Single Family Homes in Chicago?

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weir_everywhere
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Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by weir_everywhere »

Greetings Chicago Bogleheads!

Job opportunities are about to bring my wife and me to Chicago from Denver. We would like to live in the city - a single family home in a safe, clean area. We have two large dogs so looking for something with a (tiny) yard.

We recently visited and really like Roscoe Village and Lakeview, but they sure are pricey! Can anyone recommend other similar neighborhoods in the city that might fit our criteria? It's tough to do this type of research online, so input from a real Chicagoan would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!
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Darth Xanadu
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Darth Xanadu »

Check out Logan Square, Lincoln Square (as pricey as Roscoe Village), and Ravenswood.

Better values can be found in Old Irving, Albany Park, Jefferson Park. Old Irving is probably the most family-friendly of the 3.
dontmindthegaap
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by dontmindthegaap »

Check out Edgewater. Family friendly, Andersonville restaurant street, easy to commute to the loop :sharebeer
FoolMeOnce
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by FoolMeOnce »

Old Irving is very family friendly and tends to have larger properties with good yards, but is not very walkable. Will your work be downtown? In the burbs? Old Irving is convenient to the freeway and the blue line.

The Ravenswood area, east of Damen and east of the expensive part of North Center (closer to Welles Park), might be slightly more affordable than Roscoe Village and Lakeview but still convenient to many walkable amenities.

Are neighborhood schools on your radar?

In any case, I'd strongly recommend renting at first and exploring various neighborhoods, getting a grasp on commute times, etc.
epoxyresin
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by epoxyresin »

FoolMeOnce wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 11:30 am Old Irving is very family friendly and tends to have larger properties with good yards, but is not very walkable. Will your work be downtown? In the burbs? Old Irving is convenient to the freeway and the blue line.
Blue line on the O'Hare branch gets exceptionally busy at rush hour (as in, might have to wait several trains that are packed full before finding one with a spot you can squeeze into), and they won't be able to add more trains for a couple more years.

https://www.transitchicago.com/betterblueline/

I'm of the mind that having reasonable commutes is worth a lot, so it'd help to know where you and your wife would be working.
HEDGEFUNDIE
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by HEDGEFUNDIE »

If you expand your search to just outside of the city, you can find some great family living in Elmhurst, Oak Park, Evanston. These close-in suburbs all have lively downtowns in their own right.
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rcjchicity
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by rcjchicity »

We live in Roscoe Village in a SFH, and you're right, inventory for < $1M houses is slim pickings. We had causally looked at open houses for about 6 or 7 months before finding our house, which the sellers had put on the market a week before Christmas due to a sudden job relocation.

I also recommend renting at first so you can get a feel for the neighborhoods - and more importantly - how long it takes to get anywhere, whether by public transportation, walking or driving. I have relatives in Denver, and getting from point A to point B is a whole different ballgame in Chicago.

My recommendations would be to rent at first in Roscoe Village, North Center, Lincoln Square, Ravenswood or Andersonville, as they are family friendly. Old Irving Park definitely has more affordable, roomier houses, but if you're wanting to move to the city is to be in the middle of it all, that's not really the area. At that point, I personally would rather get a house in Evanston (which we considered as well before finding our city home)

Edit - re-reading OP's post I now see that that they want a house with a yard for their fur babies. My listed neighborhoods are good for dog parents, too :-)
StrangePenguin
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by StrangePenguin »

I have friends who live in Portage Park (not far from the already-mentioned Jefferson Park). Very suburban feeling on the side streets while still being in the city. Depending on exactly where you live, you can commute downtown by Blue Line or by Metra (faster).
staythecourse
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by staythecourse »

Any kids? If so are you thinking public or private? That will make a BIG difference of your available areas.

