Chicago’s North Shore: Still A Great Escape
Chicago’s North Shore began as a place to escape from the city’s heat during the 19th century and has since developed into one of the best places to live in the U.S. due to the thriving sense of community, excellent school systems, availability of luxury housing stock, and proximity to Lake Michigan and Chicago.
Stretching along the lakefront from Evanston to Lake Bluff, the area is relatively small with a population of approximately 181,000 and total housing of only 75,000 units. Winnetka’s population is only 12,400 with 4,300 single-family homes. In any given year, turnover of housing is usually less than 5 percent.
Average values in most of the lakefront communities exceed $1 million with luxury property starting around $1.5 million. These values are not unexpected in communities where more than 85 percent are college-educated and the median income exceeds $200,000.
Our market has not experienced the run-up of prices that other states have seen and thus the market, while challenging, has continued to be a solid investment. Over the short term, our markets are experiencing declines in average values from where they stood two years ago, however, long-term housing values have shown steady growth and provide positive returns.
—Steve Hudson, The Hudson Company
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