Chicago Business Daily

What are the good neighborhoods in Chicago?

I am planning on moving to Chicago next year from florida. Single lady, looking for a fun area and lots to see, non violence areas, and low crime rate. Rent can be $680-950. Any suggestions?

Public Comments

1. Lincoln Park - a small studio apartment will probably run at the upper end of your range. Parking sucks. Tons to do. Close to the lake, lincoln park zoo, more upscale bars, clubs, restaurants, DePaul University, shopping. Lakeview - this is a pretty big "neighborhood". I'll give you some street intersections to start a radius search for apartment. Depending on what you want to do, there are a couple sub-areas to look at. Wrigleyville(Addison St/Clark st) parking still sucks, near Wrigley Field (Cubs baseball). Younger crowd(think frat boys running around), lots of bars. Again a small one bed/studio will run at top of your price range. Near the red line - so easy train access to downtown. (also check out the Southport ave/Belmont ave area. Pretty fun little place, very up and coming.) Northcenter (My favorite). Lincoln ave/Irving Park rd. More single family homes mixed in with apartments. Street parking is relatively easy. Nice mix of small bars, restaurants, and some boutique shops on Lincoln, large park nearby. Rent will still be at your upper end, but you'll probably be getting something a little nicer. Close to the brown line for train transportation. Further west of the lake though. Roscoe Village (Roscoe ave/Damen ave) - Similar to Northcenter. A little more eclectic of an area, but some nice boutique shops, relatively easy parking, small bars. Rent similar to Northcenter. I've always lived on the Northside of chicago, so I'm sure some people will give you some good ideas closer to downtown. I can't give good opinions cuz I haven't lived there. Crime is relatively low in those areas, but remember it is a big city and there is still more crime than a suburb would have. Some people will dispute this, but I would say to stay South of Lawrence ave, east of western ave, and north of division st. Just a general guideline for someone who has never been here before. Hope this helps
2. odd thing about Chicago is that the "best" neighborhoods have the highest crime rates. It's almost all muggings because people go to the bar, get drunk, and walk home alone. Basically, they set themselves up to get robbed, so they don't get much sympathy from me. I lived in Andersonville (Clark St. and Foster Ave.) last summer and LOVED it. I split rent with one other person- we each got our own room in a big, spacey place nad it was $650/month. It's about 15-20 minutes away from the "fun" neighborhoods, and by fun I mean a lot of drunks and state school, frat boy types. Good luck to you in your search. Just remember that a pricier rent does not mean it's a safer neighborhood until you get south of Division Ave. Those tend to be the super-wealthy, older types that prefer quiet neighborhoods to the excitement of wrigleyville.
3. i dont know myself, i am thinking of moving there
4. You're not going to find anywhere in Chicago that is "non-violent", so get used to that idea. That being said, there are some areas where there is less crime than others...Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Gold Coast, etc. Keep in mind that the lower the rent, the better chance the area you pick might have a few...problems. People pay high rent for a reason: to live in a clean, safe area. So i I were you, I'd start expecting to pay nothing less than $850 if you really want to live in a not-as-dangerous area. Like I said, no area is completely safe, so lower your expectations and try a place like Edgewater on the far north side. It's relatively safe but like any place you have to learn to get streetwise and watch your back. It's a diverse community close to the lake and with lots of transportation options. You can find decent apartments for $650 and up, but the better run buildings usualy start at about $800-850. I'd give it a look.
5. There are a lot of very nice Chicago suburbs. Naperville, Downers Grove, Lyman, Woodridge, etc. Btw, I'm originally from Chicago, have also lived in NY and SC, and I can tell you, you WILL NOT find nicer people than the ones you find in Chi-town!
6. there are NO safe neighbors in Chicago. Chicago is a very violent city. a lot of crime. Gangs, drugs and murder. I have lived in Chicago for one year and in my neighborhood alone there have 3 murders. I can look out my widow and see drug deals, assault attempts. In a single year, I have had my purse stolen, my tire slashed, had to call police because some guy outside my building was being attacked with a chain. Oh yes, lest we not forget the three murders. Living in Chicago is like being assaulted every day.