What's the good, bad, and ugly of living in Missouri? (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 9/27/2022 11:23:19 AM EDT
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We love coming down to camp and float, and appreciate the state doesn't infringe on the right to bear arms (like Chicago does to Illinois). There is a thread here about vehicle inspections, which IL doesn't have. I recently heard about someone digging a well and how much it cost to drill through a hill made of rock. On the other hand, IL raised the cost of car and trailer tags to ridiculous amounts, land is expensive, we have 72hr wait to buy guns and very few places to shoot them, not much in the way of rivers to float, crappy roads, etc. So what is the good, bad, and ugly of life in MO? Taxes? Fuel? Land rights? Gun rights? Over regulation? Road condition? |
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My wife and I moved to SW Missouri several years ago after living in the Chicago suburbs all our lives, in my case 65 years. We had decent jobs and made a good living in Illinois, but taxes and politics drove us out as soon as I retired. My wife still works remotely for an illinois company as she's still too young for social security. If you are still of working age, jobs are not as abundant as they were in Illinois and they don't pay as much here as they did up north, but the cost of living is less here. We moved from a very modest home on 1/3 of an acre in the SW suburbs of Chicago. When we sold the home a few years ago, the taxes there were about $4500/yr. We moved to a larger, much nicer home and now have 25 mostly wooded acres and a nice shop building on a quiet country road. I have a 200 yard rifle range next to the house and I hunt on our property. Stockton Lake is less than a mile from the house and has great fishing. Our taxes on this place are less than $1000/yr. Our house in Missouri cost less than what we sold our Illinois home for. The sky is full of stars at night and we have deer and turkeys in the yard all the time. There are adjustments to be made. Right now, our DSL internet is not great, but we have fiber coming very soon which will be a welcome thing. The variety of ethnic foods available in the Chicago area is pretty much non-existent. Even every day shopping is much different. We have a small grocery store in town, which is about 7 miles from the house but drive almost 20 miles to Walmart for most of our grocery shopping. However, there's never any traffic and 20 miles isn't much more than 20 minutes. We have very few stop signs and I sometimes go weeks without seeing a stop light. We have gotten used to making lists and making several stops when we go into town and do much more of our shopping on line. Amazon is a frequent delivery here. Springfield is the closest big town and it's about 45-50 miles but again, it's all highway so it takes less than an hour to get there. Pretty much anything you would need is available there. We do have a bi-annual vehicle inspection but it's a safety inspection not an emissions test. They check for loose front end components, operational lights, wipers, etc. I think your vehicle would have to be in pretty poor condition to fail. We get very little snow here which is good. Even a couple inches shuts things down and they're not well equipped to deal with plowing. I haven't seen any salt used in our area, but I assume they might use it in Springfield occasionally. The roads are in better condition because, I assume, they don't get the freeze/thaw cycles and don't get the same traffic volume as Illinois. There's no comparison when it comes to gun rights. Of course, you still need to fill out a 4473 when buying new guns from a dealer, but private sales don't require any background checks or waiting periods. Even flea markets sell guns on their tables, cash and carry. Suppressors and class 3 are legal here. All in all, I'm very happy about moving here. I wouldn't go back to Illinois for anything. People here are much friendlier than they were up north and the politics are the opposite of what we saw in Illinois. |
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We have some more info in a tacked thread; https://www.ar15.com/forums/hometown/Tell-me-about-Missouri-/32-659784/ |
