To Current ICO Student-Housing Question

[planet64]

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I know that living in the residential complex is convenient and a great way to get to know all your classmates. But I am married and I can't live in dorms.Since I am considering off-campus housing I don't know what neighborhoods I should go for. I was wondering if any one can help me with this matter. Any suggestion?!! I don't have a car so I am concern about the commuting aswell.

 

[illuminate]

I was in the same situation as you coming to ICO.
ICO puts out an "off Campus Housing Guide" that may help you. go to:
http://theview.ico.edu/ and scroll down near the bottom on the right hand side under Misc. you should see the file. If not, let me know and I can maybe save and email it to you. That would be a great place to start. Another good place is Craigslist and I found rent.com and apartment.com to be somewhat helpful.
The bad thing about apartment hunting is that you can't really find a place until about 1-2 months before you move in. This makes it tough if you're a plan-ahead kind of person.
I live in Lake Meadows which is only a few blocks away. I walk each day. I have seen some online reviews that weren't so good, but I think many of them are old reviews. In just the past 18 months they have totally renovated our main hallways, updating the carpet and lighting, lobbies, etc. They increased lighting around the building also. In our apartment (we're in the high-rise buildings) we have never had any problems with bugs/pests/etc. If anything isn't working properly the maintenance guy is usually here within a few hours of our request. We've had no issues here and it is so convenient (and cheap) for me to walk every day. I have classmates in my building and some in Prarie Shores (just north on King Drive). Many students live in Bridgeport (on the other side of Interstate 90/94) and drive to school, but without a car that might get tricky.
Many students live in South Loop or Lincoln Park or Wrigleyville (or practically ANY Chicago neighborhood) and take the train/bus to school. ICO is located on the #1 and #4 bus routes as well as only a few blocks from the Green line.

 

[pjf223]

I'm a married first year at ICO and had to make the same decision as you last year. We wanted to live west of the city to be near my wife's job and we were recommended Oak Park. We live close to the green line which is great for me since we also only have one car. The commute is about 45 minutes which can get long when you have an 8:00 AM test and class until 7:00, but you can study on the train and we love "downtown" Oak Park. If you want to check it out there is an organization that shows a lot of different apartments in Oak Park and their website is oakparkrc.com

 

[171590]

FINALLY!!!!

GREAT ANSWERS from both of you!

Anyone w/ more great ideas? Great ideas for single people who just dont want to live in a dorm?

 

[planet64]

Thank you so much guys.Yeah ,I was looking at lake Meadows apartment. It seems like a nice deal. I was just concerned about the safety which you mentioned it wasn't a problem for you.So illuminate ,do you walk to school every day? What do you do at nights? Do you walk down also ?

 

[JeffChou]

There are many apartments within walking distance for a great price. These are mostly brownstones/greystones that have been divided up into a couple units. Lake Meadows is a large high rise complex that is nearby. Some blocks are nicer than others, but I wouldn't recommend walking around too late at night by yourself anyway. In the south loop, an up and coming industrial-turned-condo/highrise area, it's a little pricier (and mostly highrise condos), but safer and a place close to Michigan Ave will let you jump on the #4 bus which is roughly a 10 minute straight shot down to school at Michigan & 33rd.

Best thing to do is to take a look at all the neighborhoods when you're interviewing or to make a trip out of the apartment hunt.

 

[illuminate]

Thank you so much guys.Yeah ,I was looking at lake Meadows apartment. It seems like a nice deal. I was just concerned about the safety which you mentioned it wasn't a problem for you.So illuminate ,do you walk to school every day? What do you do at nights? Do you walk down also ?

Yes, I walk to school each day. When we get out of school after the sun goes down (or have to be there before it is up) I get rides from either my husband or my colleagues. I ride the bus (or train, but i prefer the bus) downtown during the day no problem. Usually you can find someone in your class living in the same neighborhood (or close) to commute with.

...Another thing, if you're thinking about Lake Meadows and you mention me on your first visit I will split the Referral bonus with you (Message me for name) 😉