Missouri Native Moving Back. Advice on St. Louis Metro (Maryland Heights: apartment complexes, rentals)

[SciFiNerd1]

I currently live in DFW, Texas but I was born and raised in Southeast Missouri. I have been away since 2007 due to colleges and jobs. As I get older, the more I would like to be closer to my family and to see my second cousins growing up. However, I couldn't live in Southeast MO again after city living for almost 15 years. I am looking into St. Louis Metro since it is only 1.25 hours away where my family is.

I recently applied for a state government job that will be located in Olivette. I would be taking a pay cut of $12,000 but again, MO is very affordable compared to Texas when it comes to rentals. $1,400+ monthly rent for 2 bedroom/2 bath apartment is really ridiculous. I cannot afford to buy a house in Texas due to skyrocketing housing cost and property taxes due to booming population growth. Being closer to family and being able to buy a house eventually are the main reasons I would like to move back home.

The salary range on the job posting shows $40,700 to $42,744. I plan to negotiate to get a higher salary to between $45,000 to $50,000 based on my long history of work experience. I am asking for advice since I have never lived in St. Louis before.

Can I actually live a decent life renting a studio or one bedroom place until I can buy a house one day based on the salary ranges above?

Where do you suggest for me to rent if my job is in Olivette?

Here is a brief description of what we are like. We are a LGBTQIA+ married couple in our early 30's with no children. We are still debating whether to adopt a child or two some day. School districts aren't that important at this time. We love animals since we have a dog and a cat. We enjoy hiking and going to the parks, especially those with a lake or a pond. I also like to work out. My husband plans to look for jobs in retail; he has retail experience when it comes to lingerie/adult novelty toys at nice stores (not adult video arcade type of stores). We both are liberals. I am White while my husband is half White/half Mexican so we would like to avoid areas known to be racist along with homophobia. My husband is a Wiccan while I still respect my Catholic faith and traditions. Diversity is important but not a must. We do go to gay bars once awhile for socials.

I am looking forward to hearing from you about St. Louis. Thank you for your time.

[STL74]

Olivette itself has great schools (Ladue), is quite diverse and pretty liberal. However, it's getting pricier by the minute because it's in the Ladue schools. Lots of tear downs for million dollar homes and new apartment complexes going up that look more expensive. I live next to Olivette in Ladue so I'm fairly familiar. If you could snag an older house in good shape now, you'd be in great shape for increasing property values...

This is not in Olivette, but close. I lived here during my residency (when it was like 400 a month...long time ago...). It's a good location, but U City schools. The elementary school is good, but unless something changes, you wouldn't want to stay past that.

https://www.apartmentfinder.com/Miss...tments-tsl3w8c

Unfortunately rent has gone up here as well as housing prices, but long term, buying a house would definitely be more affordable.

[Okey Dokie]

I wouldn’t count on negotiating a higher salary outside the published range. In government jobs there usually isn’t much leeway.

[mjtinmemphis]

Originally Posted by SciFiNerd1

I recently applied for a state government job that will be located in Olivette. I would be taking a pay cut of $12,000 but again...

That is a steep pay cut. I know DFW is more expensive but I don't think it's $12k more expensive. Per salary comparison website, DFW is 11% more expensive than STL.

There shouldn't be any problems with orientation or having a biracial family.

Yes you can rent a studio and live a decent life on the above salary while saving for a down payment on a house.

Good luck with your move.

[RisingAurvandil]

You can easily rent a one bedroom in that salary range. Check out Maryland Heights if you want a suburban place, and somewhere along 40 if you want a more urban experience (e.g. Dogtown, Maplewood, Richmond Heights). The gay neighborhood is The Grove, but I don't know much about housing or safety there.

There are actually a lot more neighborhoods to consider, depending on your traffic tolerance. The area around Tower Grove Park is beautiful. Personally, I think traffic is easy in StL, except for a few pinch points on I-270 and near downtown. I don't know what part of DFW you live in or prefer, so that information might help.

However, I would be cautious about working for the state of Missouri. I've met several employees who have mentioned low morale and poor pay. And I see constant job postings, which usually indicates high turnover.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by STL74

Olivette itself has great schools (Ladue), is quite diverse and pretty liberal. However, it's getting pricier by the minute because it's in the Ladue schools. Lots of tear downs for million dollar homes and new apartment complexes going up that look more expensive. I live next to Olivette in Ladue so I'm fairly familiar. If you could snag an older house in good shape now, you'd be in great shape for increasing property values...

