More than half the Chicago region’s low-income population — 54 percent — lived in the suburbs in 2017 — up from 39 percent in 2000.
Poverty can vary quite a bit from Chicago suburb to suburb:
The average poverty rate for the Northwest suburbs is about 8 percent. Poverty rates have grown unevenly across the region — about 17 percent in Carpentersville, roughly 15 percent in Elgin, 11 percent in Hanover Park and Wheeling, about 10 percent in Palatine and Prospect Heights and 6 percent in Schaumburg.
These are significant changes and differences. The future of many suburban communities may just depend on how they respond.
