Key takeaway: A one-bedroom in North Center rents for about $1,995 a month in 2026, two-bedrooms about $2,200 to $2,550, and Jewel, Mariano’s, Trader Joe’s and ALDI are all within the neighborhood or on its edges.
North Center runs from Diversey to Montrose between the river and Ravenswood Avenue, with Lincoln Avenue and Roscoe Village at its heart. It’s a neighborhood of two-flats and single-family homes with Brown Line access. Its typical one-bedroom, about $1,995 a month, runs about $84 below the citywide typical of $2,079 (Zillow, September 2026), the 21st highest of the 92 areas in our neighborhood comparison.
| Typical one-bedroom | $1,995 a month |
| Typical two-bedroom | $2,550 a month |
| Income for your own one-bedroom | About $79,800 a year |
| L lines | Brown |
| Metra | None (Ravenswood nearby) |
| Part of the city | North Side |
On this page: Rent · Getting around · Groceries · Parking · Taxes and home prices · Sample budget
Rent by apartment size
| Unit | Zumper (avg., Sep 2026) | RentHop (median, Jun 2026) | RentHop, ZIP 60618 (median, Oct 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,995 | $1,750 | $1,570 |
| 1 bedroom | $1,995 | $1,995 | $1,848 |
| 2 bedrooms | $2,550 | $2,200 | $2,095 |
| 3 bedrooms | $3,500 | $3,248 | $2,950 |
Source: Zumper North Center rent research, updated September 26, 2026; RentHop North Center; RentHop 60618, which also covers Avondale. Few studios are listed here, so treat that figure loosely. Sources differ because they track different listings; see why rent reports disagree.
Getting around
- L: Brown Line at Montrose, Irving Park and Addison. From the City of Chicago’s list of L stops.
- Metra: Ravenswood station on the Union Pacific North Line is just north, Zone 2 at $3.75 one way (Metra fares). See Metra fares.
- Buses: #80 Irving Park, #50 Damen, #11 Lincoln, #152 Addison, #78 Montrose, #49 Western and #77 Belmont.
A 30-day CTA pass is $75 (CTA).
Groceries nearby
| Store | Address |
|---|---|
| Jewel-Osco Lincoln and Berteau | 4250 N. Lincoln Ave. |
| Jewel-Osco Western and Roscoe | 3400 N. Western Ave. |
| Mariano’s Roscoe Village | 3350 N. Western Ave. |
| Trader Joe’s (east edge) | 3745 N. Lincoln Ave. |
| ALDI (north edge) | 2431 W. Montrose Ave. |
Source: each store’s own location page or locator, checked October 25, 2026. See our Chicago grocery guide.
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.
Near Wrigley Field, blocks with LV2 signs restrict parking from 5pm to 10pm during Cubs home games, concerts and special events; residents get the LV2 permit free from the City Clerk (47th Ward).
Property taxes and home prices
The median North Center property tax bill rose by more than $350 for tax year 2025, the bills mailed in August 2026 (Sun-Times). Citywide, the median Chicago homeowner bill for tax year 2025, mailed in August 2026, was $4,597, up 3.2% (Cook County Treasurer). Western Avenue is the township line: east of it is Lake View Township (Lake View Township) and west of it is Jefferson Township.
The Assessor’s 2024 report put North Center median sale prices at $520,000 for a condo, $809,000 for a two-to-six-unit building and $1,299,000 for a single-family home (Cook County Assessor, 2024 Chicago report). Properties along the main business streets are in SSA 38 (City SSA map). For how bills are set and how to appeal, see our property tax guide.
North Center cost of living: a sample monthly budget
| Setup | Rent | CTA pass | Income needed at 30% rent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your own one-bedroom | $1,995 | $75 | $79,800 |
| Half of a two-bedroom | $1,275 | $75 | $51,000 |
| Your own two-bedroom | $2,550 | $75 | $102,000 |
Source: our calculation from the Zumper averages above. 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 North Side neighborhood profiles: Andersonville, DePaul and Sheffield, Edgewater, Lakeview, Lakeview East and Northalsted, Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square, North Park, Ravenswood, Rogers Park, Roscoe Village, Uptown, West Ridge and Wrigleyville.
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.
Sources
- Zumper: North Center rent
- RentHop: North Center rent
- RentHop: 60618 rent
- Metra: Ravenswood station
- Metra fare table
- 47th Ward: LV2 parking
- Sun-Times: 2025 property tax bills
- Lake View Township
- City of Chicago: SSA map
- City of Chicago: list of L stops
- CTA fares
- City Clerk: City Sticker prices
- City Clerk: residential zone parking
- Cook County Assessor: 2024 Chicago report
- Cook County Treasurer: tax year 2025 analysis