Good luck.
"The stock market [fluctuation], therefore, is noise. A giant distraction from the business of investing.” | -Jack Bogle
jdb
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by jdb »

Suggest Wicker Park or Bucktown neighborhoods within walking distance of Damen Blue Line Station. Lots of young families and restaurants etc. Good Luck.
MSO4PRN
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by MSO4PRN »

where is your office?
the property tax situation in the city isn't good.
-also how many kids and public or private schools is a big time decision
-like others said, elmhurst and surrounding suburbs are nice- I grew up in Naperville close to the metra station.
-whats your budget?
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Kenkat
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Kenkat »

epoxyresin wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 11:43 am :happy
I'm of the mind that having reasonable commutes is worth a lot...
Does such a thing exist in Chicago if you have to get downtown from the suburbs? :shock:
Mimmz
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Mimmz »

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shipbuilder
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by shipbuilder »

If you want a suburban-feeling neighborhood within the city, consider Beverly (on the southwest side) and Forest Glen, Edgebrook (not the same as Edgewater), and Wildwood (all on the northwest side).

These neighborhoods share several characteristics. They have nice houses on large lots at relatively reasonable prices (much less than, e.g., Roscoe Village or Lincoln Square). They were built for railroad commuters and have easy Metra commutes to downtown (about 25 minutes). The housing stock is generally older (mostly 1920s-1950s) but there are some newer buildings -- be aware that houses in these areas turn over infrequently so anything you buy will likely not have been updated in decades and will need some work. A large share of residents are city workers such as teachers, police officers, and firefighters. This presence makes these neighborhoods very safe and generally improves the quality of public services. These neighborhoods are also near large forest preserves that give you access to a swathe of wilderness within the city. However, the suburban lot sizes and mainly single-family housing mean that population density is lower than elsewhere in the city, so it's a tough environment for small businesses and there's much less to walk to than in a place like Lincoln Square.

Beverly is one of Chicago's few racially integrated neighborhoods. Edgebrook and Wildwood have some of the city's best public elementary schools. The northwest side neighborhoods are a very short drive to O'Hare, which is convenient if you like to or need to travel a lot but does result in some aircraft noise.
Balefire
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Balefire »

South loop?
None of my friends in the city would recommend living there if you have kids.
Hinsdale, Western springs, Clarendon hills are some other close suburbs choices within short reach of downtown via train with excellent public schools for kids
Pacman
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Pacman »

shipbuilder wrote: Sat Sep 15, 2018 3:14 pm If you want a suburban-feeling neighborhood within the city, consider Beverly (on the southwest side) and Forest Glen, Edgebrook (not the same as Edgewater), and Wildwood (all on the northwest side).

These neighborhoods share several characteristics. They have nice houses on large lots at relatively reasonable prices (much less than, e.g., Roscoe Village or Lincoln Square). They were built for railroad commuters and have easy Metra commutes to downtown (about 25 minutes). The housing stock is generally older (mostly 1920s-1950s) but there are some newer buildings -- be aware that houses in these areas turn over infrequently so anything you buy will likely not have been updated in decades and will need some work. A large share of residents are city workers such as teachers, police officers, and firefighters. This presence makes these neighborhoods very safe and generally improves the quality of public services. These neighborhoods are also near large forest preserves that give you access to a swathe of wilderness within the city. However, the suburban lot sizes and mainly single-family housing mean that population density is lower than elsewhere in the city, so it's a tough environment for small businesses and there's much less to walk to than in a place like Lincoln Square.

Beverly is one of Chicago's few racially integrated neighborhoods. Edgebrook and Wildwood have some of the city's best public elementary schools. The northwest side neighborhoods are a very short drive to O'Hare, which is convenient if you like to or need to travel a lot but does result in some aircraft noise.
+1 for far northwest side.
HEDGEFUNDIE
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by HEDGEFUNDIE »

Balefire wrote: Sat Sep 15, 2018 9:54 pm South loop?
None of my friends in the city would recommend living there if you have kids.
Hinsdale, Western springs, Clarendon hills are some other close suburbs choices within short reach of downtown via train with excellent public schools for kids
If the OP is concerned about price these particular suburbs might not be a good fit.

