East Chicago, IN — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Indiana·East Chicago

Lake County · Chicago-Naperville-Elgin · population 25,768

AffordabilityShrinking
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
View watchlist →
56
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where East Chicago stands

Home values down 4.6% in the last year. population shrinking 0.6% per year. rents up 5.5% in the last year.

Median home $130,011
1-year -4.6%
5-yr CAGR +6.8%
vs 5-yr peak -7.3%
Population -0.6%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2024-07$130k$42k$77k$111k$146k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
32/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
15/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
67/100
Strong remote-work fit
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$992/mo$0$560$1,11920242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent1021218010012020242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 10.9
Buy

At a 10.9 price-to-rent ratio, buying generally beats renting in East Chicago on a long-enough horizon. The headline math is that one year of mortgage payments approximates 10.9 years of rent — well below the 15+ threshold where ownership starts to dominate.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
27 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
73 · w22%
Distance from peak
53 · w18%
Population growth
36 · w16%
Rent YoY
82 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
92 · w10%
Long thesis

East Chicago offers a $130,011 median home with +6.8% annualized 5-year appreciation. Affordability + positive trend is one of the better risk/reward setups in US residential — small downside, room to compound.

Short thesis

East Chicago is down 4.6% over the last 12 months and the trend isn't flattening. Falling knife rule applies: you don't catch one with your hands, you wait for it to hit the floor and stop moving.

About East Chicago

East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, with an estimated population of 25,768. It anchors the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. The population has contracted 0.6% per year on average since 2020. The median home value in East Chicago is $130,011 as of 2026-04, down 4.6% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +6.8% annual growth (-7.3% from the 5-year peak). Rents in East Chicago average $992 per month, up 5.5% year-over-year. The composite momentum score is 56 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Healthy 5-year run: +6.8% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
●Cheap entry point: $130,011 median home is well below the US median of $355k — room to grow without overpaying.
●Hot rental market: rents up 5.5% YoY — landlords have pricing power, supports new investment math.

▼ Bear case

●Cooling: -4.6% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.
●Flat or shrinking population: -0.6% per year. Housing demand has to come from somewhere — verify the source.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Lake County right now.

NWS active alerts (IN)Indiana Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Lake County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Neighborhoods of East Chicago

9 tracked · ranked by median home value
1Prairie Park$216,281+2.8%
2Roxana$175,424+0.3%
3Washington Park$138,708-6.2%
4East Calumet$132,717-13.1%
5Southside$129,887+0.1%
6Northside$122,634-9.0%
7Indiana Harbor$118,851-0.1%
8Sunnyside$118,812+15.0%
9Calumet$97,460-13.6%

Cities like East Chicago

Logansport, IN58 · StableLake Station, IN60 · StableGary, IN51 · StableBeech Grove, IN63 · Rising

Run the numbers for East Chicago

ToolCan I afford East Chicago?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a East Chicago rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare East Chicago to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolEast Chicago cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
35° / 19°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
85° / 64°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
186
~51% of year
Annual precip
42″ rain
20″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
High
Wildfire
Very low
Earthquake
Low
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current East Chicago listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
72%
Humid climate
Median household income
$67,200
Indiana state median
Top industries (state-level)
Manufacturing (auto)HealthcareLogistics

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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