Potential move to Chicago: all advice needed and welcome!

[shaktar]

My husband has been offered a 3 year secondment to the states, all v exciting and the children are 6 and 7 so would be ok, hopefully.

My issue is that I'm finding it impossible to work out if it's financially viable - I've spent hours looking at areas and can work out rent but I have no idea on taxes, living costs etc. If anyone has any idea of resources I can use or lives in Illinois and can advise me I would hugely appreciate it. Also taxes on renting out a UK house when living in the states etc

A lot will depend on the visa type and whether you will be able to work or not. So you could be a one-income or two-income family.

I’m not in Illinois but n general I find most things here more expensive than in the UK. Groceries, insurance, utilities, mobile phone bills, eating out, clothing, furniture... petrol is cheaper but you will almost certainly drive more do it evens out. Housing can be cheaper, depends on location.

Check how it is with schooling. In most cases you can only send your children to a school in the same district that you live in. So most people choose the school first then look for a place to live in that area rather than finding a house you like and then finding there are no good schools in that district. I would push for private school to be included in the deal.

I would also find out from the employer what is being offered in terms of health care for the family members - especially if you won’t be able to/don’t want to work. The company will have to provide healthcare for him as the employee (unless it is a very small company but I find that unlikely if they are moving people around the world) but it won’t necessarily be free. I would get the full details of the plan they use and what the co-pays, deductibles and out-of-pocket maxes are. And the monthly premium. If any of you have a long-term condition such as asthma, diabetes, etc I would check that the brand of prescription drugs that works best for you is included in the plan and if not, what the cost of the medication is.

You likely will need two cars. Do you both drive already? Check the IL DMV website re the requirements for getting an IL license. Most states require you to do at least a practical test, even if you’ve been driving for years when you arrive. I also had to do a theory test as WA required this also.

Find out what the company is offering in relocation compensation - car? Rental accommodation? Trip over there for research and fact-finding (schools, housing, etc) beforehand? Flights home at Christmas? Pet relocation? Shipping costs for all your furniture or money to buy new when you arrive or furnished accommodation? Possibility to extend?

Thank you for your advice - it's much appreciated.
I'm currently knee deep in a spreadsheet trying to work it all out and increasingly becoming irritated that I'm having to do so..!
Time for a huge list of questions to bounce back to HR I think.

I live in a Chicago and would be happy to try to answer any questions you might have.

Are you looking at public or private schools for the children? I’d probably choose the school first and plan where to live around that.

We’re in the city so share a car, I wouldn’t want to be without one entirely but 2 aren’t necessary unless you’re looking at the suburbs. Definitely consider garage parking as a must with your rental unless you’re ok with digging the car out in the winter! Most people have 4 wheel drive SUVs. You will need to do your driving test (theory and practical) but it’s very easy.

You will pay state and federal income taxes, it’s less than the U.K. and a lot is tax deductible e.g. travel to work. Property taxes are insane in IL but that won’t affect you unless you decide to buy. Sales tax is 10.25% in Chicago. Compared to London we find life here a lot cheaper.

Definitely investigate what type of health insurance you would get- good coverage is a must. Children need to see a doctor, have all their vaccines and possibly a lead blood test before they will be allowed to start school.

That's brilliant, thank you- you may regret offering...

We are trying to work out what salary would be needed and slowly getting there - also looking at areas like evanston, highland park and downers grove. It will be public school we are looking at so any info on elementary schools would be much appreciated. Which neighbourhood are you in?

And any living cost comparisons with London would be great - we are ex London in Surrey. I will try not to harass you too much..

We also came from Surrey (previously lived in London too)!

We’re in Lincoln Park. Evanston is supposed to be quite nice but I don’t know it particularly well. The suburbs north of Evanston e.g. Wilmette, Kenilworth and Glencoe are really, really nice. We have friends that just moved to downers grove but we haven’t been to visit them yet. There’s an arboretum near there that we go to sometimes as it’s great family day out. I don’t know highland park. When looking at houses definitely be sure to check the school district.

