What it's like to live in Oak Lawn
Oak Lawn is a smaller city in Illinois with home prices that remain within reach, crime rates well below the national average, and schools with smaller class sizes than the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Oak Lawn deals with commute times longer than most cities, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, a population that has been shrinking, and cold winters.
The good
- Affordable home prices
- Low crime rates
- Low student-teacher ratio
The not so good
- Above-average commute times
- Air quality concerns
- Shrinking population
- Cold winters
- Snowy winters — 39" per year
How Oak Lawn compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Oak Lawn
Based on Oak Lawn's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,670
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $53,400 a year
- 45% of Oak Lawn renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$56,240
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $28,120
- Homes cost 3.4× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of livingNear US average
$1,335/mo median rent
Cost of living works in this city's favor. Median rent sits around $1,335 a month, nothing that raises eyebrows. Solid value overall. Home prices are reasonable, with a median around $281,200. Not a steal, but not intimidating either.
Median home value $281,200 · 45% of renters cost-burdened
Job market▲ 14% above US
4.9% unemployment
Unemployment here is 4.9%, somewhat above the national average of 4.3%. Lining up work before the move is the safer route.
City-level (BLS)
Safety▼ 78% below US
73 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 1393/100k · Oak Lawn Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▲ 18% above US
31 min average commute
Traffic is a real factor here. The 30.8 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 11% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 83°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 23°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 3.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 12% below US
32% bachelor's degree or higher
Education levels run about average, with 32% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.
Schools
12 public schools inside the boundary
There are 12 public schools inside the boundary and 6 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 15:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Pullman National Historical Park (8 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Oak Lawn's strongest points are home prices that remain within reach and crime rates well below the national average; the main tradeoffs are commute times longer than most cities and air quality that falls short of national benchmarks. A year of median rent ($1,335/mo) equals 19% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit anyone prioritizing low crime.
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