/By insiteadvice

Meet Me in St. Louis

This month we move away from the general information and common sense tips provided in previous blogs to answer a more specific line of inquiry: why should I move to St. Louis? After all, the city is as much a part of the decision to move as the home itself, and one cannot claim to have performed due diligence without looking into its pros and cons. This list is a refresher to homebuyers who have already lived near the arch and are trying to decide their next move, as well as out-of-towners who contemplate making St. Louis their permanent home.

Why should I move to St. Louis?

St. Louis and its surrounding locales have always been a contribution to the cultural image of the U.S.A, yet somehow they’ve grown in relative obscurity compared to its metropolitan counterparts in other states. Perhaps it is St. Louis’s blend of classic Americana spread outward instead of upward that has placed it in the shadow of places like Silicon Valley and nearby Chicago, but there is also irreplaceable value in a big city that avoids gentrification. Gentrification affects old cities much like industrialization affects forests; once landmarks and historic sites have been modernized, the original feel of an already relatively brief American history can be lost for good.

You may find that the ‘outward instead of upward’ theme for urbanization has been in place for over a century in St. Louis. Unlike larger cities that are more concentrated with skyscrapers and industrial districts that giving them an air of sophistication, St. Louis retains its rural sensibilities in the midst of technological upheaval. Retail options abound in places like the St. Louis Galleria, which is near an assortment of eateries for every Scattered around the downtown area are pockets of culture that exist in diverse communities, where museums, zoos, and landmarks are interspersed with those recently-built high rises. Here, the old-school barbecue joints of the Delmar Loop are a mere six minutes away from the eclectic surroundings of Clayton’s fine dining and retail strips. St. Louis still evokes images of diners, drive-ins, and smokey blues clubs, while a continual influx of millennials keeps the city from growing stagnant in its retention of classic values.

What is the future of St. Louis?

City officials have a number of development plans underway for their presiding counties, most of which are focused on the upkeep of landmarks like the Gateway Arch as well as education-based revitalization of local campuses. The local government’s long term plan is geared toward the cost-effectiveness, which keeps cost-of-living down, makes home loans accessible, and allows small businesses to thrive. Real estate trends indicate strong migration to these outlying communities, even as the downtown area benefits from the culmination of long-term development projects. Indeed, St. Louis was called a “midwestern tech hub” by CNN in 2017, as several revitalization projects came to fruition at around the same time, and that was two years ago.