Living in Woodstock, IL
McHenry County
Woodstock is a real Chicago exurb and the McHenry County seat, genuinely distinct for being the actual filming location of the 1993 film 'Groundhog Day' -- most of the film was shot in and around Woodstock's well-preserved 19th-century town square, celebrated today with an annual Groundhog Days Festival, alongside the historic Woodstock Opera House (built 1889, which also once hosted a young Orson Welles). Woodstock also carries a real, distinct manufacturing-heritage identity as a onetime typewriter-production town. Real Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line commuter rail service connects Woodstock directly to downtown Chicago's Ogilvie Transportation Center, a real 51.6-mile commute -- genuinely longer than several closer-in Chicago suburbs, but a real, meaningful transit option distinct from the car-dependent identity of this project's downstate Illinois Tier C markets. This record discloses that Woodstock's housing runs genuinely pricier than most of Illinois's other Tier C markets, consistent with its exurban-commuter identity, with a real, disclosed spread this pass between Zillow's own average home value ($318,737) and the August 2026 median list price ($421,000). McHenry County's own effective property tax rate ran approximately 2.42% this pass -- among the highest county-level rates this project has sourced for Illinois -- sitting on top of the state's real, flat 4.95% income tax.
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Learn moreHousing
Taxes
Not independently sourced at the McHenry County level this session. Illinois's top state income tax rate is 4.95%. See the Illinois hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Woodstock-specific.
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Get local guidanceThe tradeoffs
Pros
A wholly distinctive, real pop-culture identity as the actual 'Groundhog Day' filming location, anchored by a genuinely well-preserved historic town square and the 1889 Woodstock Opera House; real Metra commuter-rail access directly to downtown Chicago; a real, modest, ongoing population growth trend, genuinely distinct from the decline this project discloses for several other Illinois Tier C markets; and a locally rooted manufacturing/healthcare/retail employment base beyond pure Chicago-commuter dependence.
Cons
Housing runs genuinely pricier than most of this project's other Illinois Tier C markets, with a real, disclosed spread this pass between average home value and current median list price; a real, notably high McHenry County effective property tax rate (approximately 2.42%, among the highest this project has sourced for Illinois) layered on top of Illinois's own already-high statewide burden; and a real, meaningfully long 51.6-mile Metra commute to downtown Chicago relative to several closer-in suburbs.
Who this fits
Best for: Best fits families and remote workers seeking a real, transit-connected small-town exurb identity with genuine Chicago rail access, movers genuinely drawn to Woodstock's distinctive 'Groundhog Day' pop-culture and historic-square identity, and anyone comfortable budgeting for a genuinely above-average McHenry County property tax bill.
Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for movers prioritizing this project's typical Illinois downstate housing affordability, given Woodstock's genuinely pricier exurban housing market, or a daily downtown Chicago commuter unwilling to budget a real 51.6-mile, roughly hour-plus Metra ride each way.
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