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I’ve recently accepted a position in St. Louis and will be moving from Minneapolis. We are a family of four (kids 6 & 3). My wife will stay home at least until the youngest is in kindergarten, so we are a single income family for now. Household income will be $90K, plus discretionary annual bonus. We would like to rent for a year before buying a house but definitely plan to buy if we like it here. I would like to keep rent at 25% of gross pay, so $1800 or so. Same goes for a house-I would like to keep PITI at $1800 or less ($300K at most) when we choose to buy. I’ll be working in Maryland Heights.
I have searched these boards for advice, and I’ve scouted the area when I came for my interview. However, since I have no contacts in the area, I thought it might be good to ask the locals myself.
I would like to know what the best place for my family is. We need good public schools first and foremost. They don’t have to be great, but definitely above average. Based on what I’ve seen, it looks like Ladue, Clayton and maybe Lindbergh have the best rankings in the area. Again, we don’t need best of the best. I see that Rockwood, Parkway, Kirkwood, and Francis Howell have good test scores, amongst others.
It’s my understanding that STL has some nice family amenities downtown, and we do certainly plan to take advantage of that. But we would like to live in a suburb that has good amenities for more regular day to day use... bike trails, parks and playgrounds, libraries, maybe a water park. We aren’t very picky about restaurants or shopping. Those hobbies get expensive fast when you have kids. We aren’t fans of chain restaurants, but we’ll live amongst them if need be and commute to a good restaurant on the rare occasion that we go.
During my trip here, I ventured to both Clayton (170/64 area), Chesterfield and Saint Charles area. Clayton was so nice but not sure we can afford it based on Zillow prices. Chesterfield looked new and upscale, probably nicer than Saint Charles. But I’ve seen Cheaterfield prices, too, and I’m not sure I want to pay a premium for what seemed kind of like... generic suburbia. Saint Charles had a cool downtown, and the area overall seems cheaper. But I’ve seen some posts on here that indicate it’s maybe not the best place. I don’t care about whether a place is liberal or conservative, but I would ideally like my family to be in a place that is educated, people take care of their property, properly fund their schools, etc. Overall seemed like a decent place driving through save for a few lower class areas here and there.
Please, feel free to let me know if I’m way off base thinking the Saint Charles area might be a good place to raise a family. Also, feel free to let me know if there’s any other areas I’m missing. We don’t want to live in the city but wouldn’t mind a closer in suburb and older house (we could probably make do with 1500 sqft though closer to 2000 would be ideal). But again, it’d have to fit my budget. Thanks again for the help everyone.
Given that you will be working in Maryland Heights, I would ideally look for something zoned to either Parkway West or Parkway Central high schools. Might also be apartments along Olive Blvd in the Ladue school district you could look at. I don't have a sense for apartment pricing, but these are relatively expensive areas so $300K for a house is going to be difficult to come by. Another alternative would be to commute via 364 (Page Extension) and live in St Charles County. Pricing is significantly lower there, and schools are generally good as well (Francis Howell School District). I'm not that familiar with St Charles, but my sense is that there are probably specific areas you'd want to focus on (and avoid). As you go west (ie. Dardenne Prarie, St Peter's), pricing will continue to get lower and those are all good middle class areas, so just a question of your commute tolerance. A good things about working in Maryland Heights, though, is that you have good highway access via I-270, I-70, and 364.
There are a lot of family-oriented amenities around the entire area. I found after moving here that Pools/Water Parks are a big thing, and Chesterfield and Maryland Heights, among others, have huge facilities. A lot of great parks as well, with Forest Park in the city being one of the great urban parks in the country.
By the way, the local area in Maryland Heights is split between Pattonville School District and Parkway North, and both of those are decent as well (though perhaps a step below the others just to the South). Niche has Pattonville High School #13 in the state and Parkway North as #16 (out of 566 schools in MO). Pricing is going to be lower in that area as well. I wouldn't necessarily rule out Maryland Heights itself. Just stay well clear of the Westlake Landfill.
Maryland Heights, preferably West of I-270 is decent. As the above poster said, Parkway and Pattonville are definitely adequate school districts, and it has an aquatic facility, new community center, and some really good parks. I used to live there and enjoyed it.
Creve Coeur and the unincorpirated areas between Maryland Heights and Creve Coeur would also be worth looking into. You would have a super short commute, which would no doubt improve your quality of life!
Most of the libraries in the St. Louis County system have, or will soon be undergoing major renovations. The best renovated children's area is at the Florissant Valley branch, which would be about a 15-20 minute drive from Maryland Heights, but well worth it.
Their children's area (the entire ground floor), has a "discovery zone" with lots of toys, train tables, a light wall, massive touch screen 'tablets' mounted to the walls, loaded with educational games, etc. The other libraries are doing similar things but on a much smaller scale.
You might want to check out the Ballwin and Manchester areas. They're in the Parkway District and the neighborhoods are generally well kept and family-oriented.
St. Charles County, preferably within the Francis Howell or Ft Zumwalt school districts.
Kirkwood and Parkway may also be within your reach, but will be more expensive. As a heads-up, I-270 through West County has the heaviest traffic in StL.
Downtown St. Charles is neat, but I wouldn’t live there. The St. Charles School District is pretty underwhelming. You would be better off in St. Peters or O’Fallon, which are served by Francis Howell and Fort Zumwalt School Districts. Both cities actually just ranked in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Places to Live. They’re plain ole suburbia-chain restaurants and big box stores-but they provide a pretty good quality of life for families at an affordable cost.