There are very good public schools in the city, magnets like Northside College Prep, Whitney Young, Jones. But you do have to have some pretty smart kids.
Bfwolf
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Bfwolf »

I think all of this advice is irrelevant until OP says whether he has kids or not. I'm guessing he does not.
Carson
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Carson »

I live on the far northwest side and strongly suggest you figure out where exactly you are working and how you would get there. DH works in a NW suburb, I work from home, occasionally downtown. So we live about halfway between, off of I-90. It's a low key, almost suburban neighborhood in the city. Not many shops or activities. But we like the access to highways and trains, parks, and forest preserves.

Definitely whether you need schools or not is a huge factor into housing. Many people live in one neighborhood first and then move when school becomes necessary. A LOT of families in my circle have fled to the 'burbs at some point, while working the same job downtown and further increasing their commute.

I've been through the full rigmarole sending two kids through Chicago Public Schools and have two brief comments. First, here is a primer on CPS schools - there are elementary schools which have a testing/admissions process (regional gifted centers and classical) but at any time you can default to your neighborhood school. You can also put your name in lottery to go to a neighborhood/magnet school in a different location. Second link is the school locator map you can use to explore schools at various addresses. It has their minimum attainment rates as well.
https://www.cps.edu/Schools/Elementary_ ... types.aspx
https://cps.edu/ScriptLibrary/Map-Schoo ... index.html
timmy
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by timmy »

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timmy
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by timmy »

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WageSlave
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by WageSlave »

Definitely rent before buying. Chicago is very neighborhood-oriented. To some degree, each neighborhood is like its own mini-city, with different features, culture, etc.

We recently moved to the burbs, but previously lived in Old Irving Park (OIP). We chose that location largely for the commute options: CTA (el train), Metra, and 90/94 access. Jefferson Park has virtually the same commute options. We did rent before buying in OIP, but at least when we were there, single-family rental houses were few and far between. The one we rented had no yard.

As others have mentioned, schools are a big deal. Good neighborhood doesn't necessarily mean good school and vice-versa. I suspect lots of wealthier people choose the neighborhood they want, then use private schools if necessary. There are some good lottery-based schools, but the one in our OIP neighborhood had something like 20ish seats per grade to fill, and 1000s of applicants. Better odds than big money lottery I suppose, but definitely not something you can count on.

I'd also think about your commute, and your expectations. If you work downtown (i.e. in the loop), I think it's hard to get a commute much under 20 minutes, unless you actually live in the loop (no thanks!) and walk. When we were in OIP, my commute was about 30 minutes door to door: five minute walk to train (Metra), 15 minute train ride, 10 minute walk to office. And that's with an office only a couple blocks from the train station.

As I said above, we recently moved to the suburbs, so are heavily biased. The only thing we feel we gave up is commute: now it's about 50 minutes door to door, based on a 30-minute express train. The express train is non-stop, so doesn't "feel" that long. We are so happy with everything else about the suburbs that it's an absolute net-win for us: better house, better neighbors, huge yard, better schools, much quieter, and...

...the biggest motivator for us was crime. OIP was a decent neighborhood in terms of crime, but it was no stranger to "lesser" crime like break-ins, muggings, vandalism, etc. Even the best Chicago neighborhoods are often only one or two neighborhoods away from a sketchy area. The house we rented was broken into once. Our neighbor had a stray bullet land in their house. There was a rash of catalytic converter thefts (didn't know that was a thing). Car break-ins were commonplace. Bike theft routine. And too-frequent-for-my-tastes muggings. Drive-by shootings in parks, while not in OIP, neighborhoods too close for comfort. A stabbing in a neighborhood bar, a shooting at a neighborhood jeweler (both in OIP proper). I remember a guy tried to sell me a new-looking bike for $5 one day when I was walking home from the train.