This is not in Olivette, but close. I lived here during my residency (when it was like 400 a month...long time ago...). It's a good location, but U City schools. The elementary school is good, but unless something changes, you wouldn't want to stay past that.

https://www.apartmentfinder.com/Miss...tments-tsl3w8c

Unfortunately rent has gone up here as well as housing prices, but long term, buying a house would definitely be more affordable.

Thank you for your helpful information about Olivette and its housing market. I was able to find a couple of studios in surrounding areas with good reviews at a great price, especially in Creve Coeur and Maryland Heights until I buy a house one day.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by Okey Dokie

I wouldn’t count on negotiating a higher salary outside the published range. In government jobs there usually isn’t much leeway.

That is disappointing. It doesn't hurt for me to try. If the state of Missouri wants to attract talent, HR should be willing to do some negotiations.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by mjtinmemphis

That is a steep pay cut. I know DFW is more expensive but I don't think it's $12k more expensive. Per salary comparison website, DFW is 11% more expensive than STL.

There shouldn't be any problems with orientation or having a biracial family.

Yes you can rent a studio and live a decent life on the above salary while saving for a down payment on a house.

Good luck with your move.

I am thinking long term despite the pay cut. Rent in DFW is very high and it increases annually. I'm currently paying $1,475 for 2 bedroom/2 bath apartment. Owning a house in Texas isn't that much cheaper and you have the second highest property tax in the country to worry about.

I work with families who basically had to refinance their houses just to pay their property taxes for one year. I really don't want that for myself.

My husband and I don't really have support system in Texas other than a few good friends. My husband is not close to his family but I am close to my big family in Southeast MO.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by RisingAurvandil

You can easily rent a one bedroom in that salary range. Check out Maryland Heights if you want a suburban place, and somewhere along 40 if you want a more urban experience (e.g. Dogtown, Maplewood, Richmond Heights). The gay neighborhood is The Grove, but I don't know much about housing or safety there.

There are actually a lot more neighborhoods to consider, depending on your traffic tolerance. The area around Tower Grove Park is beautiful. Personally, I think traffic is easy in StL, except for a few pinch points on I-270 and near downtown. I don't know what part of DFW you live in or prefer, so that information might help.

However, I would be cautious about working for the state of Missouri. I've met several employees who have mentioned low morale and poor pay. And I see constant job postings, which usually indicates high turnover.

I actually live in a southwestern suburb of Fort Worth called Benbrook. I do enjoy driving in mornings before work. I have high tolerance for traffic. I am sure St. Louis traffic is nothing compared to DFW rush hour so it will be a nice change of scenery.

I don't see the Grove on the map but Google said that it is between Kingshighway and Vandeventer. That is basically east of Forest Park in Central West End. How would commute to Olivette be from the Grove/Forest Park?

Please correct me if I am wrong - Aren't areas more dangerous as you get closer to Downtown plus North County (anywhere north of I-70?

I will keep that in mind about poor pay and low morale of state employees.

[RisingAurvandil]

Originally Posted by SciFiNerd1

I actually live in a southwestern suburb of Fort Worth called Benbrook. I do enjoy driving in mornings before work. I have high tolerance for traffic. I am sure St. Louis traffic is nothing compared to DFW rush hour so it will be a nice change of scenery.

I don't see the Grove on the map but Google said that it is between Kingshighway and Vandeventer. That is basically east of Forest Park in Central West End. How would commute to Olivette be from the Grove/Forest Park?

Please correct me if I am wrong - Aren't areas more dangerous as you get closer to Downtown plus North County (anywhere north of I-70?

I will keep that in mind about poor pay and low morale of state employees.

Yes, you are correct. The Grove is along Manchester Ave, between Kingshighway and Vendeventer. It is also called Forest Park Southeast. It used to be a run-down area, but has seen significant gentrification in the past decade.

The commute from The Grove to Olivette will be about 25 minutes. West on 40, then north on 170.

Most of the high-crime areas are north of Delmar Ave, or near Dutchtown in South City. Downtown also has some crime issues. Most of the high-crime areas are easy to identify based upon demographics.