Chicago cost of living?
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Anonymous
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Can anyone speak to what COL looks like recently for Chicago? Esp. compared to Manhattan and DC (or Arlington)? I imagine it's in the same range but haven't lived in any Midwestern city before. FWIW -- I'd be working downtown and looking for a high rise apartment building in the city -- a one bedroom; nice amenities like a W/D, parking spot etc.; new-ish building like but coming from NYC to me that means anything constructed after 1989; nothing over the top (it doesn't need to be a brand new building with granite everything). Walkable neighborhood, close to work, safety -- would be the top criteria (so things like school districts etc. don't matter right now).
What would be the rent for something like this in Chicago? I know I'm paying $2000 for this type of thing in Ballston right now. In Manhattan it would be well over $3000 -- and more like $400 given the sheer amount of space. |
Anonymous
| It would be around 4500 in downtown Manhattan and 4000 uptown. |
Anonymous
Chicago? |
Anonymous
| You can stick around 2,000 and find this in Chicago, maybe 1800-2200. The high rise buildings downtown all do have granite, pools, laundry, etc. and usually you can grab a parking spot. Obviously not the same space constraints at NY but it's still dense, urban, and walkable. Do you want to walk to work? If so, I'd look at River North or Gold Coast. If you want to be more residential, maybe look at Lincoln Park or Old Town. Living on/near the lake is also beautiful. You'll love it (except the weather). |
Anonymous
| I have some family in Chicago and it seems less expensive overall than here but they do pay more in taxes (at least compared to VA). It's not a lot less expensive but your money does seem to go farther. I would guess rent on that type of apartment would be around $2000 a month so similar to Arlington etc. but if you were ever looking to buy you'd pay less than a comparable house in the DC area. |
Anonymous
| Have you looked online at rental listings in Chicago, OP? |
Anonymous
Just wanted an initial reaction here since this board attracts people from everywhere. Wasn't sure exactly what neighborhoods I'd be living in so it was hard to determine which listings were applicable to me vs. really far out of the way. |
Anonymous
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You don't have to know specifically what neighborhoods - do a broader downtown, Gold Coast, or River North search on Craigslist and you'll get your answers.
https://chicago.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=chicago+downtown https://chicago.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=gold+coast https://chicago.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=river+north I swear, some posts here are just out of sheer laziness. |
Anonymous
| For a nice one bedroom with parking in a high rise, probably about $2k. Farther out but still easy commute via public transport will be cheaper. |
Anonymous
| Also, would suggest looking in the West Loop, South Loop, and River North if you want to be close in. You don't want to be in the Loop - it's depressingly dead on the weekends. |
Anonymous
What are you the DCUM police? And FWIW I think the places you're mentioning above are areas/neighborhoods which the OP didn't know yet. If a question is too simplistic/lazy for you, just move along and let the rest of us grown ups respond. |
Anonymous
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Be careful, OP.
Make sure to stay away from the bad areas of Chicago. |
Anonymous
What are the bad areas pls? |
Anonymous
Don't worry OP, the dangerous neighborhoods in Chicago are fairly far from downtown. Specific neighborhoods especially on the south side have a lot of gang violence but, frankly, at least from my time in Chicago, it doesn't affect anywhere in the South Loop (which is very close/convenient to some downtown offices, depending on exactly where your office is located and has lots of high rises w/ lots of amenities, tons of young people, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, other grocery and drug stores, restaurants and bars to walk to, plus the lake -- so I'd add that into your list of places to look) or neighborhoods near downtown or near north side at all. In Chicago, at least when I lived there, many people listed apartments (in high rises and low rises in all neighborhoods) through sites like Apartment Finders or Apartment People, possibly in addition to or instead of Craigslist, so check for websites like that. You will love it. |