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If you come here, find a home that has a basement and stock up on food and supplies in that basement for those possible days of electrical blackouts from storms and tornadoes. In wintertime, there can be some serious ice storms that can knock out power lines, so a generator, spare fuel can help. Get to know your neighbors if you live out in the country. There may come a time where that neighbor has equipment > tractor, landline phone(cell tower down), chainsaw, trailer equipment that will help if an emergency has occurred and you haven't had time to equip or have. Never buy an ALL ELECTRIC home. You'll find with an electric blackout emergency, nothing will work. If on propane tank, that stove/oven can be your home's only heat source and food preparation. You'll find that with rural living, you'll usually have an electric co-op which will be cheaper than city electric companies. Also look into the taxes of the County you want to live in. Ask about permits for that County. Some rural living won't require a building permit, while other Counties want a permit pulled even if you're 30 miles away from any city limit. A wood fireplace if home is equipped can be a lifesaver in winter electrical outages, but also having a good chainsaw is just as valuable in cutting up downed trees from storms and winds around the home, whether living in city or rural. Missouri has much lower taxes, no vehicle smog emissions, but there is a short vehicle inspection to be sure brakes(one brake wheel check), front ball joint, steering linkage is good and lights/wipers work. Missouri is a "red" state with some "blue" cities. St. Louis/KC/Springfield being the largest, but get outside these 3 main cities and you'll find good common sense. Live here for at least 6mo and you can go into a LGS and after filling out the 4473 you can have a gun same day, if you've been a good citizen. You can also have a F2F rifle sale without a 4473 here, but that's up to the seller and their conscience if they want to go the FFL route, or something's just not right. Hunting, fishing, hiking/biking trails and boating are all found in this State. We also have a few ATV trails, but most require a registered stamp on unit to use off-road vehicles on that trail. |
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Originally Posted By Bladeswitcher: The ticks are pretty bad. And the humidity in the summer sucks. Ticks are very bad. This was from just an afternoon fishing. Attached File |
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Ticks, humidity, no CCW NICS bypass like in the rest of the modern world, crappy shooting range availability if you want to shoot beyond 100 yards, and the competition shooting options are meh. You have to pay taxes to the state on basically any sort of vehicle you own, even if it never sees pavement. Up side: the deer hunting and fishing is pretty solid if you can deal with ticks and other parasites eating you alive until it gets cold. Land can be had fairly cheap if you don't mind a long commute. |
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Thanks for the replies! We're planning to retire there, preferrably with just a little access to water and woods for hunting, fishing, and living. Over the years we've spent time on the Black river, Current river, Merrimac, floated Jack's Fork a couple times. I'm a firefighter and RN, so worst case for needing to work would be part time nursing somewhere. Also finished my military in the reserves so that pension kicks in at 60. We used to think we wanted 100+ acres in the middle of nowhere, but we know older folks with that and it's a LOT to maintain in later years. Now we're thinking small, energy efficient home, water backup, electric/solar/generator backup, wake up and enjoy the sunrise with a cup of coffee. Trying to avoid progressive politics that ruin life and spread misery to everyone they touch. |
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I've been getting up to Missouri when I can, getting the lay of the land and was just up there yesterday looking at a dairy a cousin of mine might be buying. Y'all have a beautiful state! Though I feel like I need to go strip down in my office and check for ticks... |
That's what I used to do, after warm weather hunts. 
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These locations require emissions inspections - St. Louis City.St. Louis County. Jefferson County. St. Charles County. Cars less than 10 years old and under 150k miles do not need a safety inspection. The good - the enormous numbers and acres of Conservation Areas and Natural Areas across the state. Many conservation areas have nice range facilities. The state park system is very good, too. If you like to bike, the KATY Trail state park is unsurpassed anywhere. St. Charles County has an excellent park system, and it's growing. Several of its cities also have their own parks of similar quality. |
Keep your powder dry, and watch your back trail.
