IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Living in River Forest, IL
River Forest is a big small town of 11,992 people in Cook County, Illinois. It's about 8 miles from Chicago, IL. Summer highs average 85°F and winter highs 32°F, with about 40 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $687k and rent runs about $2k a month.
11,992people
$687kTypical home
$1,554/moRent
85° / 32°Summer / winter
40"Snow
222Sunny days
Is River Forest right for you?
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Size & setting
- Big small town of 11,992
- Part of a metro area
- About 4,835 people per sq mi
- 8 mi to Chicago, IL
- 8 mi to Chicago, IL
- Has its own stores and services
Money
- Typical home $687k (≈$4,334/mo)
- Median rent $1,554/mo
- Median household income $147k
- Property tax about 1.5% of value
- 8.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 85°F
- Winter highs around 32°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 62°F)
- 222 sunny days a year (75 totally clear)
- 143 cloudy days a year
- 49 of 90 winter days are gray
- 40" of snow a year
- 12 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 18 nights a year below 10°F
- Windier than most places
Safety
- Very low violent crime (136 per 100k)
- About average property crime (1,658 per 100k)
People
- Median age 40
- 33% of households have kids
- 19% are 65 or older
- 72% have a college degree
- Mixed community
- 12% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 35 min
- 25% walk or take transit to work
- 7 mi to ORD airport
- 7 mi to ORD (major hub)
- 6 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 62% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1946
- 96% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 643 ft
- 601 mi to the ocean
- 9 mi to a big lake
- Trailhead in town
- 22 mi to the nearest ski area
- 10 mi to the nearest campground
- 191 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 5,500 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 935 bars within 25 mi
- 1,601 coffee shops within 25 mi
- 28 music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 190 museums within 25 mi
- 46 breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 2 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 34% of Illinois districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 2 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 2 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- Vet in town
- 2 mi to the nearest dog park
- 4 congregations per 10k people
- College in town
Politics
- Cook County: D+42 in 2024
- Illinois: D+11 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Very low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- High flood risk
- Very low drought risk
- Moderate winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk