Kansas City Art Institute & the surrounding area (Gladstone, California: real estate, apartments)

[HeadingToArtSchool!]

Hi! I'm hoping to go to art school, and KCAI is one of my top choices! I lived in the metro KC area for about 10 years when I was younger, so I know the basics about the city. But I haven't had a chance to visit KCAI and the area around it in about 2 years, so I'm not aware of what it's like now. I know that KC has a great arts community and I love the city! I just need to know what the areas around the school are like - dangerous, expensive, suburban, etc.
Here's the address:

4415 Warwick Blvd
Kansas City, MO

I did a google maps search, and it's near the Plaza, UMKC, and Southmoreland Park, if that helps you recognize the area better.

Thanks in advance

[kcmo]

It's one of the best urban areas of the city. Fantastic homes, and apartments throughout the area. A lot of the apartments are going condo though, so not sure what that has done to rental prices. But the area is very nice, close to the Nelson and Kemper museums, close to MAX transit and very walkable. You really can't go wrong in this area. But I'm sure the rents are higher in this part of midtown than others. Not near as high as the plaza, but higher than areas north of there.

[burnt]

We're looking at moving to the area as well. I went to some benefits and such in the area, I believe in Hyde Park, and I remember how charming the restored homes were. I'm a mere 28, and I still have a few years left here in DC before we cash out of our tiny townhouse, but I'm hoping to significantly improve our living accommodations at that point by (a) moving to a lower cost of living area, and (b) having a few years of law and public policy practice under my belt.

The problem (is it were) is that it looks like Hyde Park area real estate is really low-turnover. That's good for neighborhood stability, which is perhaps one of the reasons the area is nice, but it makes it hard to get an idea of what the ballpark prices are for the homes we'd like to consider. I know I won't find my 20+ acre spread in the middle of KC, but I'd really like a classic, large (2500sqft+, but the bigger the better) home on at least a half-acre in a decent part of that beautiful neighborhood. Is that possible for $400-500K?

[northbound74]

Originally Posted by burnt

We're looking at moving to the area as well. I went to some benefits and such in the area, I believe in Hyde Park, and I remember how charming the restored homes were. I'm a mere 28, and I still have a few years left here in DC before we cash out of our tiny townhouse, but I'm hoping to significantly improve our living accommodations at that point by (a) moving to a lower cost of living area, and (b) having a few years of law and public policy practice under my belt.

The problem (is it were) is that it looks like Hyde Park area real estate is really low-turnover. That's good for neighborhood stability, which is perhaps one of the reasons the area is nice, but it makes it hard to get an idea of what the ballpark prices are for the homes we'd like to consider. I know I won't find my 20+ acre spread in the middle of KC, but I'd really like a classic, large (2500sqft+, but the bigger the better) home on at least a half-acre in a decent part of that beautiful neighborhood. Is that possible for $400-500K?

For that price you can get an extremely nice house, but I seriously doubt it would have that much land, especially in any kind of older part of town. There are a few villages next to the southwest corner of Gladstone that have very large lots. Many of the houses look to be 40-60 years old. It is a very neat area with mature landscaping that's completely surrounded by city. Oaks, Oakwood, Oakwood Manor, and Oakview. Those are the names, I believe.

[burnt]

Yeah, I kind of figured that about the land, but it was worth a shot. I'd ideally have that huge 20+ acre spread, but I'm weighing the benefits of living in town. I was a cityboy my entire childhood, whether in KCMO, Wichita, or whatever Texas city my dad inhabited at any given time, and I've lived in sprawling areas in Texas, California, and now Maryland, and I really think I'd like to be near all those things, but have no neighbors within earshot or view. But I could definitely live in a nice, classic home in that area around the Nelson-Atkins and deal with it. It'd definitely be a step up from our $300K home here, which is a tiny 1216sqft., 3BR townhouse with .08 acres. I really miss the affordable quality of life back in Kansas and KC.

[Lance39]

Well I was trying to get fancy with links and something went wrong. It is too late to try to figure it out so I'll just say that burnt, you can likely find what you want here in Kansas City, Missouri but maybe not in Hyde Park proper. You might try looking in the Rockhill Neighborhood for starters. That is pretty much the high end of the city living on the Missouri side if you exclude the Ward Parkway from being included as "city" living www.rockhillkc.org/index.htm

They (Hyde Park Residents) have an active neighborhood association with an impressive web presence: http://www.hydeparkkc.org/

I've made a list of all the Neighborhood and Homes Associations in the 39th District - let me know if you find any that are missing from my list:
http://www.lanceweber.com/neighborhoods.html