Blue Springs, Lee's Summit or Grain Valley Schools/area (Independence: best neighborhoods, low crime)

[lab227]

We are moving to the KC area soon. My husband's office will be on the border of Lee's Summit and Blue Springs. We have narrowed our city choices to Blue Springs, Lee's Summit or Grain Valley? Can anyone tell me about the school districts and feel of these towns? We want friendly people and don't want to keep up with the "Jones" in the neighborhood. We are secure in what we have and who we are that we don't have to put on airs. I say this because where we are from people "worry" about appearing more wealthy than they are and just come off rude and snooty. We are looking for a house in the price range of 180k to 200k. We would like good schools academically but the environment of the school is important also. I want my children to enjoy their day. Low crime is also very important. Any responses would be greatly appreciated to help us with our decision, especially regarding school districts. We are very excited to move to the KC area.

[kcmo]

I live on the border of Lee's Summit, Independence and Blue Springs.

You will really like the area. There are modest areas and very upscale areas.

Blue Springs will probably be a little less expensive than Lee's Summit and you will get more for your money, especially in that price bracket. Grain Valley is basically an extension of Blue Springs, only everything in GV is new. That entire city was built in the past decade except the tiny old downtown and surrounding neighborhoods.

One thing this area is not is snooty. It's just a down to earth area. Even in very upscale areas, residents of eastern jackson county just don't seem to get into the "keeping up with the Jones". People take care of their homes and yards, but they don't play the games of always trying to keep one step ahead of the neighbors, tend to drive domestic cars and shop at Target, not specialty stores.

It might have a lot to do with the fact that the area is still sort of blue collar. The people that live in 400k homes tend to be owners of construction companies not CEO's of Sprint. They tend to be born and raised in KC, not just another corporate transient.

In that price bracket, I would look at southern Blue Springs and eastern Blue Springs and around the BS/Indy border. There are many nice areas south of US-40 and west of Route 7. Many will be out of your price range, but you should be able to slip into that area of town. Another really nice area is along Adams Dairy Parkway north of I-70.

Lee's Summit is a pretty big city with many price points, but in the 200k range, you might end up in an area that is not quite as nice as Blue Springs in the same price point. 1980's track housing along US-50/Todd George etc. But you never know. Lee's Summit has a lot of upscale housing and most of the stuff built in the past ten years in LS is 300k and up, especially in the northern parts of the city along I-470. But you might look into some slightly older areas along 470 before that corridor went total upper bracket. But you won't find much under 200k in Lee's Summit along I-470. You will have to go into the center of the city or out along US-50 which is pretty far away.

Don't overlook Independence! There are some very nice areas in southeast Indy that are in the Blue Springs School District and you get even more for your buck there, plus you are closer to all the shopping and dining around the Independence Center area. Actually most of the nicer areas along Little Blue, US-40, Woods Chapel etc east of 470 are in Indy even though most people think those areas are in BS. And there are many nice areas of Indy west of 470 around the new Bass Pro and along 39th, near the shopping centers. Indy has sort of a bad image in KC even though the southeast parts of the city have some of the nicest, largest homes in some of the best neighborhoods in the metro.

The Blue Springs and Lee's Summit school districts are great. You really can't go wrong with either. Both are top rated and every single person I know has great things to say about them. The districts are large and the high schools are state of the art and offer anything you can imagine from large suburban high schools.

As I mentioned, the nicer parts of Indy are in the BS district. Much of northern LS is in the BS district and parts of southern BS are in the LS district.

Grain Valley. I'm not a fan of GV. It's a small town that has turned into a suburb overnight. Lots of growing pains. The schools won't offer as much as BS or LS either. But if you want a home a bit further out, you might check it out.

[lab227]

Thank you for the post. We will check out the areas you described. We did visit the Adam's Dairy/Duncan Rd area in BS and liked it. Some of the subdivisions turned out be actually in the Grain Valley school district. What about GV do you not like? Are the schools bad? I know they are much smaller. Is GV not generally liked by the area residents? How about Raintree in Lee's Summit and that general area? Thanks again for the information.

[kcmo]

I think the schools are fine. I was just saying that the Blue Springs or Lee's Summit schools will offer far more choices, activities, sports etc because they are very large and mature suburban districts.

I know a lot of people from GV and they like it. I'm from the urban city, so it's taken years for me to get used to the suburbs. I'm just not a small town type person. GV might be perfect for you.

The area around ADP and Duncan is very nice in GV and BS.

Raintree is very nice as well, it's just that it's at least 15 miles away from where the other areas you are looking at. Not sure where you will be commuting to or anything. But that's a nice area as well.

[lab227]

Hi, thanks again for responding. I had another question. Some of the homes in the Raintree Lake area the school district is Raymore. What can you tell me about that school district and town? Thanks.

[kcmo]

I have heard many good things about the district. It's a very fast growing district. Much smaller than Lee's Summit and it probably doesn't offer as much, but I'm sure it's a fine district.

My wife taught there for a while.

Lee's Summit West is only a mile or so from Raintree, so if you live on the RayPec side, you will be driving much further to schools. Not sure where the elementary schools in the Raymore district are, but there is a LS elementary right across from Raintree.

LS West is a very large and modern suburban high school with a suburban student population and is only a mile or so away from Raintree. RayPec High is older, yet growing fast. Not sure when they will build a second High School, but till they do, that school is way out south of Raymore, a half hour away. The district has a growing suburban population, but it also has a very rural culture.

Something to think about. Personally, I would try to get a home in the LS district, but if you are more into being in a rural or "small town" culture, then you might not only look at the Ray Pec district, you might want to look into living in Cass County...

[OneKC]

I grew up in Blue Springs and found it to be a great place to live as a child. The schools are more than adequate, although probably not as good as Shawnee Mission, Blue Valley on the KS side. I thought Blue Springs had a tremendous sense of community, moreso than most KC suburbs. It has a small town feel while still having the advantages of living in a major metro area. People still get excited about the local HS football teams, there are parades and festivals in old downtown, and there is just a general sense of belonging. Its a great mix of rural and suburban. Lots of parks, a tremendous nature preserve, and very near to Lake Jacomo and Lotawana.

Lee's Summit seems to be a community on the up and up that is becoming one of the more attractive areas in the metro. I couldn't tell you much about it other than it looks like there is tremendous growth there, and it may price you out. I agree that you can get a better "bang for your buck" in Blue Springs. But if you want an area that is growing and progressing, Lee's Summit is probably for you.

[Deines-Paulson]

Hi..I'm a realtor in Lee's Summit! If you would send me your email I can send you a list homes available in your price range. There are alot of them right now. Anyone of the citys you mentioned are good. My phone number is in my profile info if you need help. Thank you
Mike