What $500K, $750K or $1 Million Buys in DuPage County: An MRED Market Comparison
A $750,000 budget does not buy the same house in every DuPage County community. Location, lot, condition, construction era and proximity to downtown or Metra can matter as much as bedroom count.
To make the comparison concrete, I analyzed an MRED connectMLS report prepared September 6, 2026. It contains 812 detached single-family records priced from $500,000 to $10 million in Elmhurst, Glen Ellyn, Lombard, Naperville and Wheaton. The report includes 504 closings from approximately the prior two months and 308 non-closed records. Eleven were temporarily off market, leaving 297 currently marketable listings.
This is a focused snapshot, not a complete citywide median. Homes below $500,000 were excluded, and a two-month closing window can be influenced by seasonality and property mix. Median square footage is also based only on listings reporting that field.
The $500,000 to $749,999 range
This was the largest recent-closing segment, with 230 sales across the five markets.
Elmhurst: 29 closings; median sold price $550,000; median reported size 1,407 square feet. Three-bedroom homes were the most common.
Glen Ellyn: 21 closings; median sold price $595,000; median reported size 2,038 square feet.
Lombard: 16 closings; median sold price $550,000; median reported size 1,999 square feet.
Naperville: 132 closings; median sold price $632,750; median reported size 2,294 square feet. Four-bedroom homes were the most common.
Wheaton: 32 closings; median sold price $602,500; median reported size 2,098 square feet.
The pattern is useful, but it is not a verdict about value. Elmhurst buyers in this band often traded square footage for location, while the Naperville sample contained more two-story and four-bedroom homes. Condition and subarea still determine whether an individual property is a good purchase.
The $750,000 to $999,999 range
The report contained 151 closings in this band. Median reported size increased in every town.
Elmhurst: 16 closings; median $876,000 and 2,284 reported square feet
Glen Ellyn: 18 closings; median $846,000 and 2,556 reported square feet
Lombard: 3 closings; median $800,000 and 2,844 reported square feet
Naperville: 96 closings; median $850,000 and 3,010 reported square feet
Wheaton: 18 closings; median $822,500 and 2,907 reported square feet
Small samples deserve caution. Lombard's three sales should not be treated as a stable market benchmark. The larger Naperville sample provides more evidence about that segment, but Naperville itself contains many distinct submarkets.
The $1 million to $1.499 million range
There were 89 closings across the five towns. Median reported sizes ranged from approximately 3,233 square feet in Lombard's one-sale sample to 3,746 in Naperville. Elmhurst and Wheaton had median sold prices near $1.27 million, while Naperville's was $1.15 million and Glen Ellyn's was $1.0875 million.
At this level, buyers should compare more than size. Construction quality, ceiling height, lot, finished lower levels, garage configuration, renovation history and location can cause large differences between homes with similar square footage.
The $1.5 million-plus segment
The report contained 34 closings in this segment: 15 in Elmhurst, 12 in Naperville, four in Glen Ellyn and three in Wheaton. There were no Lombard closings in this band during the short reporting window. That does not mean the segment does not exist; it means no qualifying closing appeared in this particular sample.
Luxury data becomes property-specific quickly. A median based on three or four sales can move sharply when one custom home closes. Analyze architecture, land, finish level and micro-location individually.
What buyers tended to get for the money
The numbers describe a practical progression, but not a uniform product.
At $500,000 to $749,999
Elmhurst's median reported size was the smallest of the five towns. A representative closing at 427 E. Atwater Avenue was a 1956 split-level with three bedrooms, two baths and 1,163 square feet that sold for $550,000. Its public marketing described meaningful interior updates. This illustrates how an Elmhurst buyer may accept less square footage for a particular location or condition.
Glen Ellyn, Lombard and Wheaton delivered median reported sizes near 2,000 square feet in this band. The mix included ranches, split-levels, raised ranches and traditional two-story homes. For example, 2S550 Gray Avenue in Lombard was a four-bedroom raised ranch with 1,892 square feet that sold for $540,000.
Naperville's median was 2,294 reported square feet, and four-bedroom homes were the most common. Its larger sample included more two-story suburban homes, though age, subdivision, lot and renovation level varied widely.
At $750,000 to $999,999
Median reported size moved into roughly the 2,300 to 3,000 square-foot range in most markets. Buyers could encounter either a renovated older home in a closer-in location or a larger home farther from a town center. 226 Woodstock Avenue in Glen Ellyn shows the first pattern: a 1952 home with three bedrooms, three baths and 1,728 square feet that sold for $841,000.
The comparison also shows why price per square foot should not be used alone. Renovation quality, lot, architecture, walkability and functional layout can outweigh raw size.
At $1 million and above
The $1 million to $1.499 million closings were generally larger, often with four or five bedrooms and median reported sizes above 3,200 square feet. The segment contained custom homes, newer construction and extensively renovated properties, but also older homes whose value depended heavily on land or location.
As one concrete example, 510 Cloverleaf Court in Naperville was built in 1989 and offered four bedrooms, 4.5 baths and 3,594 square feet. It sold for $1.15 million in August 2026.
A limitation about age and updates
The brief MRED report does not provide a consistent structured field for year built or renovation quality. Those details require opening individual MLS records and reviewing disclosures, permits and supporting documentation. The examples above add context, but they should not be mistaken for townwide averages.
Does being closer to downtown cost more?
Often, buyers pay for walkability, train access and established blocks, but this report does not include a calculated distance-to-downtown field. The size differences are measurable; a precise downtown premium is not. An address-level comparable analysis is the right way to separate location value from condition, lot and square footage.
What the active snapshot shows
After excluding temporary listings, the report showed 297 currently marketable homes at $500,000 or more. Naperville accounted for more than half, which reflects its much larger geography and housing stock. Inventory counts are not measures of demand by themselves and can change daily.
How to use this information
Pick a monthly payment range, not only a purchase price.
Compare parcel-specific taxes and expected maintenance.
Decide which tradeoffs are flexible: town, lot, condition, commute or size.
Review sold comparables in the exact segment before judging an asking price.
Tour across two or three communities to calibrate value in person.
For a broader lifestyle comparison, read Elmhurst vs. Glen Ellyn vs. Wheaton vs. Lombard vs. Naperville. You can also explore the individual Elmhurst, Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, Lombard and Naperville guides.
Get the live version for your search
Market inventory changes continuously. Schedule a buyer consultation with John Salidas for a live MRED search and a side-by-side comparison based on your price, property type and location priorities.
Source: MRED connectMLS brief report prepared for The Salidas Group on September 6, 2026. MLS information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed and should be independently verified.
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