Another good resource is city-data.com, both their raw data, and also the forums.
michaeljc70
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by michaeljc70 »

If you go slightly outside hot areas like Roscoe Village/Logan Square you can find single family homes for less money. A new home (roughly 3400 sq ft) will still run $700+. I am specifically thinking of Avondale which is sort of between Logan Square and Roscoe Village. Lakeview is a traffic and parking nightmare. Other areas with a lot to do I like are Bucktown, Wicker Park and Lincoln Square. Lincoln Square would be the farthest from downtown, but also the cheapest and an easy L ride downtown. Generally, the further you get from downtown the cheaper it gets. Anything along/near the lake is more expensive.

I didn't see a mention of budget and what style/size home you want. There are older/smaller homes for less money obviously. But in hot areas even an older/smaller home that might need work can be $600k+ due to the cost of the land.
Cycle
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Cycle »

I'd live near work. I left Chicago because my commute was attrocious, even though much of it was sitting on a train.

I'd also look into bike routes to work, if you are into health.
Never look back unless you are planning to go that way
Quantumfizz
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by Quantumfizz »

Like Old Irving Park as well. Very short commute if you take the Metra in. Lived there while interning in college, and was still able to have plenty of fun. Sure, it wasn't Lakeview, where I lived another summer when I was there, but it was still plenty fun and easy to navigate.
kjvmartin
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by kjvmartin »

I was in process of getting a better job downtown Chicago that would have paid 20% more than what I make now, but the cost of living was something I could not stomach and I turned it down.
epoxyresin
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by epoxyresin »

Kenkat wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 9:52 pm
epoxyresin wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 11:43 am :happy
I'm of the mind that having reasonable commutes is worth a lot...
Does such a thing exist in Chicago if you have to get downtown from the suburbs? :shock:
Getting to downtown from the suburbs is a lot easier than getting to other parts of the city, where you'd likely need to get downtown first, and then grab a bus or another train to wherever you actually want to be.

I guess what constitutes a "reasonable" commute is open to interpretation, but I'm pretty willing to spend longer on a train, especially if I don't have to make any transfers, than I am sitting in traffic, even if the car ride would be quite a bit faster. I guess I like to be able to get a seat on a train, which certain locations along the blue and red lines will be hard to do if you're commuting at rush hour.

But no, you're never going to get a 15 minute commute if you're living outside the city and need to get into it.
MnyGrl
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by MnyGrl »

Bfwolf wrote: Sun Sep 16, 2018 1:07 am I think all of this advice is irrelevant until OP says whether he has kids or not. I'm guessing he does not.
+1. It would be odd to mention your dogs and not your kids. I guess the kids would know where they stand. :D
MP173
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by MP173 »

Northwest Indiana.

Seriously....check out the home values, taxes, finanacial stability of the state, and commuting infrastructure.

Ed
timmy
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by timmy »

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lazydavid
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by lazydavid »

Kenkat wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 9:52 pm
epoxyresin wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 11:43 am :happy
I'm of the mind that having reasonable commutes is worth a lot...
Does such a thing exist in Chicago if you have to get downtown from the suburbs? :shock:
I've lived in two different suburbs with a ~35 minute commute into the city via Metra. Never bothered me at all to sit and read the paper or a book, listen to music, etc. for that long. In one case I had a 10 minute drive to the train station, in the other I had to walk about 800 feet.
rantk81
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by rantk81 »

OP: I wish you good luck.

Please be well informed of the property tax situation. They're already very high, and the government-worker pension funds are still very far underfunded, so I think it is a very real risk that the property taxes go up-and-up-and-up even more.

I sold off my rental properties in Chicago this year. (I was basically just a tax-collecting-proxy, collecting rent from my tenants and then paying the bulk of that either to the county in property taxes, or the state/fed in income taxes.) I will eventually consider selling my primary residence here too.

My advice would be to consider renting for a while, instead of buying. If you buy a place, with the property-tax-increase-steamroller on the horizon, you could find yourself in a bad situation.

Me personally? I wouldn't even consider buying any more real estate in or around Chicago.
jfmiii
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by jfmiii »

rantk81 wrote: Tue Oct 16, 2018 9:01 am OP: I wish you good luck.

