Looking to buy a home in Illinois? The Prairie State, particularly Chicago, is known for its Chicago-style hot dogs, deep dish pizza, and Wrigley Field. With the state stretching 390 miles from north to south and 210 miles from east to west, you have several options when it comes to where you buy property.

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Some places, however, are better than others – and you’ll probably want to avoid some of them. Here’s a look at the four worst Illinois cities to buy property in the next five years, taking into account crime rates, property taxes, poverty levels and appreciation potential.

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Cahokia Heights

Cahokia Heights is close to the Illinois-Missouri border, providing a short commute for those working in St. Louis. However, you may want to avoid purchasing property in Cahokia Heights due to high poverty rates, population decline, and pollution. Since 2000, Cahokia Heights has seen a population decrease of 16.2%, as reported by City-Data.com.

“I would not purchase property in Cahokia Heights due to continued population decline and underfunded infrastructure,” said Yancy Forsythe, founder of Missouri Valley Homes. “Cahokia Heights faces serious challenges that make it a risky investment for real estate buyers like me.”

Additionally, the number of residents living in poverty is 30.3%, which is much higher than in neighboring areas. High poverty rates and a declining population indicate little to no appreciation potential. If these factors weren’t enough to deter you from Cahokia Heights, the pollution might. Cahokia Heights ranked 41st on City-Data.com’s list of counties with the highest nitrogen dioxide air pollution readings and 75th on the highest sulfur oxide air pollution readings in 2012.

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Peoria

“Peoria’s economic base, heavily dependent on manufacturing, has faced major disruptions from deindustrialization,” said Jim Sandford, real estate expert and founder of Freedom Properties Direct. “Although the city has attempted to diversify its economy, job opportunities remain scarce compared to other cities in Illinois. The decline in the job market contributed to population loss, which led to a decline in property values.

Peoria ranked third on NBC Chicago’s 2023 list of least favorite cities, with a rate of 61.7%. For reference, between 1998 and 2002, the average home value increased by 154%. Peoria’s population growth has declined 1.7 percent since 2000, according to City-Data.com, indicating that more people are leaving the city rather than moving here.

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Additionally, approximately 17.4% of the city lives in poverty and the crime index is 509.4, which is much higher than the national average.

Buying a home in Peoria means you can pay about 2.4% of the value in property taxes, or about $3,662. This is slightly higher than the Illinois average of 2.08%. If you want to buy property in Illinois, avoid Peoria.

Springfield

Unlike Cahokia Heights and Peoria, Springfield has seen modest population growth of 1.6 percent since 2000, City-Data.com reported. The poverty rate is also lower than that of Cahokia Heights, at 15.0%; however, Springfield ranks second among cities with the lowest approval percentages since 1998, at 61.4 percent. Property taxes are also closer to the state average, at 2.1 percent.

Despite modest population growth and a lower poverty rate, Springfield has a higher crime rate than the U.S. average at 441.5.

Construction of new single-family homes has also slowed over the past five years, indicating the city is not attracting new residents. This means that buying a home in Springfield could lead to stagnant growth. Illinois has many other cities that are showing promising growth results compared to Springfield.

Decatur

Decatur ranked sixth on the list of cities with the lowest growth in home values, at 62.3 percent. Even if you’re not looking for appreciation, you might have trouble finding job opportunities. The population has declined 15.6 percent since 2000 in Decatur, according to City-Data.com, with a poverty rate of 18.0 percent. A declining population and high poverty rate highlight minimal employment opportunities.

Crime is higher than the national average at 373.1, with more thefts, assaults, burglaries and auto thefts than the state average. Additionally, property taxes are assessed at approximately 2.4% of the home’s value, which is also higher than the Illinois average.

Combine all of these factors and you may want to avoid purchasing property in Decatur.

The essentials

Were these cities originally on your list of potential places to live? If so, you may want to consider other cities, such as Evanston, Naperville, and Aurora. These cities all have low crime rates, positive population growth, and promising job markets.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 4 Worst Illinois Cities to Buy Home in the Next 5 Years, According to Real Estate Agents