@joepyeweed : Unless it's Buffalo NY.

@jimthompson : Wherever you go, there you are.

I think the point of that particular article is that Millennials and Gen Z-ers should flock here for the cheap real estate but that is not something I have heard is a big desire of those two generations. I think the reason why those groups can't afford a home elsewhere in the country would be crippling student loan debt (my family carries $170,000 currently at a 7.5% interest rate) and not that they just live in too large of cities. The article's author doesn't seem to mention what the Millennial should DO to earn money once they get here, other than refurb $50k homes. I think it's VERY safe to say both Illinois and Peoria County have some really big problems that are not found in other cities which is evidenced by it's incredibly rapidly shrinking population (Illinois currently #3 in fastest shrinking). If it's so amazing here and it is what you make of it, why are people fleeing like it's on fire?? Not sure that makes it the best time to become a real estate mogul here with negative demand for homes...

I think she might have the wrong demographic group in mind. It seems rather obvious that she did not factor in the state of D150 schools.There are some medium and smaller size cities and towns that also have poor schools and at one time homes were really run down. Retired foreign service and military discovered these places and moved in and fixed up homes. Lots of new restaurants opened too. The retirees are near major medical centers and the towns are also college towns Just like Peoria Some of them are also river towns... So there are lots of things to do. In the mean time some of the school districts have improved slightly. One of them is even the lowest ranked district in their state and is only now showing possible signs of improvement. But yet the town is really thriving from other improvements. It is weird.

And if someone refurbs a $50k home, what is the price range in that neighborhood? Can someone put in an additional $50k+ in refurbishments (because you have to have granite kitchen counters, stainless appliances, and space for entertaining) and still reasonably get that money back when selling?... of course we know that answer. If it was fairly proven to buy $50k homes, put in another $50-75k and sell for $200k ... we wouldn't have neighborhoods full of $50k homes.

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@HipKat : you not being able to get a well paying job is your fault. be better. be more talented. be more educated.you not knowing people who havent been locked up says you are hanging around with the wrong kind of people. the pay being low is factually incorrect. cat is a main employer but not the main employer. their salaried positions pay really well. there are a lot of opportunities in medical and other fields. your rationale is just a bunch of drivel. if you spent some time improving your own self instead of tearing everything and everyone down here, maybe you wouldnt have to live in that hell hole pekin or get a decent job. or you can keep doing the same thing and expect new results.

I'll get myself some popcorn and await his reply from over there>>>>>>

@jimthompson : Peoria is no better than Pekin. Most of the small towns around Peoria are also dumps with worthless schools. I know because I lived in one for 20 years. I remember a shop owner complaining in Lacon she couldn't find any high school kids to hire because they couldn't make change - impressive! I had to pull my kid out of local dumb *** school and pay for private so he could get some sort of education.Peoria schools suck - you have to pay for private if you can afford it or try to move to Dunlap.Peoria has been a ***** to Cat for far too many years.Time to take off the rose colored glasses.....

I feel like it is 2008-2016 all over again.I moved to Morton 14 years ago but worked in Peoria (University/Thrush and downtown) until 4 years ago and now work in Bloomington. I have not had any connections at any of the jobs I have gotten but atill managed to get hired. Is Peoria Austin, LA, or San doego? No, how could a small Midwest city be on par with them? Buffalo is double the size of Peoria so that is comparing apples and oranges.
Before you say that I can't comment because I don't live in Peoria let me remind you, @hipkat, neither do you.

I am an old fogy that has lived in Peoria since 1980. I've lived in tiny dots on a map (Broadwell, Williamsville, Chestnut), on a farm outside Mt. Pulaski, other central Illinois cities of Galesburg and Bloomington. None of them were perfect, but all of them had something to offer. Peoria offers me what I need: good parks and hiking trails, public art, low property taxes, easy drive to wherever I want to go, varied shopping opportunities, opportunities for community involvement, good friends and great neighbors. It also provides things I don't need: crime, poor road maintenance, high gas prices, high sales tax and some other things. My daughter graduated public schools (Roosevelt Magnet School and Woodruff High School) and got a good education. I was an involved parent and she was an involved student. She received her Bachelor's from Roosevelt University in Chicago and her Master's from University of California Santa Barbara. She has done well in her adult life and owns a home in Grosse Point, MI. My son finished high school in Lincoln for a lot of reasons, but has also done well as an adult. He owns a home in Oreana, IL.Will I move? Probably not. My son lives south of me and my daughter lives north. I am content where I am. Home is where the heart is and my heart is right here on Frye Avenue, smack dab in the middle of the East Bluff.