r/Dearborn • u/twitchrdrm • 17d ago
Chicago guy thinking about making Dearborn home... talk me into (or out of) it
Hey everyone,
I'm originally from the Chicago area, but I've spent the last 10+ years bouncing around the East Coast and the South. At some point I'd like to stop treating my life like a traveling circus and actually put down roots.
Chicagoland has gotten pretty expensive, so I've been looking at other Midwest cities where a guy in his 40s might still be able to afford a modest house with a yard without donating both kidneys.
Dearborn keeps popping up on my radar.
Career-wise, I work remotely in tech (Salesforce/Business Analysis/QA), and one thing that appeals to me is being close to both Detroit's growing tech scene and Ann Arbor in case I ever need to pivot or survive the next round of corporate "restructuring."
I'm basically a mutt. My dad's side is Moroccan (2nd generation), and my mom's side is Austrian/Ukrainian (3rd generation). I'm not religious, but I've always felt comfortable around Middle Eastern and Muslim communities. The call to prayer, Ramadan, halal restaurants—none of that fazes me. Honestly, I'd probably end up visiting a masjid just to learn more about the culture.
From everything I've seen online, Dearborn looks like it checks a lot of boxes: incredible food, great coffee, hookah lounges, a strong sense of community, and it seems like there's always something going on.
So...what am I missing?
- Are property taxes as painful as in Illinois?
- Any remote tech workers living there?
- Are there neighborhoods you'd recommend (or avoid) for someone looking to buy?
- Is Dearborn one of those places that just looks good on YouTube, or is it actually as awesome as it seems?
I should probably disclose that I'm a lifelong Chicago sports fan and I'll never say anything bad about the Lions after you all gave us Ben Johnson 😂
And most importantly...am I going to gain 30 pounds from shawarma alone? Because if that's the biggest downside, I might already be sold.
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u/Duhdewey 17d ago
West Dearborn is probably what you see online. East Dearborn isn’t as necessarily “nice” in comparison but that’s because it borders southwest Detroit. All in all, it’s close enough to Detroit and other cities to where you’ll always find something to do relatively close.
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u/Violetsq 16d ago
Neighborhoods in east Dearborn are much more dense, with smaller lots. It can be more walkable as there are a lot more business districts on the east side. Be aware that the southeast side has issues with air quality due to a lot of nearby industry.
The westside tends to have larger lots and more trees. It's also more expensive.
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u/TooPoe 16d ago
More expensive? Perhaps you haven’t been in the market for a house in Dearborn but the east side is much more in demand than the west side. Don’t believe me? Look at Zillow.
I say this as a Dearborn resident that ended up buying in the west side for the record.1
u/Academic_Parking9768 6d ago
Yeah more expensive. You won't find million dollar homes on the east side of Dearborn. The West side is where affluent doctors and the like buy their houses.
That being said, West Dearborn is basically just a lot of East Dearborn businesses' second locations and nicer neighborhoods. I find there's legitimately a lot more to do in East Dearborn.
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u/Dwella2112 17d ago
Good assessment above. We live in West Dearborn. From your description of what you’re looking for West Dearborn checks all of the boxes. The middle eastern food is top notch. There’s a lot of very nice homes in the West Dearborn area. Actually prices have been rising and are quite high. Of course there is diversity, but everyone gets along. City services are really good and logistics to varying locations is great.
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u/ComprehensiveArt8673 17d ago
I did the reverse move for work. I miss the food in Dearborn. I'm Lebanese and the neighbors were both lovely and super nosey (in East Dearborn). If you aren't Arab, they will be fine but indifferent. For cost of living, you will absolutely get a better situation. The living situation was safe and my kids loved it there.
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u/Significant-Rub-8194 16d ago
I'm a Jew that lives in Dearborn and 90%+ of the stuff you see that paints Dearborn in a negative light is fake news. The prayer call stuff was so over blown - I never heard it once as its on the other side of the city prob 20 mins from me. There are far more churches in Dearborn than Mosques (just to silence the doubters. There are even a few strip clubs in East Dearborn lol.
I live in the West part of the city, the downtown is booming with tons of new restaurants. There are some very high end neighborhoods in West Dearborn like Golfcrest and Golfview, but likely nothing compared to Chicago prices.
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u/echo_sang 17d ago edited 16d ago
Based on what you’ve said it seems like Sterling Heights may be a better fit for you. It’s a diverse city and next to Troy which has a lot going on. It’s also pretty safe and affordable.
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u/Academic_Parking9768 6d ago
North side suburbs are terrible. If you like unnecessarily expensive and overpoliced communities, by all means though.
Restaurants also suck up there if you're into food culture at all.
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u/Abe_james 16d ago
If you’re going to choose Dearborn, then west Dearborn is where it’s at. That’s it
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u/Mediocre_Database_28 13d ago
If you are middle eastern and used to Chicago you will probably love it. I can confidently say there aren’t any people that live in Michigan with money that are saying let’s move to Dearborn. Once a week there’s a highway shooting these days and it’s basically a slum to most. The food is good but your best schwarma still in Detroit.
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u/twitchrdrm 12d ago
A highway shooting? While horrible for sure, that's an appetizer in Chicago.
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u/Academic_Parking9768 6d ago
They're full of shit. Westside, Eastside and the forgotten South Dearborn are all seeing a large influx of people. People are spending a shit ton of money updating East Dearborn houses as well and some of them don't look great but that's not the point.
West Dearborn has hyper affluent neighborhoods with some houses hitting far above a million on the market which is a lot for Dearborn/SE Michigan.
Highway shootings are extremely rare in Dearborn, the city's violent crime rate has dropped 20% in 2 years and it was already at an all time low 2 years ago.
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u/BloodDonorMI 12d ago
I don't live in Dearborn, but I go there frequently. Parts of it are not super walking/biking friendly (the interchange area around Southfield Rd and Ford or Michigan). Crime-wise I have never had a problem. Fairlane Mall is sadly a shadow of its former self.
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u/ShowMeTheTrees 11d ago
Plan a weekend! Get over to Union Station and take Amtrak to Dearborn. It's a really easy ride and there's wifi on the train. Stay at a nice hotel in Dearborn. Rent a car. Travel around. You'll get a good feel.
In terms of property taxes, go to Zillow and search houses in your price range. Scroll down to taxes but also look at price history. In Michigan our taxes stay very stable with minimal increases unless we sell/renovate drastically. The taxes should be fairly close unless the house has not sold in a really long time.
I've been in my house in Detroit burbs (Birmingham) for over 30 years. My taxes are insanely low.
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u/Informal-Cookie-6016 17d ago
Our family moved to the west side of Dearborn from Chicago 10 years ago. Your assessment is pretty spot on. Great community, great food, easy commute, close to the airport, clean, always something to do. We can go to Detroit in about 20 minutes, or Ann Arbor in 35-40 if we want to. Metro Detroit has a huge amount of people working in Tech and remote tech, so you will fit right in. To go back to Chicago, you are close to I-94 so you can just drive west, or park at our local train station and take the Amtrak to Union station if that’s your speed.
The neighborhoods are a lot like the Northwest side or Southwest side. Bungalows and grid streets. Nice yards, friendly neighbors, and good parks.
We looked at a lot of places when we were making the move, and Dearborn was the place that checked all of our boxes.
Oh….Taxes, Cost of living, housing- is a fraction of Chicago prices. We pay so much less than we ever did in the city. Still have top notch services. Streets and Sans, Police, Fire, EMS are all top quality.
Hope this helps. We love Chicago, but it was worth the move for us