I’d check out Northwest Indiana as well if I were you. I’m pretty sure taxes are lower in Indiana over Illinois and Wisconsin. Chesterton and Valparaiso are about a 70 minute drive to ORD with no traffic and I’d say up to 1:45 to 2 hours during rush hour. There are plenty of towns to choose from in NW Indiana and I’d recommend checking out schools and rent prices first and then driving through the towns that you like on paper but I’m partial to Valparaiso/Chesterton. Aberdeen and Burns Harbor are worth checking out as well IMO. Like anywhere each town has its pros and cons. Valparaiso has a pretty cool downtown, it has a decent amount of shopping and restaurants nearby, great schools and some cool parks for the kids but it’s probably slightly more expensive to rent/buy compared to Chesterton. Chesterton has a smaller downtown and less shopping but is only about a 15 minute drive to Valparaiso. Chesterton is it’s only about a 10-15 minute drive to the Indiana Dunes State Park, Bailey Homestead and the National Lakeshore which has hiking, camping, picnic areas and a beach with some awesome sand dunes to explore and probably slightly cheaper than Valparaiso. Chesterton is also close to the south shore line which is a train that takes you into chi-town that is located near the dunes which is pretty convenient if you want to visit Chicago and don’t want to drive. Valparaiso will probably be about a 30 minute drive to the dunes, south shore line, etc. Aberdeen is also nice and has some high end apartments which considering as well. If you like the area and cutting down on the commute is your goal you might be able to find a place closer to the toll road and interstate. There’s also a bus service in Portage, IN that takes you to ORD in 2 hours that you might be able to use depending on your schedule. I’d say the negative about NW Indiana is that you have to drive through downtown Chicago traffic to get to ORD but it might be worth it depending on how much you like the area. Feel free to PM me if you have questions.