Where to Buy Now

The silver lining behind the residential real-estate collapse is the opportunity for housing bargains. Here are 14 up-and-coming Chicago neighborhoods and suburbs where prices are relatively low and the promise for future growth is strong

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CITY NEIGHBORHOODS

BEVERLY
Situated roughly between 87th and 107th streets on the north and south, and Beverly and Western avenues on the east and west

This corner of the Southwest Side, with its hilly terrain, village atmosphere, and rich history and architecture, used to be something of a private enclave. Not anymore. "There was a time when most of our buyers were people who had grown up here," says Bernadette Molloy, who heads up Molloy & Associates. "But that's changed. There are a lot of buyers who are new to Beverly"—people eager to snap up some of the neighborhood's housing bargains.

Early this past summer, I walked through a 78-year-old five-bedroom brick-and-stone house whose plaster crown moldings and limestone fireplaces had been enhanced by central air conditioning, backyard landscaping, and other renovations. The place was priced at $889,000, easily half what you would expect to pay for this much grace and space on the North Side or the North Shore.

Large or small—and Beverly has both—the housing here is still a great deal, even after a few years of what Molloy calls "big inflation, for us." Recently, prices have come back down a bit. East of the Metra tracks and south of 99th Street, there are blocks of nice houses from the early 20th century that, when they come on the market, are mostly priced under $400,000. 

PLUS: Cultural events at the distinguished Beverly Arts Center; the peaceful Dan Ryan Woods
MINUS: Despite some promising new shops, the more typical retail outlets are the small, dated shops along Western Avenue.

This article appears in the October 2008 issue of Chicago Magazine.

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