As for expenses, a lot will depend on your expecting rent cost. For commuting I pay $185 pre-tax per month for parking and petrol is definitely cheaper compared to London. We have a 1500 sq ft 2 bed, 2 bath apartment and utilities (gas and electricity- strangely there’s no choice of supplier here!) cost about $150 per month, water and trash are paid through or dues to the home owner’s association. Car and home insurance is more than the U.K. about $700 a year (we came here with no claims history so had to start from scratch). Daycare is very expensive, but that’s not an issue for you as your children are older.

Having lived in Chicago - it is a great City to live in. Good transport, if you live in the City or some suburbs you don't necessarily need two cars. Beware of cold winters and hot summers (maybe read Michelle Obama's autobiography for some descriptions of that).
Do ask about the healthcare and co-pays etc.

Thank you again, this is so helpful.

If you friend has any info on Downers Grove, that would be great - I'm really hung up on living near the lake (I blame watching too many TV shows where it features prominently..!) but his US colleagues seem to recommend the western suburbs. As you said, it will come down to schools eventually and from my brief look, the ones in Evanston don't seem as great as other areas.

I won't be working - or if I do it will have to be freelance/v flexible to fit around the children in school - so it all hangs on my husband's salary. I've posted on a couple of other boards which seem to say landlords prefer rent to be no more than 25% of your income - I'm assuming this means net rather than gross, but means you would have to earn c$250000 to rent a v ordinary 3 bed house. I need to get my head around this!

My friend’s move to Downers Grove was definitely a reluctant one- 3rd baby on the way, eldest about to start school, a husband that wanted a proper yard and an unwell mother who lives out that way. I don’t know that she’ll have much positive to say about it but I will ask especially as I know they’re renting a house whilst they wait for their condo to sell.

As for renting, we got lucky and sub leased from one of DH’s colleagues (they were conveniently relocating the same month we arrived), then we took over the lease direct with the landlord so we avoided a lot of the usual hassle. Renting in the city can also often be cheaper than in the nice suburbs as there’s just more available including smaller places, not just big detached houses.

We’re about a 10 minute walk from the lake and I love it. We spent all of Saturday on the beach which was so nice! The northern suburbs might tick more of your boxes than going west as you’ll be close to the lake.

Thanks again, all invaluable info.

So it looks the salary has been confirmed today and we're 99% sure we are coming: scoping trip in August hopefully. I have Evanston and Highland Park in my head for now but no doubt this will all change while I go slowly insane..!

You've already been a great help (finding a house with a garage naively wouldn't have crossed my mind) but if you happen to know of any decent relocation agents that could help I'd appreciate it

Evanston and Highland Park are lovely but pricey. Where exactly will he be working if you don't mind me asking? They may like the western suburbs because of the commute. (If it's in the Loop then this isn't applicable). Schools where you're looking are excellent.

The city is easier for rentals, but then schooling gets trickier.

I don't mind at all - N canal st I think? We are going to visit in August and I would like to find a relocation agent who can drive us around some areas and then act to find us a rental before we move in Jan/Feb.

How exciting!!

I’m afraid I don’t know any relocation agents- because we’re insane we found our place through a colleague of DH’s that was leaving town and we sub leased site unseen except for a FaceTime tour. August will be a great tome to visit, it’s an easy city to love in the summer. I have to warn you though, Jan/Feb is a brutal time to move. We moved in February and were not prepared in the slightest for the cold. You will definitely need new coats. And snow boots.

There is some method in the madness - I figure if we show the kids it in full summer glory they won't hate us so much when we move in the depths of winter as know the summer will eventually arrive. That's my story and I am sticking to it

P.s ski coat cold or please say I can justify a canada goose type coat cold?

I like your thinking! Also if you’re into skiing there are small local places within a short drive of the city that are fun for a day out.

I’d vote yes to the Canada goose! The move to Chicago justified the purchase for me too. Get one that covers your bum. North face are good for the kids.

Ask the company for a relocation agent maybe? DH is being headhunted ATM and the company used Sirva to find a realtor to drive us around and look at areas.

