Where to live within driving distance of KCS? We are being transfered. (Lee's Summit: credit, neighborhoods)

[TinaMcG]

Originally Posted by gunsyd

Thanks everyone so much for your replies. My husband will be working at the KCS corporate headquarters, I believe it is at 427 W 12th st. We heard it is more expensive to live in Kansas than Missouri, is there any truth to this? thanks again in advance.

Check out the tax situations if you live in KS and work in MO. When we moved here from Chicago, my husband took a job in Shawnee, KS. We looked at homes in MO before we learned that he'd be paying 1% state income tax for MO, in addition to what we pay for Kansas. I don't know how it works going the other way; there was some change in that this year.

Can anyone enlighten the OP on the tax implications on living in one state and working in the other?

[Samantha S]

Originally Posted by TinaMcG

Check out the tax situations if you live in KS and work in MO. When we moved here from Chicago, my husband took a job in Shawnee, KS. We looked at homes in MO before we learned that he'd be paying 1% state income tax for MO, in addition to what we pay for Kansas. I don't know how it works going the other way; there was some change in that this year.

Can anyone enlighten the OP on the tax implications on living in one state and working in the other?

We live in KS, and both my husband and I work for companies headquartered in MO. We file a MO state return and are entitled to a refund of withholding from MO, then we file a KS state return and send it all plus more to KS.

It's no big deal - it's one more return to file, but MO is VERY fast with their refunds (In the past I have received my check prior to even receiving the return receipt in the mail!) and the MO state return is simple to fill out (or cheap to have some do for you.) We have started paying quarterly taxes to KS so that we don't pay a penalty - it's not much (it's for paying all the tax after the end of the year as opposed to having withholding) but why send more than you have to!

Because the OP's company is in KCMO, you won't be able to get out of the 1% earnings tax. If you do not work the entire year in KCMO (if he travels and works some of the time in KS or elsewhere) I believe you can file for a partial refund of the earnings tax. I've never done that as we've never qualified for enough of a refund to make it worth filing. But I've heard it can be done.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by TinaMcG

Check out the tax situations if you live in KS and work in MO. When we moved here from Chicago, my husband took a job in Shawnee, KS. We looked at homes in MO before we learned that he'd be paying 1% state income tax for MO, in addition to what we pay for Kansas. I don't know how it works going the other way; there was some change in that this year.

Can anyone enlighten the OP on the tax implications on living in one state and working in the other?

The 1% a year you pay in KCMO would easily be canceled out by buying your gas in MO, let alone most other taxes are lower like property taxes and state taxes which can be a difference of thousands of dollars per year. In KCMO trash pickup is free, that’s also nearly enough to cancel out the tax, I’m sure you pay 300-500 dollar a year for trash service in Shawnee.

In general, taxes are quite a bit lower on the MO side, with our without the E-tax, which is only applied if you live or work in KCMO, so the MO suburbs don’t have that tax.

But if you work in Shawnee, I’m not sure why you would live in MO anyway. That’s a long drive from similar suburbs on the MO side and Shawnee is a nice area.

Unless you wanted a more urban type of housing option, then MO is your only choice and you can get to Shawnee pretty quickly from places like the Plaza and Brookside.

[Samantha S]

Originally Posted by kcmo

I’m sure you pay 300-500 dollar a year for trash service in Shawnee.

We pay less than $200 per year for trash and recycling service in Shawnee.

You may pay more than that if you are outside of a Homes Association - but with an HOA, you will get a group rate.

It sounded from the OP that hubby will be working downtown and they are moving from Louisiana. Coming from the South, you may well find the MO side feeling more like "home". Definitely spend some time on both sides of the state line before settling -- definitely find out where others in the group are looking. From either side, the commute shouldn't be too bad.

[northbound74]

Originally Posted by Samantha S

It sounded from the OP that hubby will be working downtown and they are moving from Louisiana. Coming from the South, you may well find the MO side feeling more like "home". Definitely spend some time on both sides of the state line before settling -- definitely find out where others in the group are looking. From either side, the commute shouldn't be too bad.

Being from the south, I have my issues with it, but what you find in the south isn't drastically different than what you find anywhere in the KC metro, Missouri or Kansas.
Even in towns like Little Rock, there's parts that are very much like JoCo, and there's parts like KCMO... and of course, like northern Independence.

The Kansas City area may not be 'southern', but there's a very profound southern influence throughout the metro. The OP should be fine wherever they land.

[luzianne]

Originally Posted by Samantha S

We pay less than $200 per year for trash and recycling service in Shawnee.

In PV, recycling must be included in our city taxes. We don't pay for trash pickup or recycling so I am assuming the city pays for it and then our taxes cover the cost.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by northbound74

The Kansas City area may not be 'southern', but there's a very profound southern influence throughout the metro. The OP should be fine wherever they land.

In my travels I have found that the southern influences become far LESS noticeable along and north of the I-80 corridor. I think that corridor is the southern extent of the Upper Midwest.
I have also noticed that the Kansas City metro area tends to attract quite a few people from the south. However, I definitely think people from all over the country are moving there. The people that bought by parents house in Overland Park were from Clifton Park, NY- a suburb of Albany.

[casualsuede]

Wow,

There's alot of resentment of KCK-JoCo and KCMO folks.

The 1 month i have lived in KCMO, I do have to admit I have heard JoCo folks (all the people who work in my office area from the Overland Park/Lenexa/Olathe areas) say that if you got kids, you want to live in JoCo. However, most of my JoCo friends did say I made a good choice, as a single guy, to move to Westport.

On the other hand, I did get a few rolled eyes when I told people that I was spending my New YEars eve at a friends house in Overland Park.

Not outright resentment or disparaging, but alittle underlying friction....

[stillcallingtheHOGS]

comments on living in the red bridge area or downtown area of union hill

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by stillcallingtheHOGS

comments on living in the red bridge area or downtown area of union hill

Union Hill is freaking awesome. I love Union Hill. Most places in there have killer views of the city and the homes are just amazing. For some reason this area of KC reminds me a bit of a San Francisco.

I know a few people that live there and you couldn't pay them enough money to get them to leave. Five minutes from downtown, five minutes from the plaza, you can walk to Crown Center, great transit and a really quiet and safe urban neighborhood.

Red Bridge is a suburban area. Quite different from Union Hill. Red Bridge is a very large area that has some more run down areas and some very upscale areas. The closer the State Line the more upscale. As far as I know the area has little crime etc. It's almost entirely residential and built out, although there are some new homes going up further south, but that's more the Martin City area.

Schools could be an issue. You would either be in the Center or Grandview districts, both of which have "some" issues, but both are OK, Grandview being a bit better. I wouldn't hesitate sending my kids to public schools in Red Bridge, especially elementary.

If you work in the office parks in JoCo or SKC, Red bridge is a very nice, convenient place to live with great access to 435 and if just full of mature trees.