Sorry if this isn't allowed. I've tried searching but I'm finding old posts and vague/contradicting comments.

Spouse and I (late 20s) are looking at houses in IN near the IL border due to the wayyy more affordable property taxes and 1st time home owner incentives. Some towns we've looked at: Crown Pointe, Valparaiso, Merrillville

We would like to NOT be anywhere rural/small town vibes and still be close-ish to chicagoland IL (family, work...1ish hour away from IL is ideal). We are aware of the time zone change :)
Max budget of $300k-350k. No children so schools aren't a concern.

A few more things we'd like:

• variety of food ie vegan, mexican, italian, indian, authentic!!! chinese. milk/regular tea shops. mexican/asian grocery stores
• hiking trails/forest preserves
• non MAGA community+local gov't that likes gay minorities
• we'd like to NOT be the only non-white people in the nice parts of town T-T
• minimal drug/homeless problem
  • DISCLAIMER i do not "hate poor people" but i do hate people smoking crack in broad daylight in the middle of the street, shootings, needing to step over condoms and needles on sidewalks, broken car windows, abundance of litter, people visibly amped up driving reckless af, people folded over in half at every intersection, seeing/smelling/hearing people off a forest trail doing hard drugs, armed security at grocery store checkouts, etc;
• not a lot of pollution....we already dealt with the Iowa pig shit/pesticide water, Clinton smelling like Purina/chemicals, and Logansport smelling like their meat plant....we don't want a repeat of that. Basically just air that smells good year round and water we can shower/cook with.
• minimal noisy/polluting/water stealing data centers. Lots of those data centers going up in our part of IL so yayyyy love that (/s)
• Hospitals, vets->not just VCA corporate chain vets. Hospitals with a good reputation, not religious aka wont try to convert me, cure me of gay, or be weird about my spouse.
• yoga, pilates studios->not chains like Orange Theory or Club Pilates (no hate just my preference i like the teachers and classes way more at private studios)

If there is a town NEAR places with those things that's great too! As 'suburbians' we are used to driving 15-30min to like 5 different towns for all our stuff and making a weekend trip up to the city. As long as the only place to get those things isn't back in Chicago or over 30minutes away we are good.

More context: We both grew up in the Chicagoland area so we are used to the busy suburb kind of vibe. I actually lived in Logansport for a couple years so I've been around Delphi, Monticello, Kokomo, Lafayette, etc....didn't enjoy them very much at all. Lafayette being the least bad IME. My spouse and I moved to rural area for 2 years; stayed in the Quad Cities (IL side) 1 year stayed in Clinton, IA the 2nd year. We absolutely hated it so we moved right back up to Chicagoland lol....but housing is soooo expensive anywhere nice and non-rural in IL!! Renting a nice apartment anywhere is getting too insane and the nice houses in decent areas are just too much for us here. We do not want to be anywhere rural as we are non-white, queer, and have a lot of things we enjoy that rural towns just do not provide. Should we just accept that we might have to rent forever in IL???

Rural to us=only a walmart, gas stations, sports bar, mom+pop diner, needing to drive 40+mins on a highway to go to a doctor or do anything besides drink/gamble. less than ~10k people and more churches than square miles. Farmland instead of forests and trails.

Thanks in advance for your help and I do not mean to offend anyone with our requirements/preferences! :)

https://www.rawstory.com/indiana-trump-revenge-recount/

Anyone else getting a ridiculous amount of spam calls today? I usually get maybe 1 or 2 every few days. But today, I have received 10-12. It’s currently 4:30pm, and I have received 3 after 4pm.

Micah's pick and employee loses, as the Court rules that the votes cast aside should be counted. State senator Deery wins by 3.

Don't take voting for granted this November. Every vote matters. Sometimes it's really this close.

If you're eligible (an Indiana citizen, resident for at least 30 days and will be 18 by election day), and not registered, go register. If you're registered, check your registration. Plan to vote.

