Missouri Relocation Question (Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield: lease, crime, home)

[RunD1987]

Good morning,

Wife and I are bit transient with finding place to live call home. Moved from CT to NC. Have family living in the outskirts of Joplin MO.

Our MIL made a trip out there said the area was beautiful. Plan on making a trip soon to check out MO.

Just curious on thoughts, have about 20 months left with our current lease so have time to explore.

Looking for an area with colleges, hospitals, and decent school system. Also places nearby to camp/hike.

Wife is an LPN and I work in the mental health field (also EMT).

Any cities or towns recommend worth a look?

How's Columbia compared to Springfield?

From our research so far North and South MO seem very different.

Look forward to the insight.

[TRex2]

Joplin, Springfield, and Rolla all fit your description, so far.
I really don't know enough about anything North of I-44.

[sub]

Springfield and Columbia would both fit.
Springfield is in an area that's more conservative, not that the other is extremely liberal.
The city itself is politically diverse--ish. It's bigger and has more shopping and amenities. Less reliant on the colleges than Columbia which is decidedly more of a college town.

Like most places these days, the bigger divide is city-rural, not north-south.
Northern Missouri will start to feel more like Iowa, southern Missouri is where things begin to look more southern, but not always completely so.
For the most part, the rural areas and smaller cities and towns throughout the state aren't dramatically different. I tend to prefer the northern areas of the state. Specifically Kansas City and north from there, but if hiking is a priority, the Ozarks would be better.

For better school systems, people around Springfield look towards Ozark and Nixa. Not sure about Columbia.
Springfield is a hub for healthcare that covers a fairly large region.

You might hear stories about how Springfield's crime has spiked in recent years.
I don't know.
I have noticed some differences, but it still doesn't seem like it's as bad as the numbers make it sound.
Branson is technically part of its metro, so there's all that stuff to do as well. It's even a decent place for more mundane shopping, not just touristy stuff. It's stores typically won't be as crowded as Springfield's, which can be a very busy place at times.

Both cities are in the Ozarks with outdoors stuff to do nearby. Springfield sits on a plateau so it might not look the kind of place with that, but you're back in the hills before you even leave town to the south.

As for Joplin, it seems like a nice enough town.

[Floorist]

Joplin would fit. It is a nice, clean city with about anything you could want. They just opened a medical school. There are several excellent colleges in the area. And things like Branson are a short drive. I live about 60 miles north of it. If I did not own a home here, I would move there. Webb City, a Joplin suburb, is an excellent school system.

[STLCityMike]

The main difference between Springfield and Columbia - to me - is that Springfield is a more independent city. It offers more distinct things to do that Columbia does not. It has a zoo, aquarium, minor league baseball, world team tennis, a better airport for travel etc. Likely the result of Columbia's proximity to both KC and St. Louis. Springfield is 3+ hours to each, while Columbia is less than 2 hours to each.

Both are relatively flat in the city, but close to more diverse terrain. You hear the southern drawl in Springfield, you won't in Columbia.

Both fit your initial request - college and healthcare. It just depends on the what else you want.

[Floorist]

Originally Posted by STLCityMike

The main difference between Springfield and Columbia - to me - is that Springfield is a more independent city. It offers more distinct things to do that Columbia does not. It has a zoo, aquarium, minor league baseball, world team tennis, a better airport for travel etc. Likely the result of Columbia's proximity to both KC and St. Louis. Springfield is 3+ hours to each, while Columbia is less than 2 hours to each.

Both are relatively flat in the city, but close to more diverse terrain. You hear the southern drawl in Springfield, you won't in Columbia.

Both fit your initial request - college and healthcare. It just depends on the what else you want.

Springfield also has street gangs and more crime.

[Sassybluesy]

Have you ruled out the St. Louis metro area? We have a lot of excellent hospitals, lots of amenities, state parks, etc within easy driving distance, and great colleges.

[SunGrins]

I would choose the Columbia area over Springfield. There are several towns worth checking out besides Columbia: Fulton, Ashland, Jefferson City, Boonville. There is a state mental hospital in Fulton. Maybe 6 or more hospitals in the area, several universities, Winston Churchill Memorial is in Fulton, state capital in Jefferson City, KC and St. Louis are a couple hours away. Columbia is somewhat liberal but the other towns are more conservative. Katy Trail is a 240 mile bike path along the river. More rolling farm land and Missouri River valley than Ozarks.

[tossup99]

Late to the party here but since you stated you have 20 months I'll weight in as I've lived in several of the places you mentioned.



Joplin and Springfield metros are pretty similar and nice places to live unless you are wanting a larger city. The main difference is Springfield is a fair bit larger so it has more to offer, better parks and trails, but traffic is MUCH worse and COL is a bit higher. They both have a lot of healthcare jobs and a ton of fantastic restaurants. Joplin has MSSU, Ozark Christian, and KCU Med school and a new dental school. Springfield has Missouri State, Drury, and Evangel. It's difficult to suggest one metro over the other they each have pros and cons.



One other specific town I am keen on is Carthage. Population about 15,000. It has a small but great hospital built around the concept of trying to not feel like a 'hospital' so lots of large windows and nice garden views. Carthage is part of the Joplin area but it's NOT a "suburb". The town is very historic and has a lot of festivals and charm. It's one of the more walkable communities in the area and unlike many towns, the older core neighborhoods of Carthage are not (completely) abandoned and run down. I've always thought it was a nice little town close to Joplin which has most things you can't find or do in Carthage. https://visitcarthage.com/



Columbia is more similar to Springfield but it's more of a college town. It's nice though if a college town in your jam.


As far as schools most of the larger districts around Joplin or Springfield are well regarded. A lot of people talk about Webb City and it's good but Carl Junction is a nicer town in my opinion and Carthage has much more to offer. I hear a lot of mixed things about Joplin schools - it's much larger.



Generally northern MO is similar to Iowa and the midwest where the south (ozarks) is a blend of midwest and Appalachia. More scenic but also can be quite trashy in places. Snow is not super common in the ozarks. When it does snow it's usually gone within a couple days. Up north snow will be much more common.

[ShowMeBryan]

Born and raised in Joplin here, then went to Mizzou and stayed (23 years total). I'd take Columbia over Joplin/Springfield in a heartbeat. Columbia is more open and cosmopolitan.