CHICAGO RELOCATION GUIDE
Updated November 2026
Moving to Chicago and buying a home here means choosing from 77 community areas and many more neighborhoods, each with its own housing stock, transit lines and price range. In the North and Northwest Side neighborhoods we cover most, the median home sold for between about $595,000 and $825,000 over the past year, and well-priced homes usually went under contract within a week. This guide covers how to choose a neighborhood from out of town, what homes cost, how buying in Chicago works, and how Camille Canales and our team help relocating buyers.
Moving from out of town?
Tell us where you're coming from and what you need. We'll send neighborhood suggestions and homes that fit, including off-market listings.
Most relocating buyers narrow their search with four questions:
Median sale prices over the past 12 months in the neighborhoods we work in most:
Neighborhood | Median, all homes | Median condo | L lines |
|---|---|---|---|
$595,000 | $452,000 | Red | |
$700,000 | $540,000 | Blue | |
$710,000 | $590,000 | Blue | |
$716,500 | $628,000 | Blue | |
$740,000 | $645,000 | Blue | |
$742,000 | $628,400 | Buses; Blue nearby | |
$789,950 | $635,000 | Blue | |
$825,000 | $660,000 | Red, Brown, Purple |
Source: MRED closed sales, October 2025 to October 2026. Each neighborhood page has prices by property type, boundaries and live listings.
We also have guides to Lakeview, Roscoe Village, Lincoln Square, Ravenswood, West Loop, South Loop, Bridgeport, Oak Park and every neighborhood we cover.
A few things about buying here surprise people moving from other states:
You don't have to be in Chicago to start. Here's how we help buyers who are still out of town:
Buying your first home? Start with our first-time homebuyer guide. Ready to browse? Search every Chicago listing or set up saved searches in your search portal.
Camille Canales has lived in Chicago for more than 20 years, and her team at Compass has handled more than 700 transactions across 67 Chicagoland zip codes, from downtown high-rise condos to single-family homes. Our team's main office is at 2644 N. Milwaukee Avenue in Logan Square, and we work in the city's North and Northwest Side neighborhoods every day, so we can tell you how a block compares with the one next to it, not just how a neighborhood looks online. See what clients say on our testimonials page, or meet the team.
It depends on your commute, budget and the kind of home you want. On the North and Northwest Sides, median prices over the past year ranged from about $595,000 in Andersonville to $825,000 in Lincoln Park. Compare them in the table above.
Yes. Many relocating buyers tour by video and see a shortlist in one visit. Your attorney review period and inspection still protect you after your offer is accepted.
In practice, yes. Chicago buyers and sellers typically each hire an attorney, who reviews the contract and handles the closing.
In the neighborhoods we cover, the median home went under contract in about a week over the past year, so get pre-approved before you start touring.
A Chicago two-flat is a building with two apartments, one on each floor. Buyers often live in one unit and rent the other to help cover the mortgage.
Tell us where you're moving from, your timing and what you're looking for, and we'll send neighborhood suggestions and homes that fit.
Or call Camille Canales and our team at (773) 232-5282, email [email protected], or send us a message using the form below.