Elmhurst · DuPage County · IL
Homes for sale in
Elmhurst.
- Active listings
- 82
- Median list
- $732K
- Avg time on market
- 8 days
- Sold · last year
- 502
Active listings
82 homes on the market
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About the community
Living in Elmhurst.
Elmhurst is the easternmost city in DuPage County, sitting roughly 16 miles from the Loop and squarely on the I-290 Eisenhower corridor. The Elmhurst Metra station on the Union Pacific West line runs commuters into Ogilvie Transportation Center in about 24 to 30 minutes on a weekday peak express. Schools are a single-district story: Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 covers every grade K through 12, and every Elmhurst high schooler heads to York Community High School. Downtown Elmhurst, anchored along York Street, is one of the most walkable in the western suburbs, with the Metra station, York Theatre, and dozens of restaurants and shops inside a quarter-mile of one another. Housing carries a premium that reflects the location, the schools, and the walkability, with a Zillow typical home value above $505,000 and a median sale price closer to $647,000 over the past year. Elmhurst Hospital, Elmhurst University, the Wilder Mansion, and the McCormick House by Mies van der Rohe give the city a civic depth most suburbs this size cannot match.
At a glance
~45,800 residents
2020 Census population 45,786, the eastern-most DuPage city and closest to Chicago.
UP-W Metra
Elmhurst station on the Union Pacific West line, peak express trains to Ogilvie in 24 to 30 minutes.
I-290 Eisenhower
Direct interchange access on the Eisenhower Expressway east-west into Chicago.
Elmhurst CUSD 205
Single K-12 unit district covering the entire city, 14 schools, one high school.
York Community HS
The district's only high school. Every Elmhurst high schooler attends York, regardless of address.
Elmhurst Hospital
Full-service Endeavor Health teaching hospital on the western edge of the city.
Elmhurst University
Private liberal arts university founded 1871 on a 38-acre arboretum campus south of downtown.
Walkable York Street
Metra station, York Theatre, History Museum, Wilder Park, and the dining district all within a quarter mile.
What’s close
Elmhurst sits at the eastern edge of DuPage County, straddling the Cook County line just west of Oak Park. The center of town is built around the Elmhurst Metra station and the York Street downtown, with Wilder Park, Elmhurst University, and Elmhurst Hospital all within a mile.
- York Street downtown
- The walkable retail and dining core, anchored by the Metra station and the historic York Theatre.
- Wilder Park and Wilder Mansion
- The city's first public park, home to the 1868 estate now used as a Park District event venue, plus the conservatory and gardens.
- Elmhurst University
- Private liberal arts university founded 1871, 38-acre arboretum campus south of downtown with roughly 2,600 undergraduates.
- Elmhurst Hospital
- Major regional Endeavor Health hospital on the western edge of town.
- Elmhurst CUSD 205 campuses
- Eight elementaries, three middle schools (Sandburg, Bryan, Churchville), and York Community High School, all inside the city.
- Elmhurst Art Museum (McCormick House)
- Museum campus that includes the McCormick House, one of only three U.S. homes designed by Mies van der Rohe.
What it’s actually like to live here
Elmhurst's downtown is built for walking. The Metra station, the historic York Theatre, the Elmhurst History Museum on Park Avenue, Wilder Park, and a dense cluster of restaurants and shops along York Street all sit inside a quarter-mile radius. Families anchor here because the school question is simple: Elmhurst CUSD 205 covers K through 12, every student funnels into York Community High School, and the three middle schools (Sandburg, Bryan, and Churchville) feed straight in. There is no district-shopping, no boundary politics across high schools, no transfer at eighth grade between districts.
That walkability and single-district simplicity, combined with the shortest DuPage commute into the Loop, prices Elmhurst at a premium versus most of its DuPage peers. Zillow puts the typical home value above $505,000, and median sale prices over the past year have run closer to $647,000. Buyers here are paying for a 16-mile-to-Loop address, a Metra stop with sub-30-minute peak express runs, York HS, and a downtown they can walk to from their front door.
Neighborhoods
Detailed Elmhurst community pages coming soon.
Browse the listings above. Detailed neighborhood pages with market stats, school info, and lifestyle take-downs land here as we roll them out.
Schools
Districts serving Elmhurst.
Boundary lines do shift. Always confirm in writing for a specific address before writing an offer.
- D205Grades Pre-K – 12
Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205
Schools serving the area
- York Community High School
- Sandburg Middle School
- Bryan Middle School
- Churchville Middle School
Single K-12 unit district covering the entire city. 14 schools total: eight elementaries, three middle schools, York Community High School, a Transition Program, and the Madison Early Childhood Education Center. There is no high school district shopping in Elmhurst, every student attends York.
Homes by school
Homes for sale by school in Elmhurst
Around town
What there is to do in Elmhurst.
A handful of the places people who live here actually use. Not a directory.
- Parks
Wilder Park and Wilder Mansion
The city's first public park, with the 1868 Wilder Mansion event venue, a conservatory, and formal gardens.
- Culture
Classic Cinemas York Theatre
Restored 1924 Spanish-motif movie palace at the heart of downtown, now a 10-screen theater operated by Classic Cinemas.
- Culture
Elmhurst History Museum
City history museum at 120 East Park Avenue, a half block from the Metra station.
- Culture
Elmhurst Art Museum (McCormick House)
Contemporary art museum whose campus includes the 1952 McCormick House designed by Mies van der Rohe, one of only three U.S. residences by the architect.
- Shopping
York Street restaurant and shopping district
The walkable downtown dining and retail strip around the Metra station and York Theatre.
- Family
Elmhurst Park District
28 parks and four facilities across the city, including the Wagner Community Center, Smalley Pool, Sugar Creek Golf Course, and Eldridge Park.