Please be well informed of the property tax situation. They're already very high, and the government-worker pension funds are still very far underfunded, so I think it is a very real risk that the property taxes go up-and-up-and-up even more.

I sold off my rental properties in Chicago this year. (I was basically just a tax-collecting-proxy, collecting rent from my tenants and then paying the bulk of that either to the county in property taxes, or the state/fed in income taxes.) I will eventually consider selling my primary residence here too.

My advice would be to consider renting for a while, instead of buying. If you buy a place, with the property-tax-increase-steamroller on the horizon, you could find yourself in a bad situation.

Me personally? I wouldn't even consider buying any more real estate in or around Chicago.
My wife and I currently live in Lakeview. I bought in 2011 and have seen ~50% appreciation on the property. That being said, we are getting to the point where we need more space. I grew up on the North Shore and we've thought about moving there when the time comes. I am very hesitant to tie up ~$1mm up there in the current climate. The taxes on a $1mm property in Winnetka, Glencoe, etc are often $20 or $25k and only going up. Those taxes are no longer fully deductible (and neither are my state income taxes) and there is now a cap on on mortgage interest deductibility. Further, the demographics up there are quite negative. 45% of Winnetka is over 45. The next few years are going to be interesting for sure. I'm not sure many people paying these large property taxes fully grasp the the effect this tax bill will have come April 2019.
staythecourse
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Re: Single Family Homes in Chicago?

Post by staythecourse »

jfmiii wrote: Tue Oct 16, 2018 10:29 am
rantk81 wrote: Tue Oct 16, 2018 9:01 am OP: I wish you good luck.

Please be well informed of the property tax situation. They're already very high, and the government-worker pension funds are still very far underfunded, so I think it is a very real risk that the property taxes go up-and-up-and-up even more.

I sold off my rental properties in Chicago this year. (I was basically just a tax-collecting-proxy, collecting rent from my tenants and then paying the bulk of that either to the county in property taxes, or the state/fed in income taxes.) I will eventually consider selling my primary residence here too.

My advice would be to consider renting for a while, instead of buying. If you buy a place, with the property-tax-increase-steamroller on the horizon, you could find yourself in a bad situation.

Me personally? I wouldn't even consider buying any more real estate in or around Chicago.
My wife and I currently live in Lakeview. I bought in 2011 and have seen ~50% appreciation on the property. That being said, we are getting to the point where we need more space. I grew up on the North Shore and we've thought about moving there when the time comes. I am very hesitant to tie up ~$1mm up there in the current climate. The taxes on a $1mm property in Winnetka, Glencoe, etc are often $20 or $25k and only going up. Those taxes are no longer fully deductible (and neither are my state income taxes) and there is now a cap on on mortgage interest deductibility. Further, the demographics up there are quite negative. 45% of Winnetka is over 45. The next few years are going to be interesting for sure. I'm not sure many people paying these large property taxes fully grasp the the effect this tax bill will have come April 2019.
Keep in mind if one is using public schools and go to a good one (New Trier is as good as they come) or one of the few in the city of Chicago (Lincoln, Blaine, Burley, Bell, Coonley, etc...) the property taxes are not a big deal. At least in the City paying 25-30k PER KID for private school is very plausable for one of the few good private schools (Latin or Lab) that have actual data supporting their academic excellence over public. So, if you have kids and do public it is not as bad as folks think.

Now I do agree I don't think most folks consider the TOTAL cost of buying INCLUDING property taxes. That is what gets them in trouble. It is not just the mortgage note that matters, but having the necessary funds for property taxes and the like. We have a couple friends who build a HUGE house in Bucktown/ Wicker Park (over 2.5million) and no surprise ended up selling in under 2 years. They never could have afforded it if they were just honest by doing a back of the envelope calculation. These are down to earth folks which just shows you even decent folks make DUMB decisions ALL THE TIME.

Good luck.
"The stock market [fluctuation], therefore, is noise. A giant distraction from the business of investing.” | -Jack Bogle
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