Is downtown Chicago safe?

Is downtown Chicago safe? The answer depends on how you define safe. After working with home buyers over several years I can tell you that a neighborhood one buyer will describe as safe another buyer may describe as sketchy.

According to a Chicago Tribune article published yesterday downtown Chicago only had 1 of the 254 homicides in Chicago year to date. Some may conclude that relative to many areas of Chicago downtown Chicago is safer when it comes to homicides.

However, no neighborhood is crime free. Perhaps better questions are, “Is downtown Chicago safe enough for me?” or “What areas of downtown Chicago are safe enough for me?” Those are questions I asked before I bought a home downtown. I feel safe enough living here, but you may or may not. Here are some online resources to help you answer those questions for yourself.

IS THE AREA SURROUNDING A SPECIFIC DOWNTOWN BUILDING SAFE?

If you’re wondering about the safety of a neighborhood surrounding a specific building, the Chicago Police Department has an excellent crime mapping system. Enter the address, time span up to 2 weeks, types of crimes and radius up to one half mile. You’ll get a map like the one below that I created by entering the address of my office.

If you want just a general grade for the safety around an address, try WalkScore.com. The site generates a Crime Grade for an address. You’ll see that most downtown Chicago addresses have a Crime Grade of A. That means they are in a lowest crime area compared to all of Chicago.

IS A SPECIFIC DOWNTOWN CHICAGO NEIGHBORHOOD SAFE?

EveryBlock Chicago has recent crime information by neighborhood including the downtown neighborhoods of the Gold Coast, Loop, New East Side, River North, and Streeterville.

DOWNTOWN CHICAGO CONDOS FOR SALE

Click below to see the downtown Chicago condos for sale by price range.