My Experience
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9/8/2015
I have lived in Chicago for 14 years and Chicago has been good to me, but I am now looking to move. It is a big city so my experience is all I can offer. I am a 34 year old single female who has lived on the north side. Why do I want to move? 1) I will never be able to afford to buy a house here. I have been renting and working hard to pay my rent for years. Buying a home here is very expensive and not an option for me even though I pay $1000/month for a one bedroom apartment. 2) There is hardly any nature or outdoor activities. Yes, there is the lake which is jam packed with people and some forest preserves if you drive a bit, but on a daily basis all I see is concrete. It is the concrete city. Outdoor activities are street festivals. 3) The people are superficially friendly if you are in a setting to talk to them, they are not friendly on the street and from my experience almost everything revolves around alcohol. In 14 years I have managed to make 2 friends who are sincere, authentic people. 4) EVERYTHING is a hassle. I cannot walk down the street without someone approaching me, asking me for something. There are people from organizations asking me to sign up, homeless people (bless them) asking for money, men asking me what time it is just so they can turn the conversation into a come on line. Ladies- the men are aggressive and borderline harassment on the street. And, how much money can I give out on a single day!! I have found that when someone talks to me on the street, they only do so because they want something. It makes it difficult to be nice to anyone, hence people not being nice on the street. You really do have to have a 'tough skin' to live here and if you do not, you will develop one to survive. Going to the store or a friends house is a hassle because of the lines of people and spending time looking for parking. 5) feeling unsafe and always watching my surroundings. Since living here I have been hit by a car and attacked on the street (in a very expensive neighborhood on the north side). I now am very alert while I cross the street and I don't walk alone at night anymore. I also am always aware of who is around me.
How Chicago has been good? I moved here from a very small town when I was 20. 1) There is a lot of opportunity here. I have never had a problem finding a job and it is very easy to network with people. I am in the spa/salon profession and I also do in home caregiving and I have people offering me work, non stop. There are a lot of people spending money in Chicago and they part with their money pretty easily. My biggest challenge is that I work too much and I have to say no to extra work often. If you are reliable, profession and have a trade or skill you can easily have work opportunities and network. However, someone as myself does not have enough income to buy a house here. But there is plenty of work. 2) Cultural diversity. Although Chicago is unfortunately, very segregated within its neighborhoods, experiencing the cultural diversity is a great part of the daily life here.
Most of the cons I mentioned are the cons of city life, as well as the pros. If you are young and want to experience bustles of people, hassle and alcohol, come to the north side of Chicago and enjoy yourself. But if you are more reserved or desire more authenticity in people and your daily life, I would not recommend living here. I I enjoyed living here while younger but now it is time to move on. I wanted to post this because I have been reading comments for other towns as I try to find my next place to live. And I hope my experience in Chicago can help someone make their decision.
Lola | Chicago, IL