North Suburbs (Libertyville, Lake Forest, Des Plains, etc.)

[Joey Kays]

Hi All,

Been a long term reader, first time poster. 

I moved to Chicago 2 years ago for work and have been renting ever since. I've got a lay of the land and i'm ready to jump in but wanted to reach out for some advice.

I work out in Lake Forest and want to keep my commute to a minimum so wanted to live in the north Suburbs. The ultimate goal is to house hack and to get a multi family home, live in one apartment and rent the others out. I've got pre-approved for a mortgage and just about to look for a real estate agent. The second choice is to go for a SFH and bank on the appreciation.

Had a few questions that wanted to get people's advice on:

1) What north suburb should i aim for? 

2) Based on the current markets in the burbs, should i go with the SFH option or the multifamily home option?

[Henry Lazerow]

The taxes once you leave chicago north can get crazy. 

Check out Portage Park, Jefferson Park, Old Irving Park, etc. located right off the highway for a quick commute.  These areas work awesome for house hacks and are solid neighborhoods to own property long term. Old Irving Park and Portage Park have been seeing explosive growth lately.