Austin Cost of Living 2026: Chicago Rent, Transit, Homes

Key takeaway: A one-bedroom in Austin rents for about $1,125 to $1,175 a month in fall 2026, two-bedrooms about $1,437 to $1,600, single-family homes sold for a median $275,000 in 2024, and four Green Line stations plus 140-acre Columbus Park serve the neighborhood.

Austin is Chicago’s largest community area by land, on the West Side along the Oak Park border, with large blocks of greystones, bungalows and Victorian houses. It’s one of the most affordable places in the city to buy a house with L service. Its typical one-bedroom, about $1,175 a month, runs about $904 below the citywide typical of $2,079 (Zillow, September 2026), the 22nd lowest of the 92 areas in our neighborhood comparison.

Typical one-bedroom	$1,175 a month
Typical two-bedroom	$1,437 a month
Income for your own one-bedroom	About $47,000 a year
L lines	Green, Blue
Metra	Milwaukee District West; Union Pacific West nearby
Part of the city	West Side

At a glance, October 2026. Rents are the figures used in the sample budget below; income is our calculation, rent times 40.

Austin cost of living: typical one-bedroom $1,175 and two-bedroom $1,437 a month, compared with $2,079 and $2,516 citywide — Typical rents in Austin compared with the citywide typical (Zillow, September 2026). Neighborhood figures are the ones in the table above; income is our calculation, rent times 40.

On this page: Rent · Getting around · Groceries · Parks · Parking · Taxes and home prices · Buyer help · Sample budget

Rent by apartment size

Unit	Zumper (avg., Oct 2026)	RentHop (avg., Oct 2026)
Studio	$1,300	$1,150
1 bedroom	$1,175	$1,125
2 bedrooms	$1,437	$1,600
3 bedrooms	$1,800	$1,873

Source: Zumper Austin rent research, updated October 24, 2026; RentHop Austin. Studios rest on few listings. Sources differ because they track different listings; see why rent reports disagree.

Getting around

L: Green Line at Austin, Central, Laramie and Cicero, and the Blue Line at Cicero along the Eisenhower. From the City of Chicago’s list of L stops.
Metra: Grand/Cicero and Hanson Park on the Milwaukee District West Line in the north part of Austin, and Oak Park on the Union Pacific West Line just across Austin Boulevard, all Zone 2 at $3.75 one way (Metra fares). See Metra fares.
Buses: routes along Madison (#20), Chicago (#66), Division (#70), North (#72), Austin (#91), Central (#85), Laramie (#57) and Cicero (#54).

A 30-day CTA pass is $75 (CTA).

Groceries nearby

Store	Address
ALDI	5629 W. Fillmore St.
ALDI	1440 N. Kostner Ave.
Walmart Supercenter	4650 W. North Ave.
Pete’s Fresh Market Oak Park (just west)	259 Lake St., Oak Park
Pete’s Fresh Market Oak Park II (just west)	668 Madison St., Oak Park

Source: each store’s own location page or locator, checked October 25, 2026. See our Chicago grocery guide.

Parks

Columbus Park at 500 S. Central Ave. covers about 140 acres with an outdoor pool, a nine-hole golf course, a fishing lagoon, tennis and pickleball courts and a fitness center (Chicago Park District).

Parking

If you will have a car, check your block with the City Clerk’s zone lookup before you sign a lease. Adding a residential permit zone to your City Sticker costs $25 to $35 a year, on top of the $105.18 passenger-car sticker; our parking guide covers guest passes, meters and garages.

Property taxes and home prices

The Assessor’s 2024 report put Austin median sale prices at $130,000 for a condo, $275,000 for a single-family home and $318,000 for a two-to-six-unit building (Cook County Assessor, 2024 Chicago report). Citywide, the median Chicago homeowner bill for tax year 2025, mailed in August 2026, was $4,597, up 3.2% (Cook County Treasurer). Businesses along Chicago Avenue are in SSA 72 (City of Chicago SSA list). For how bills are set and how to appeal, see our property tax guide, and to weigh owning against renting, our rent vs. buy calculator.

Help buying a home

HomeGrown (City of Chicago): purchase grants of $10,000 to $70,000 depending on income and which of two city zones the home is in, for buyers up to 150% of area median income, launched June 2026 with $21 million (Sun-Times).
IHDAccess Home (State of Illinois): up to $15,000 for first-time buyers as a 0% deferred second mortgage (Governor’s office).
Cook County Down Payment Assistance: 5% of the loan, up to $25,000, forgivable over five years (Cook County).

Austin cost of living: a sample monthly budget

Setup	Rent	CTA pass	Income needed at 30% rent
Your own one-bedroom	$1,175	$75	$47,000
Half of a two-bedroom	$719	$75	$28,760
Your own two-bedroom	$1,437	$75	$57,480

Source: our calculation from the Zumper averages above (half of $1,437, rounded). Income needed is monthly rent times 12, divided by 0.30. For a fuller answer that includes taxes and the rest of your budget, try our Chicago salary calculator, and see Chicago move-in costs for what you’ll pay up front.

Compare every neighborhood side by side in our Chicago neighborhood cost comparison, or work out your own number with our salary calculator. More West Side neighborhood profiles: East and West Garfield Park, Galewood, Humboldt Park, Little Italy and University Village, Little Village, North Lawndale, Pilsen, Ukrainian Village and Wicker Park.

Costs that apply in every neighborhood: property tax bills, closing costs and condo fees, water, sewer and garbage fees, ComEd and Peoples Gas, CTA fares, parking, average salaries by job and our Chicago cost index.

Cost of living in Austin, Chicago (2026)