Moving out of Hyde Park, Chicago

August 7, 2019 5:12 PM

My expensive apartment has roaches. Where to move so that I can easily commute into Hyde Park?

The company I'm renting from owns most of Hyde Park, and I don't trust them to keep their other buildings roach-free. I am breaking my lease and moving to another apartment.

I work in Hyde Park and would like to have an easy commute into Hyde Park. I consider an easy commute to be under 40 minutes on public transit. My budget is MAX $1,500 for a studio or 1 bedroom. What neighborhoods am I looking at?

Bonus question: if you can recommend a landlord in Hyde Park that isn't MAC properties, please do.

Thank you in advance.

posted by pumpkinlatte to Home & Garden (7 answers total)

Ahh, MAC... That's a name I haven't heard in a long time.

When I lived in Hyde Park, I lived in a building run by TLC, and I basically couldn't complain. The office and maintenance staff were competent and courteous, and the neighbors were friendly (I still think about King and Clementine now and then). On the other hand, TLC also ran my friend's building, a stuffy, dilapidated relic with carpet on the elevator walls and a history of losing power when the next-door neighbors stole too much electricity for their grow op. So, your mileage may vary, but I think you'll have good luck if you stick to buildings that are clearly well-maintained.

If you're set on moving out of the Kenwood-Hyde Park-Woodlawn area, you'll probably want to catch the 6 bus or the Metra south* to Hyde Park, so that basically puts you between River North and the South Loop. That's gonna be expensive, but Zillow does show some studios and even a few singles in your price range in that area.

* This is indeed my pasty white ass talking; I'm not personally aware of other good living situations with easy public transport to Hyde Park from the south or the west, but they may exist.
posted by J.K. Seazer at 7:26 PM on August 7, 2019 [1 favorite]

As another pasty white ass person and a spoiled gentrifyer who cares about the neigborhoods surrounding Hyde Park but would almost certainly find living in them today deeply frustrating, the South Loop / Printer's Row area seems the obvious choice. If you can find a place within walking distance of the 2 or 192 bus and keep regular-ish hours, the commute is entirely painless. The 6, 4, (10), Metra electric, and the red line to the 55 expand your range, but can easily approach 40 minutes on a bad day to most of Hyde Park. (But, not usually too much more than 40 minutes, even late at night.)

I've made the commute for a bit over four years and wouldn't choose to live anywhere else in the city. Great transit, good restaurants and shops, easy access to the lake and river, a glut of supermarkets and entertainment, and you benefit from one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse (but not income diverse) parts of the city.

Buildings farther south and older buildings are cheaper, but last time I paid attention (which was a few years back), there were quite a few places within your budget between 14th and 6th and within easy walking distance to transit.
posted by eotvos at 7:57 PM on August 7, 2019

Bronzeville
posted by phunniemee at 7:59 PM on August 7, 2019 [4 favorites]

I also lived in a TLC building when I lived in Hyde Park about 6 years ago, and it was fine. We actually signed the lease sight unseen, and it was... a fine apartment.

I also had some friends who lived in a big house that was privately owned... don't know how you'd find something like that other than Craigslist, but it was a good situation.
posted by papayaninja at 5:21 AM on August 8, 2019

Have you considered going west a bit? Back of the Yards is a beautiful neighborhood, though I don't know how many rental properties exist. And you can help vote Raymond Lopez out in 3 years.

Bronzeville, Kenwood/Oakland, Prairie Shores ... Anything along Cottage Grove will be an easy commute on the 4 bus.
posted by thelastpolarbear at 9:17 AM on August 8, 2019 [1 favorite]

I liked in Wicker Park when I worked in Hyde Park. I took the blue line and then a bus (forget which, but it landed me right outside the University of Chicago) to get to work daily. It was a bit of a commute for sure (about 45 minutes to an hour one way) but I didn't have to live in Hyde Park.
posted by Young Kullervo at 9:55 AM on August 8, 2019

I rented from Parker-Holsman when I lived in Hyde Park (~5 years ago). Their management office was a bit analog, but the janitor/maintenance guy was easy enough to get in touch with and I never had any issues with the apartment.
posted by matildatakesovertheworld at 2:22 PM on August 8, 2019