These days, even some of our most enduringly sought-after neighborhoods are feeling the housing-market crunch, with homes appreciating at rates we don't much appreciate. With that in mind, we dialed up a range of real-estate insiders across the region and asked what neighborhoods we'll be hearing—and speaking—more about in the coming years. Here are seven.

2. Downtown Belleville

To drive through downtown Belleville—or, better yet, to walk through the same streets—is to sense a new energy emerging. "Something's happening," says Belleville native Michael R. Allen, a preservationist and architectural blogger. What he's observing are many of the indicators of a downtown on the rebound.

"I see a vibrant commercial district on Main Street, a lot of involvement by artists, a storefront performing-arts center and several gallery walks," he says. Also part of this momentum: a new bike trail, a handful of loft projects (including one that was featured on HGTV) and two completed near–zero-energy homes. Residents and visitors are also taking increased advantage of the nearby MetroLink stop, which is just five blocks from the main strip.

According to the Leadership Council Southwestern Illinois, the region now has a record $9 billion in its development pipeline—an increase of more than 100 percent between fall 2006 and fall 2007. (Yes, billion.) And Belleville's claimed a chunk of that, with $6 million spent on a downtown streetscape project that's given some organization and color to that old-style shopping district.

Another positive is the old-fashioned charm that can come along with an old-fashioned business district. While the primary road into town, Route 159, is filled with dozens of new businesses, representing virtually every chain you can imagine, Belleville's Main Street has an altogether different vibe.

The inclusion of some residential components alongside the revitalized business district—best illustrated by the revitalization of the historic Lincoln Theatre—has to be seen as a plus. Even for those wanting to buy near, rather than in, downtown, housing prices in the Belleville area give you considerable bang for the buck, with single-family housing consistently in the low $100,000s.

"It's pretty striking," Allen says. "There's much more pedestrian life there. What I'm really seeing is young people hanging around during college, even after college, or moving to St. Louis for school, but coming home on the weekends. That wouldn't have happened five years ago. Belleville seems back on people's radar screens as a place to live. It's fairly easy to get to; it sits along mass transit. The next five years might be even bigger years for Belleville."