the Windy city. Hard working. Blue Collar. Great Food. It ain't New York or LALA LAND. It's like the better version of the two cities. As a former Angeleno, I would feel more comfortable living in a "down" to Earth city.
I was born and raised in California, spent my twenties and thirties in Chicago, and now I live just north of Denver. Because of my job and technology, I've traveled all over the world. Chicago is, hands down, my favorite city. It's only drawback is weather. If you can dress for the snow, if you don't mind summer humidity, it's an amazing place to live.
This is a super, super optimistic video, especially the weather portion. If I could summarize weather in Chicago in one word it would be "bipolar." We have miserable days pretty much every month, be it too hot, too cold, too rainy, and of course too windy. It's a city of extremes when it comes to everything.
Well, luckily, there’s so many things to do there inside and music go out to eat or just kinda chill out in your house and watch the Cubs
Lafayette is in Indiana my man. Right next to Purdue University (which is in West Lafayette)
Hi. A lot of the neighbor hoods don't have parking for your vehicle. Where can you store your vehicle ? Thanks !
Rockford -Freeport Stand up 🗣️😊
Gold Coast is a historic neighborhood and my #1 choice
As someone who’s grown up in Iowa all my life I’ve always been stuck with a lack of stuff to do (people in Iowa drive around for fun and eat Casey’s pizza) so how would you say entertainment factors into budget? On a weekly or monthly basis (I’m a senior in college and hoping to move out to Chicago at the end of next summer)
Great question! This great depends on your definition of a Social Life. If you were to go out 1-2 times per week for things I'd consider entertainment you can likely plan to spend $25 mininum if you're getting a drink or two with friends to upwards of $150/$200 for a nice dinner or comedy show etc. I factor about $100/mo for Entertainment purposes but I'm somewhat of a home body :)
ha! "driving around for fun" sounds like the town in Wisconsin where I grew up. That and drinking heavily.
I lived in Chicago from 1981 to 1993, and I go back to visit frequently. You can have a great time spending no money at all. Just walking around, the parks, the beaches, the people watching is amazing. If you're on a tight budget, you read the local entertainment paper and catch yourself some coupons of restaurants running specials. Happy hours abound with cheap drinks. Of course there are pricey options, but there's plenty of cheap fun to be had. I miss Chicago everyday. I'm taking care of senior family in the Denver area right now, and when I'm done with that obligation I'm moving back to Lincoln Park. Best neighborhood in the whole city. I lived everywhere from Evanston to Hyde Park, Lincoln Park is amazing.
How does Uber/lyft drivers make in Chicago? I plan to move but Im not sure what to do in the mean time when I get there.
Man Chicago is expensive (gas, rent, parking, food, sales tax, city and state income tax) compared to Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus, Ohio. It's about a five hour drive. Or 1 hour flight.
Is it possible to find a job without a car?
I’m not sure what you mean by this? To job hunt without a car or to have a job that doesn’t require a car?
@@ChicagoRealEstateAgent I guess both. I’m thinking of moving to Chicago next year from Japan but I don’t want to own a car. My biggest concern is A, will I be able to find a job without having a car and B, will I be able to afford a living. I don’t have any high demand skills so that’s another concern. I might become a homeless and freeze to death, but I don’t know.
There’s some options that say you’ll be fine, and there’s another opinion that says it’s not affordable. Also I heard that a lot of Americans living paycheck to paycheck. I don’t know who to trust.
Oh, another silly question. Are there roaches in Chicago? Because I hate bugs roaming around in a house.
@@english_5359Yes. You can function in the city without a car-depending on the job of course! The city has a decent public transportation system. If you get a job and a home close to an El line, you can definitely live in the city without a car. Owning a car in the city: keep in mind, PARKING downtown is very expensive. Chicago sold a ton of neighborhood street parking spots to Chase bank like, twenty or thirty years ago, so there is also a great deal of 24/7 metered parking where you can’t just park your car and leave it. You might be better off without a car, if you don’t ever have to go to the burbs (where cars are pretty much necessary unless you’re in Oak Park or Evanston).
@@kjmav10135 Finally! Someone gave me the answer I wanted to know, thank you.
nice vid
Hi,
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Doing our best over here brother!
@@ChicagoRealEstateAgent best of luck
Get outta town, suburbanite, or worse, foreigner.