Raymore info? (Lee's Summit, Blue Springs, Belton: for sale, how much, new house)

[Growing2Boys]

Hi everyone,
Potential move pending from Iowa.
Looking at Raymore, Overland Park & Lenexa. I looked up elementary school scores/ parent satisfaction & those districts caught my eye. I like a particular subdivision in Raymore. I'd love more info on these areas. (such as distance to shopping, traffic, safety)

Feel free to offer any other options! It seems like Lenexa's homes are over priced. Are people buying there to get into the schools?

Thanks!
Rebecca

[kcmo]

Depends on the kind of lifestyle you want.

It's much cheaper to live in Raymore, but it's different than OP or Lenexa.

I would say the Raymore is very blue collar and even a bit redneck. It's a small town growing very fast and turning into a large suburb. Traffic on Highway 71 (main route from Raymore into metro KC) can be bad and Route 58, (the main route in Raymore/Belton) is always crowded and a mess, especially around the 71 interchange. They are building a new interchange to the south that will help though.

Overland Park is much much larger and more built up than Raymore, big wide streets. It's a very "corporate" suburb with lots of office parks etc. Traffic is not bad, but it can get bad on 435 and 69 during rush hour. OP is very white collar and has the feel of a being in a large metro area vs Raymore which is more like being in a smaller town.

Lenexa is not quite as white collar as OP, but much more so than Raymore and they are really starting to build a lot of offices out that way so they are catching up.

Lenexa has an older, established portion east of 435 and very new, upscale areas west of 435 and even west of K-7. The western portions of Lenexa offer some of the prettiest terrain for a newer suburban area in the metro, but the homes can get very expensive. You are also very close to Shawnee Mission Park, one of the most popular parks in the metro.

I personally would choose Lenexa out of the three. But if you want something with a bit more small town feeling, then you may as well go with Raymore since you will get more home for your dollar. OP is a very large city, most housing south of 435 is pretty pricy in OP and many would call that area pretty bland. But northern OP has some charming older areas. You may want to look into that area too.

Of the three, I would choose Lenexa.

[NvrLkBk]

I lived in Raymore, MO in Hunter's Glen subdivision in a new house and I will say that Raymore is not redneck. We loved it there and only moved due to my husband working at his father's law firm an hour away.

The pro's:

1. Proximity to many different shopping areas--Lee's Summit, Leawood, Overland Park
2. Great schools for children. Many of the schools are neighborhood schools.
3. Friendliness--at least in our neighborhood. We don't have that same friendliness where we live now and I miss that.
4. My kids were enrolled in all different types of activities and it was easy getting them back and forth

Con's

1. As previous poster stated, traffic can be a nightmare. However, traffic can be a nightmare in Overland Park during rush hour
2. Taxes. Cass county taxes are expensive
3. Water is expensive. I do not know why. Maybe it has decreased since I moved.

I hope this helps. Good luck. Stephanie

[kcmo]

I didn't say it's redneck, I said it can be a bit redneck. It's a very blue collar suburban area. Lots of pickup trucks etc. The area was rural ten years ago. It's not a bad thing, just the way it is. It's becoming less and less like that every year though.

BTW, many of KC's suburbs have some level of redneck or blue collar culture. I live in eastern Jackson County and Blue Springs and Lee's Summit can be a bit more neck than I care for.

I swear, every time I see a pickup with sack hanging from the trailer hitch, I want to pack up and move away from the midwest all together. I can't stand that any more than I can stand spinning wheels.

Just give me a normal area, be it suburban or urban. No ghetto and no extreme country stuff.

[NvrLkBk]

Raymore was rural 10 years ago. It's amazing how much it has grown. Some of the new houses are so close to the highway, I can't believe people could live in them with the highway noise they would have to hear 24/7.

And those sacks...those are disgusting. It's great when your little kids ask what they are. How do you answer that question???? Are those just a midwest thing? How embarrasing.

Stephanie

[kcmo]

I drive all over the country and I have only seen that in KC, not in the city, but out in the burbs or rural areas around the metro. I would guess you would see it in places like Oklahoma, Texas etc if you spend enough time in suburban or rural areas there.

But I can not even imagine seeing something like that in Chicago, let alone Boston, Seattle, San Diego, Miami etc.

I think you would be pulled over and ticketed for driving around with testicals hanging off the back of your pickup up in most larger civilized metropolitan areas.

You really don't see pickups in those cities though, the only people that drive pickups in major cities on the coasts are when they are used for work trucks.

A lot of the large cities in Texas have even more pickups than KC does. I would imagine you see them there too.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by kcmo

I drive all over the country and I have only seen that in KC, not in the city, but out in the burbs or rural areas around the metro. I would guess you would see it in places like Oklahoma, Texas etc if you spend enough time in suburban or rural areas there.

But I can not even imagine seeing something like that in Chicago, let alone Boston, Seattle, San Diego, Miami etc.

I think you would be pulled over and ticketed for driving around with testicals hanging off the back of your pickup up in most larger civilized metropolitan areas.

You really don't see pickups in those cities though, the only people that drive pickups in major cities on the coasts are when they are used for work trucks.

A lot of the large cities in Texas have even more pickups than KC does. I would imagine you see them there too.

I think a lot of it has to do with rural ties. I noticed it somewhat when I lived out in NW Kansas. Many people who live in KC have moved from a very small rural town in the Plains or Midwest. I think some of it is related to the "western culture" or "cowboy culture" that is more prevasive in the rural areas in the south-central Plains compared to larger coastal cities or urbane Great Lakes cities.

[NvrLkBk]

Those "sacks" and the stickers that show a character "spraying" something are so tacky. Those stickers are prevalent in the town we live in. Maybe these things are related to western culture. We're trying to find a home in/around Savannah or the Hilton Head area. Can't wait for a change of scenery!

[Deines-Paulson]

I relocated from Leawood to Raymore about 10 years ago. It has been a great experience for my sons. Multiple state football championships, scholarships to 2 of the best colleges in the country! TCU and Notre Dame on academics scholarships. I can say the tax levy for Cass County is quite similar to that of Johnson County KS. The people are very friendly and its a great place to bring up your children. The infrastructure is a work in progress but all in all this has been a great place to raise children. Shopping conveniences are plentiful with access to multiple areas within a matter of minutes. The schools are great and it is rapidly growing.

[kcmo70]

I have lived in Raymore for 29 years. It has had tremendous growth as a "bedroom community". Seemed anywhere you went, you ran into someone you knew. Not so much anymore. It was nice raising two boys there. We were involved with sports, scouts, school activities and our church. It has just recently obtained some major businesses to help with the taxes. Housing construction has slowed down as it has everywhere but there are many houses for sale. Just depends on what lifestyle you are interested in.