Getting around
Commute + transit from Elmhurst.
- Stations: Elmhurst
- Terminal: Chicago Ogilvie (OTC)
- Distance: 16 miles to downtown Chicago
- Routes: I-290 (Eisenhower Expressway) · IL 83 (Kingery Highway) · IL 64 (North Avenue) · US 20 (Lake Street) · St. Charles Road
- Chicago Loop: ~25 min
- O'Hare Airport: ~18 min
By the numbers
Elmhurst taxes + market stats.
Property tax rates vary by exact township and assessor district. Confirm per address before pricing a purchase.
Property tax rate
1.92%
effective avg
Sales tax
10.00%
combined
Median sold price
$650,000
MRED · last 12 mo (502 sales)
Median household income
$145,374
ACS
How Elmhurst got here
A bit of history.
European-American settlers arrived along Salt Creek around 1836, building on land the Potawatomi had long occupied. A post office opened in 1845 under the name Cottage Hill, and the village stayed small (fewer than 200 residents) until the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad reached town in 1849 and connected it to Chicago and the rapidly growing west. The rail stop pulled the commercial center toward the depot, where Gerry Bates traded a right-of-way for the chance to build a general store, and the modern downtown grid began to take shape.
The community was renamed Elmhurst in 1869, after the elm trees lining its streets. In 1868 Seth Wadhams bought a treeless farm and planted what would become Wilder Park, building the home later known as the Wilder Mansion. The Elmhurst Park District bought the estate in 1921 and made it the city's first public park. Population surged from roughly 4,600 in 1920 to nearly 37,000 by 1960 as the rail commute pulled families out of Chicago, and Elmhurst grew into the close-in, walkable suburb it is today, reaching 45,786 residents at the 2020 census.
The questions buyers actually ask
Elmhurst FAQ
The questions I get most from buyers shopping Elmhurst. If yours isn't here, text 224-385-8779, same-day reply.
- How long is the Metra commute from Elmhurst to downtown Chicago?
- The Metra Union Pacific West line runs from the Elmhurst station to Ogilvie Transportation Center in about 24 to 30 minutes on a peak express, and around 39 minutes on a local train.
- How far is Elmhurst from downtown Chicago by car?
- Elmhurst is roughly 16 to 18 miles from the Loop via I-290 (the Eisenhower Expressway). A non-stop drive runs about 22 minutes, with rush-hour times of 30 to 45 minutes more typical.
- What school district serves Elmhurst?
- Elmhurst is served entirely by Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205, a single K-12 unit district. Every Elmhurst high schooler attends York Community High School, the district's only high school. The three middle schools (Sandburg, Bryan, and Churchville) all feed into York.
- Why does Elmhurst cost more than other DuPage suburbs?
- Elmhurst carries a price premium for three connected reasons: it is the closest DuPage city to downtown Chicago (about 16 miles), it has a Metra stop with sub-30-minute peak express service to Ogilvie, and it has a walkable downtown around York Street plus a single, well-regarded K-12 district. Zillow's typical home value is above $505,000 and Redfin's median sale price over the past year is around $647,000.
- What highways serve Elmhurst?
- I-290 (the Eisenhower) is the major east-west route into Chicago, with a direct Elmhurst interchange. IL Route 83 (Kingery Highway) runs north-south through DuPage, IL Route 64 (North Avenue) crosses the north side, and US Route 20 (Lake Street) runs east of the I-290 interchange. O'Hare is a short hop north on I-294.
- What is there to do in downtown Elmhurst?
- The walkable downtown around York Street and the Metra station includes the Classic Cinemas York Theatre (a restored 1924 cinema with 10 screens), the Elmhurst History Museum at 120 East Park Avenue, Wilder Park and the Wilder Mansion, the Elmhurst Art Museum with the Mies van der Rohe McCormick House, and a dense restaurant and shopping district.
- What property taxes should I expect in Elmhurst?
- Ownwell reports an effective property tax rate of about 1.92 percent on the DuPage side of Elmhurst, with a median annual tax bill near $9,081. The small Cook County sliver of the city runs at a slightly different rate. Always pull the actual tax bill for the specific parcel before relying on any average.
- Who is the real estate agent for Elmhurst?
- Joe Keegan is the local licensed Illinois real estate broker who covers Elmhurst in Elmhurst, IL through Subdiview, a neighborhood-first home search for the Chicago suburbs and collar counties. Joe prices and negotiates from the live MRED sold comps for Elmhurst specifically, not national averages, and can help you buy or sell here. Reach Joe at 224-385-8779 or joe@joekeeganhomes.com.
Nearby
Towns next to Elmhurst.
If you’re cross-shopping the area, these are the places that border Elmhurst.
Your local agent
Joe knows Elmhurst
Most agents will list anything. I focus on the places I actually know, and the things that move value here don't show up in the MLS write-up: which streets and buildings hold demand, what the HOA or assessments really cover, how the comps read once you account for condition and location, and where buyers consistently want to be.
When you're ready to tour or list, you want someone who has read the last 50 closed comps in this specific market, not a national average, and can tell you what they actually mean for your price. That's how I work. Text or call any time, and I'll give you a real take, not a brochure.
- Licensed Illinois broker
- Comp-driven pricing
- Elmhurst specialist
- Honest local market take
- Brokerocity
Thinking of selling?
What's your home actually worth?
Not a Zestimate. A real CMA from someone who's sold this neighborhood, knows the floor plan premiums, and can tell you which upgrades the buyer pool here actually pays for.
- Pricing range with comp-by-comp logic
- Pre-list improvements that pay back, and the ones that don't
- No obligation, no spam, no auto-dialer