Any tips from locals for finding an apartment in Uptown, Chicago?

Working with a real estate agent who is familiar with the area is a good place to start. You should do your homework including walking the neighborhood and checking crime statistics.

Be REAL careful and research the crime and walk around where you are looking. Uptown is diverse and has some great areas, but there are pockets that aren't so great (if you head east, there is a methadone clinic and hospital--I lived in this part and we had prostitutes in our parking garage, drug deals outside our apartment, and drug addict issues outside all the time). Be real careful because there are pockets of uptown that are NOT safe. In my expereicne over the past 12 years, Uptown is the least safe neighborhood on the north side. I've even had cab drivers refuse to drive me home b/c of safety.

I found an apartment nearby a few years ago using Craigslist, and it was an awesome deal with few problems overall. You can always use Zillow to find out average home costs to make sure you're getting a good deal.

Finding apartments anywhere in Chicago is pretty easy with one of the many apartment finding services, like Chicago Apartment Finders. I've had a lot of success through Craigslist in finding all of my apartments throughout the city.