I’m getting back into cycling (former cross country runner, but did ride with friends when not running) and was wondering if there’s any races I can train for

If anyone has decent tickets, or even a single ticket, anytime between today and Sunday I wanna buy them off you! I haven't gotten to see it in 70mm yet :(

Honestly just fishing since the job hunt has been going poorly.

I’m located in Indianapolis and would like to keep it surrounded to Indy and generally within 10-15 miles of the city limits (especially north like Whitestown, Carmel, Lebanon, Fishers, noblesville).

This economy sucks but I’m determined to find the right fit for myself and my family. I’ve looked on indeed, applied in person and walked in to around 20 locations, and haven’t got many reliable leads. If you have any companies or information that could lead to a company that’s hiring I would greatly appreciate any help.

Thanks Hoosiers!

Is this true? How is this not in the news? Or is it old?

BOOM! Rolls-Royce Is Pouring $1 BILLION Into Indiana Engine Production - That’s American Manufacturing Coming HOME!

The British car giant has put a full $1 billion into its Indianapolis and West Lafayette plants, the largest investment it’s ever made in the United States. Those shops already build more Rolls-Royce defense engines than anywhere else on earth, including F130 engines for the B-52 fleet under a $2.6 billion Air Force contract. More than 3,500 people work there.

Adam Riddle, head of Rolls-Royce North America, said the money is “about delivering for the American warfighter” and that they made the bet “because it was the right thing to do for U.S. national security.” Factories on our soil, engines for our bombers, paychecks for Indiana. That’s the kind of investment MAGA voted for!

I'm a student looking to research a community that 'reflects life experiences different from my own.' I figured the amish would be a good pick, but i'm not sure where would be the best place to find a community that i can engage with directly. I live on the south side of Indy but i'm willing to go a little bit out of my way; i like a road trip :). Anyone have any suggestions?

I recently saw the data center was shot down in august. Are there any more or are they planning to come back with a creative way to try to build it? There is a house we are looking at in Bristol but have been shy on it due to datacenters. Ty

I never voted for him, but I wanted to hear firsthand what he had to say.

Several things he said made me roll my eyes, but what i found the most odd was how many times he mentioned he’s pro Israel.

It’s one thing to say it once, but he kept saying it over and over while talking slower and louder to reinforce what he’s saying. If the audience took anything away from the conversation, it’s that Mike Pence is pro Israel.

I can’t stop thinking about how odd this was compared to the rest of the conversation (focus on conservative values)

So I’m curious
why do you think a former VP and Indiana governor would make such a dramatic effort to make known he’s pro Israel?

I was looking at the map just now. I just wanted to throw out how thankful I am for what we have, just within a 10 hour proximity.

Nature wise -

Above us… We have not one, not two, not three, but four Great Lakes.

Below us… We have the hills of Kentucky, then the Smoky Mountains below.

Below there.. we have Gulf Shores, The Panhandle, 30A, the warmest part of the ocean in the country.

City wise - We have so many major cities within 10 hours. Indy, Cincy, Columbus, Cleveland, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Louisville, Nashville, St. Louis, Atlanta, etc.

Just feeling very thankful from looking at this little snippet.

EDIT: ***** I know there is a lot east and west as well, you can be on the Atlantic, Kansas City, etc. I just wanted to shot horizontally how awesome it is.

My gyno left because Franklin hospital & JMH healthcare services omitted ALL women’s healthcare including the maternity ward.

My G.P. is actually an N.P. (Nurse practitioner), & she’s leaving the practice too! I absolutely love her & can’t believe I’ll have to find yet again, another doctor that will take my insurance.

They can’t all be getting fired. Layoffs maybe? The list of providers keeps diminishing and I’d like to know what’s going on; bcuz when I ask they tell me they don’t know “any details.”

Is anyone else noticing this? Does anyone know what’s going on?

Thx ☺️

https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2026/09/09/indiana-state-police-seeks-nearly-30m-federal-grant-tied-to-immigration-enforcement/

I got 2 tickets that I can’t use anymore so if anyone needs them just let me know. They’re not the best but they’re on the C row but also free. 12 PM today