A place that feels like home to one person, may feel completely foreign to someone else. Everyone has their own tastes when it comes to where they want to live, which makes it hard to rank cities in Illinois since everyone is going to feel differently. These 5 cities would be particularly enjoyable for people who prioritize things like entertainment, raising a family, or intellectual pursuits.
As the only city in Illinois with professional sports teams, Chicago is far and away the best city if you are a sports fan. There is never an off-season in Chicago, with 6 major pro sports seasons to choose from, your only sports-based problem will be when two games are scheduled concurrently.
Housing prices in Chicago vary quite a bit depending on where you plan to buy, but the city-wide average listing is priced at $249,000. The sports teams are fairly evenly distributed throughout the city, meaning no matter where you live, you will usually just be a short distance away from one of them. Chicago area real estate prices are projected to rise about 2% for at least the next couple of years, giving you the chance to earn extra equity on a home if you buy in the near future.
Home to the University of Illinois, one of the premier public research facilities in the U.S., The Champaign-Urbana area is a great place to live if you want to further your education, or just be around people who are intelligent.
The housing market in the Champaign-Urbana area is very good for buyers right now. With an average listing price of about $116,000, and around 750 listing to choose from, the area is currently experiencing a strong buyers' market. There does tend to be some ebb and flow to most housing markets in Illinois, meaning if you want to sell, you probably will not have to wait a long time until the area experiences a sellers' market.
Located on the banks of the Illinois River, Peoria is a great place if you want to get outside and enjoy what nature has to offer. There are abundant opportunities for water sports on Upper Peoria Lake, and the Rice Lake State Conservation Area is one of the best places in upstate Illinois for hiking and camping.
Buyers looking for a home in Peoria can choose from around 1,000 different listings, ranging from 7 figure houses, to $30,000 fixer uppers. The city has seen a small amount of population growth in the last 15 years, and about a .7% increase in population between 2010 and 2014. This actually beats population growth state-wide at .2%, but is still far behind growth for areas near Chicago and St. Louis.
It's hard to go more than a block without running into a bar or nightclub in Lincoln Park. As one of the northernmost Chicago neighborhoods, it's basically like a city within a city, far enough away from downtown to feel like home, but close enough that you can get there quickly. The area is extremely popular with people in their 20s and 30s specifically because there is something to do every night. On the weekends, the area becomes packed with those looking to have a good time well into the early morning hours.
The Lincoln Park real estate market is a microcosm of the overall Chicago market. One noticeable difference is the average price of homes in the area, at about $640,000, well above the Chicago average of $249,000. Population growth in the area is about the same, about a 1% increase since 2010, which is mostly a stabilization from the falling population rates of the last 15 years. The market is a sellers' market right now, since homes only stay on the market for about 65 days, and there are only around 190 listings for an area with 65,000 people.
Naperville has one of the best schools systems in Illinois, thanks mostly in part to relatively high home values, which form a very strong tax base. Along with an excellent school system, crime in the city of Naperville is far below what you would find in just about any similar sized city in the state. Most of the people who live there are raising families themselves, making it a great place to raise one of your own.
Though Naperville is one of the more distant Chicago suburbs, it is still serviced by the CTA, making it very easy for commuters to get into the city to go to work. Because of the train service, and the general high quality of life Napervillans enjoy, homes cost about $425,000 on average. That figure is slightly over the average for the far west side of Chicago of about $375,000, but the appeal to families means Naperville is almost always a sellers' market. Though there are about 1,000 listings for the area, a nice home priced reasonably will sell in a matter of weeks.