Generally when I'm looking at an area to move, I look up which are the best schools on Goodschools and Niche, I then look up the areas on Niche and I look up the housing availability and prices on Zillow and realtor.com. I did this for a recent potential move and managed to narrow it down to a few areas within that city/outskirts, then the relocation company assigned a realtor to us for a few hours to show me round the areas I liked the look of.

Warning - August in Chicago could be very hot and humid.

I do know Evanston to visit but not to live in. It is nice. It will be full of students - assuming you know that? At least half live on campus but quite a few off campus.

Chicago is a great city to live in for a couple of years. In your situation I'd go for it.

We also live in Chicago, moved from UK. Feel free to pm me if you have any other unanswered questions.
We also rent our U.K. house out.
The winter is more than cold enough for a Canada goose coat if you want one.

Thanks again to you all.
He spoke to the US on Friday and it sounds like they are sorting something out with Sirva - if it takes ages then we might pay for an orientation day when there in August.

I'm going to spend some time going through schools on detail - I think we (I say we, my husband is totally focused on the new job whereas I'm waking up in the middle of the night worrying about whether unfinished rentals have washing machines and how we will move the pets ) have decided on the northshore/evanston - I keep reading good things about highland park etc but also want to make sure we can access the city easily.

Most companies pay for a relocation agent.
It is possible to rent with pets, we did but it does significantly reduce your options.
There are a number of pet removal companies, there has been a thread listing them all recently on here.
Most rented houses come with white goods but buying them wouldn't be hard.
Have you thought about what you are doing with your stuff?

Thank you - I'll have a look at the pet stuff, I know it should all be relatively straightforward and it's been done a thousand times before but it's the random things that seem to pop into my brain all the time..!

I think we will ship over any good furniture and be ruthless with everything else to leave as little as possible in storage here.

2 things I could use advise on if possible: we are working out rough viability on a rate of 32% tax of gross salary, is this roughly ok?
Renting out the house here, if anyone has a summary on how tax works on that I'd appreciate it.

Anything else obvious you wish you had known before you moved, I'm all ears

IIRC once you are domiciled in the US then you'll pay tax as a US resident to the IRS, even if your property income is from the UK, but others may well know better. I'd definitely recommend finding yourself a tax accountant based in Chicago.

smartasset.com/taxes/income-taxes will help you work out taxes you'll pay by location but it is kind of a 'how long is a piece of string' question. Allowing about 32% sounds about right.

Get your GP surgery to print out all your children's immunisations before you come to the US - then when you find a GP in Chicago they'll use them to create their immunisation records. You'll then be asked to provide those records pretty regularly eg for school, camp etc. If your children have had chickenpox in the UK then get the GP to write a letter saying so - you may well need that. You'll also find once you arrive that your children may need some catch-up immunisations for things like Hep A (I can't remember exactly which).

Thank you - really helpful. I think we are ok with suggested salary then, I'll speak to a tax accountant here to work out what happens with UK rental income.

Luckily we had the girls immunised against chicken pox last year but I will check exactly what else they should have had - thanks for the pointer.

Did you find it a problem building credit history when you first arrived? I'm assuming, but obviously will triple check, that we can cover the rental issue via the company and relocation agent but how about utilities/phone etc?

Just keep in mind the costs are much higher here, most Brits I talk to think their weekly food shop has doubled in cost.
Utilities are very expensive and you can't shop around. Insurance of every kind is much more expensive.
Even with decent healthcare coverage copayments can mean things are expensive.
There are clear reasons why US salaries are a lot higher than UK ones.
Mobile phones are also expensive.
You need your social security number as soon as possible.
If you are on an L2 visa you can apply for a permit to work, this is fairly straightforward to do yourself.
You have no credit so if you can set up a bank account with your current bank before you leave the U.K. that helps a bit.
You have 3 months I think on your UK driving license. Look online for test questions to practice. The actual driving is ridiculously easy.

We have to complete a U.K. tax return for our rented out house. We keep invoices of all of the tax deductible expenses for this.