Closer in suburbs like Webster Groves, Kirkwood and Brentwood are great, too, no doubt. But they’re particularly well suited for families/individuals who value the following:
-walkability and quaint downtowns
-close to non-chain bars and restaurants
-proximity to downtown
-surrounded by educated, intellectual people
I like all of those things. But do I pay a premium for them? No. $300K will get you in the inner ring suburbs, but you wont get much house for it. If you don’t work downtown or value walkability, urbanness, etc., you might as well save your money and get a nicer house in St. Charles County. While not as educated as the inner suburbs, median household incomes are actually pretty similar. St. Charles County is middle class, through and through, and I’ve always had good luck with neighbors maintaining their property.
Ballwin and Manchester are nice. I’ve lived in Ballwin. You get the same quality of life in Ballwin that you get in Saint Charles, but Ballwin is a bit pricier. Ballwin’s population is stagnating while Saint Charles continues to grow. Parkway School District (in Ballwin) has a better reputation but a quick glance at statistics would show that Francis Howell and Fort Zumwalt have all but caught up to Parkway in terms of quality. Don’t get me wrong, Ballwin is a fine place to raise a family. But it’s an outer ring suburb that peaked in the 1980s. It’s nothing special, and I wouldn’t pay a premium for it.
I would avoid anything that would force you to take 270 North to Maryland Heights as that is the worst stretch of traffic in all of St. Louis. So, while it's great and affordable, I think Lindbergh School District would be low on my list...if you don't mind sitting in traffic or work off hours, then totally different. Kirkwood, Webster would be in that same category. The commute could just be mind numbing. I personally avoid 270 in all rush hour situations.
I would aim for parts of Chesterfield along Olive...in Parkway West, you could go around Schoettler/Baxter/Olive
and in Parkway Central neighborhoods like Westbury and River Bend would give you a great commute
Depending on what kind of commute you want, I'd look at Parkway School District in general (West being the best of their HS), Rockwood Marquette HS and MAYBE Lafayette (that could get to be a far drive depending on where exactly), and Francis Howell or Fort Zumwalt in St. Charles. I wouldn't necessarily discount Pattonville either as others have said.
Clayton and Ladue are going to be nearly impossible in the price range. It's worth looking, but it's unlikely you'll find something affordable.
I lived in Mehlville, close to Oakville and the South County mall and liked it. Cost was reasonable and everything was nearby. Mall only 5 minutes away, I55 and 270 close by as well. I think Oakville and Melhville are decent north of the Meramec.
Other than Lindberg and Telegraph traffic during peak times of the day it isn't bad at all.
Other than the weather 4 months out of the year I liked it up there. Where I live here in Florida I have to drive miles for everything! I hate it! I'm so used to everything being within 15 minutes in south county.
I have to drive over 30 miles just to go to Costco down here.
The only time in St. Louis I'd have to do that is when I wanted to go to West County mall and even then taking back roads to avoid 270 wasn't that bad.
I think St. Louis county for a larger metro area is VERY easy to navigate.
I’ve recently accepted a position in St. Louis and will be moving from Minneapolis. We are a family of four (kids 6 & 3). My wife will stay home at least until the youngest is in kindergarten, so we are a single income family for now. Household income will be $90K, plus discretionary annual bonus. We would like to rent for a year before buying a house but definitely plan to buy if we like it here. I would like to keep rent at 25% of gross pay, so $1800 or so. Same goes for a house-I would like to keep PITI at $1800 or less ($300K at most) when we choose to buy. I’ll be working in Maryland Heights.
I have searched these boards for advice, and I’ve scouted the area when I came for my interview. However, since I have no contacts in the area, I thought it might be good to ask the locals myself.
I would like to know what the best place for my family is. We need good public schools first and foremost. They don’t have to be great, but definitely above average. Based on what I’ve seen, it looks like Ladue, Clayton and maybe Lindbergh have the best rankings in the area. Again, we don’t need best of the best. I see that Rockwood, Parkway, Kirkwood, and Francis Howell have good test scores, amongst others.
It’s my understanding that STL has some nice family amenities downtown, and we do certainly plan to take advantage of that. But we would like to live in a suburb that has good amenities for more regular day to day use... bike trails, parks and playgrounds, libraries, maybe a water park. We aren’t very picky about restaurants or shopping. Those hobbies get expensive fast when you have kids. We aren’t fans of chain restaurants, but we’ll live amongst them if need be and commute to a good restaurant on the rare occasion that we go.
During my trip here, I ventured to both Clayton (170/64 area), Chesterfield and Saint Charles area. Clayton was so nice but not sure we can afford it based on Zillow prices. Chesterfield looked new and upscale, probably nicer than Saint Charles. But I’ve seen Cheaterfield prices, too, and I’m not sure I want to pay a premium for what seemed kind of like... generic suburbia. Saint Charles had a cool downtown, and the area overall seems cheaper. But I’ve seen some posts on here that indicate it’s maybe not the best place. I don’t care about whether a place is liberal or conservative, but I would ideally like my family to be in a place that is educated, people take care of their property, properly fund their schools, etc. Overall seemed like a decent place driving through save for a few lower class areas here and there.
Please, feel free to let me know if I’m way off base thinking the Saint Charles area might be a good place to raise a family. Also, feel free to let me know if there’s any other areas I’m missing. We don’t want to live in the city but wouldn’t mind a closer in suburb and older house (we could probably make do with 1500 sqft though closer to 2000 would be ideal). But again, it’d have to fit my budget. Thanks again for the help everyone.
I'd consider Kirkwood - Webster. Not cheap by any stretch, but more affordable generally than Clayton. Still centrally located. Good schools, local libraries, stuff like that. Plus local restaurants and pubs, shops (and some chains too). Nice old downtowns, laid out like cities not as many subdivisions.
I would suggest the Parkway school district first. You can live in St. Charles County just across the river from STL County and be in Maryland Heights in 15 minutes.
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