Briarcliff (Kansas City, Liberty, Parkville: insurance, crime, house prices)

[famusdarlin]

We've been debating, researching, driving around and then debating some more about where should our next house be, that is if we stay in the Kansas City area. I have always leaned toward Liberty because that is where most of my family is based. But my husband is a city boy. He leans toward Brookside. I'm not opposed to Brookside, but I would love to be closer to my family for babysitting and family gathering purposes.

I always considered Briarcliff out of our price range, but have been seeing some much more reasonable housing prices in Briarcliff and on the east side of the highway in Claymont, ect.

What have you all heard about this area? Diversity is important to our family is there much diversity in the neighborhood? I consider north of the river relatively diverse, of course not the most diverse place in the city, but IMO one of the top diverse areas, ethnically and economically.

I love the thought of being close to downtown, lots of trees and great topography, but the one thing that does worry me is the lack of stores close by.

Thanks for the help.

[kcmo]

Old Briarcliff. That is what you mean right? East of 169 and west of North Oak.

I think this is probably the best kept secret in metro KC. I love the area. It has a little bit of urban charm as well as most of the suburban characteristics most people want. Good schools, families, secluded streets etc.

The area has a very wide range of houses and house prices. From multi million dollar homes with gorgeous views of the downtown skyline to modest homes under 150k. The hills, mature trees and views are something that is just so rare in most of KC, especially in a more suburban area. Waterworks Park is great and they have a great disc golf course there.

The area is so close to Downtown, yet also very close to all the suburban shopping areas of the Northland like Briarcliff Village, Tulleries, Zona Rosa, Shoal Creek, Downtown Parkville and Downtown NKC. It seems like there is very little basic retail nearby, but in realitiy, it's not that far away. The Price Chopper, Home Depot etc at 29 and Vivion is only a few miles away and you can get to Barry and 29 from Briarcliff in about 8 minutes.

The only problem with Old Briarcliff is that it's a little close to some areas that are a bit blightened. North Oak south of 29 has seen better days and many of the neighborhoods along N Oak (mostly east of N Oak) have also seen better days. I don't think they are crime ridden or anything, but the demographics of those areas are too low to support retail along that stretch of N Oak and so that area has a run down feel. The KCATA is supposed to extend MAX bus service along N Oak, but even the regular bus service along that corridor is decent. I think that someday that area could be a very popular inner ring suburb if KCMO puts some effort into N Oak Revitalization. Didn't Cerner buy the old Farmland HQ? If so, that will help a lot.

But I wouldn't let that keep you from looking at Old Briarcliff. It's a wonderful area and the people there are very friendly. Just drive around and talk to people. They are great. I have asked to go on people's decks to take photos of the skyline and people are always friendly. It's not quite Brookside, but the schools are much better and even though there are some more run down areas east of Old Briarcliff, the Briarcliff West area is nothing but multi million dollar homes. (Hallbrook with hills and city views)...

BTW, Old Brircliff was voted KCMO's best "city" neighborhood a while back in some KC Star story.

PS, check out the Frank Write home up there. If the owner will let you tour it, amazing city views

[skrizzle]

Yeah Old Briarcliff is awesome! My gf and I almost bought our house there but someone snatched it up willing to pay more then we would.

If light rail ever gets built in KC, it is also almost a sure thing it will travel up North Oak right by there. It's a beautiful neighborhood..and very conveniently located.

[famusdarlin]

Thanks for the input, very encouraging.

[RjRobb2]

Be very, very careful when choosing a house in Briarcliff. Have that house inspected a couple of times. There have been a lot of issues with foundations in Briarcliff. They built all these huge houses on hills and some of them are sinking into the hills because they did not build a foundation strong enough to hold that large of a house.

This is one of the reasons that the houses are more affordable than they use to be.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by RjRobb2

Be very, very careful when choosing a house in Briarcliff. Have that house inspected a couple of times. There have been a lot of issues with foundations in Briarcliff. They built all these huge houses on hills and some of them are sinking into the hills because they did not build a foundation strong enough to hold that large of a house.
This is one of the reasons that the houses are more affordable than they use to be.

Never heard about this problem. Are you talking about the new area or the older area east of 169?

[RjRobb2]

Originally Posted by kcmo

Never heard about this problem. Are you talking about the new area or the older area east of 169?

The older area. Actually, foundation issues is something impacting the entire KCMO area for houses built in the last 15 years. They loosened the guidelines for the licenses to be builder about 15 years ago and it is now catching up. I spoke with an insurance adjustor that worked with State Farm and he said that more claims were being filed on houses built in the last 5-15 years than old houses about 10 fold. Not only are foundations being poured incorrectly but they are using the cheapest of everything and it is causing major issues.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by RjRobb2

The older area. Actually, foundation issues is something impacting the entire KCMO area for houses built in the last 15 years. They loosened the guidelines for the licenses to be builder about 15 years ago and it is now catching up. I spoke with an insurance adjustor that worked with State Farm and he said that more claims were being filed on houses built in the last 5-15 years than old houses about 10 fold. Not only are foundations being poured incorrectly but they are using the cheapest of everything and it is causing major issues.

Right, so basically the same things that affect all new construction in much of the KC area (not just KCMO). You have to spend much more than what the going rate is for a new home to have it built right.

I have a good friend that was a concrete contractor and the stuff he said they did to get new homes up was insane. It kept us from buying a new home in KC because a 280k home done right costs more like 350k and I had just spent 8 years rebuilding a horribly constructed suburban home that was constantly falling apart compared to our Waldo home which was solid as a rock.

So I would look hard at any home, anywhere, but the late 80's into the 90's seemed to be the absolute worst. It's like there were no inspections or codes being enforced.