Westgate in neighborhood spotlight

A few years ago when Lisa Soto was traveling to physical therapy in a medical van, the driver stopped to pick up a woman in the Westgate subdivision. That's when she discovered the charming neighborhood in Elk Grove Village where she now lives with her husband Pablo and three-year-old son.

"This is such a cute area," Lisa Soto said. "The backyard is nice for our son, and we like to eat out on our patio and watch the birds come and go to the feeders.

"Previous owners did some updating, and we really like the little wine rack under the staircase, which is unique and something I've never seen before," she said.

"This is a well-planned neighborhood. We have nice neighbors, and people take good care of their yards. We also like the age and ethnic diversity, which I learned about after we settled into the neighborhood."

The Sotos also enjoy great access to green spaces with an amazing number of parks within walking distance; a nearby Schaumburg Park District facility, Volkening Heritage Farm; and Busse Woods Forest Preserve.

Situated east of Plum Grove Road and north of Wise Road on the west side of Elk Grove Village, Westgate is a desirable subdivision, said Gary Christensen, real estate broker with NW Village Realty.

With its homes showing more contemporary architecture, open floor plans and vaulted ceilings, the subdivision was a big attraction when it was built, Christensen said.

"We still think of it as new compared with most of the other housing in Elk Grove," he said.

Built by Centex, the subdivision offers five different two-story designs with 1,450 to 1,840 square feet, three or four bedrooms and one- or two-car garages. About half the homes have basements.

Westgate is a stable area with little turnover. When people in Talbot Mill want a single-family home, the natural progression is to move to Westgate, and then when they want a larger home, they move to Stockbridge, the neighborhood to the east, where homes are larger but with the same contemporary flair, Christensen said.

"Sometimes pricing homes in Westgate is difficult because there isn't a lot of movement. In 12 months, there were only three sales, so there's a limited number of comps, which holds pricing down.

"A lot of people really like living in the neighborhood, and they've made improvements and put on additions. They've done some pretty nice things to their homes."

The attractive appearance of the neighborhood, mature trees and walking paths are great aspects of the subdivision.

Resident Diane Tegtmeier enjoys the pretty environment, and the bonus is that when she looks out her front window, she has views of the Fox Run Golf Links course across the street. "It's so beautiful at this time of year with all the trees," she said.

Tegtmeier loves the outdoors and enjoys all the places to walk along paths in the area with her dog, Max. "Everyone is so friendly, and you get to know all the dogs in the neighborhood."

A gem of the Schaumburg Park District is the nearby Spring Valley Nature Center with more than three miles of hiking trails, nature center and an 1880s farm on the 135-acre refuge of fields, forests, marshes and streams.

There also is plenty of shopping in the area, including Woodfield Mall.

Listing sheet

<span class="fact box text bold">Price range: </span>$296,000 to $359,000

<span class="fact box text bold">Age of homes:</span> 29 years

<span class="fact box text bold">Schools: </span>Fredrick Nerge Elementary and Margaret Mead Junior High schools in Schaumburg Township Elementary District 54 and JB Conant High School in Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211.

<span class="fact box text bold">Parks:</span> Elk Grove Village Park District