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Originally Posted By thunderopossom: Ticks are very bad. This was from just an afternoon fishing. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/421337/53C6448A-2A43-46BF-B553-7D008558B476_jpe-2542342.JPG Ours: 
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Nebraska residents: Please join and support the Nebraska Firearms Owners Association WWW.NEBRASKAFIREARMS.ORG
Nebraska residents: Please join and support the Nebraska Firearms Owners Association WWW.NEBRASKAFIREARMS.ORG
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The Missouri Department of Conservation is a great source of info for our outdoor stuff. https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/ticks |
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Originally Posted By ColleenTheDestroyer: Ticks, humidity, no CCW NICS bypass like in the rest of the modern world, crappy shooting range availability if you want to shoot beyond 100 yards, and the competition shooting options are meh. You have to pay taxes to the state on basically any sort of vehicle you own, even if it never sees pavement. Up side: the deer hunting and fishing is pretty solid if you can deal with ticks and other parasites eating you alive until it gets cold. Land can be had fairly cheap if you don't mind a long commute. The NICS thing is a positive for me. The fact that our CCW doesn’t bypass the NICS means that Missouri has a really weak CCW law. Some of those no-NICS states keep a really close eye on CCW holders. Kentucky reruns the NICS check on permit holders EVERY MONTH regardless of whether they buy another gun. No thanks. I’m glad Missouri does the absolute minimum to monitor gun owners. I mind the occasional NICS check much less than an intrusive state government. |
In a truly free country, Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms would be the name of a convenience store, not a federal agency
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Originally Posted By Rick_NE: Those sure don't look like the ticks we have up in Nebraska... were you in a heavily wooded area or just out in the open? Ours: https://lancaster.unl.edu/pest/images/ticks/am-dog-tick-extractionJKalishx680x383.jpg These tiny little pepper lookin ticks are new to me, too. Do they carry Lime? I was up there a few months ago and got a smallish, normal looking tick at some point. It made its way to my ribs by the time I found it and was home in Texas. I grew up in OK and basically lived outside, fishing and building forts etc as a kid, and do not recall the little bitty ticks at all. Plenty of the bigger ticks and burned matches. |
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Don't get too excited by the ticks, it's not an issue unless you are in the weeds and woods every day in warm weather. Missouri is a fine state and about the only other place I'd want to live is Wyoming or the Black Hills in South Dakota. Colorado if it was sane. If you like to shoot, there are free public ranges and private clubs everywhere. If you want competition start looking at the schedules on line for clubs or call for information. There are hundreds of gun shops. |
Keep your powder dry, and watch your back trail.
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Originally Posted By TexCorriente: These tiny little pepper lookin ticks are new to me, too. Do they carry Lime? I was up there a few months ago and got a smallish, normal looking tick at some point. It made its way to my ribs by the time I found it and was home in Texas. I grew up in OK and basically lived outside, fishing and building forts etc as a kid, and do not recall the little bitty ticks at all. Plenty of the bigger ticks and burned matches. Those are what we call "seed ticks" and it's not unusual if you get one you get 100. The Lyme ticks are a little larger, shinier with a white mark. Don't worry there are something like a half dozen other illnesses from tick bites here in Mo. You will probably get Poison Ivy or Poison Oak before you get a tick borne illness. Oh, and if you are around Thorny Locust be very aware of where you are stepping if you have soft soled shoes... you really don't want to know what a 3"-4" locust thorn feels like. Welcome to the Show Me State  .
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Originally Posted By TexCorriente: I grew up in OK and basically lived outside, fishing and building forts etc as a kid, and do not recall the little bitty ticks at all. Plenty of the bigger ticks and burned matches. Just for reference, I've been doing stuff in the woods since the mid-1960s, and have never had a serious problem from any of the Tick bites I've received. The worst was an itchy spot, for a few days. The only time I got swarmed by those little *Seed Ticks*, was when I was hunting and crawled through brush to sneak up on squirrels. When you're hunting in the heat of Summer, you know that you may get some Ticks. [shrug] |
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Originally Posted By 67Firebird: When you're hunting in the heat of Summer, you know that you may get some Ticks. [shrug] That is a given in Missouri. Good bug spray and garlic pills will help. Another trick is to avoid any type of evergreen tree (eastern pine or red cedar) during warm months. |
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Illinois has ticks too. Between our time in the woods/prairie here, and camping/floating there, we've had them all. The tiny swarm, the deer tick, the dog tick... The deer ticks carry Lyme's disease. If I remember correctly, they need to be hooked on and feeding for several hours to transmit it. Usually they crawl on you for a few hours, then find a cozy spot to bite. Since we're currently small town/city people, we tick check after our outings in the woods or prairie. |
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Did anyone mention ticks? Don't forget the Red Wasps, those things are aggressive and hurt. Unless you are looking for a higher paying job, avoid St. Luis & Kansas City. The rest of the state is beautiful. Springfield feels like a Suburb of Chicago to me. Sure it has crime but no where near what Chicago has. I live on 10 acres about 1.5 hours south east of Springfield. I've been buying property around here and now have 2 houses plus an additional 5.7 acres. Property taxes are nothing worth worrying about. |
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Originally Posted By HellioN: I disagree. Property taxes are an affront to mankind. Why do I have to continually pay for something I am supposed to own? I never got the hate of property taxes until I saw what some of our members pay their local governments. Getting monthly or quarterly bills in the thousands of dollars for something you are already supposed to "Own" would be frustrating. Although property taxes may not be the ideal way to generate revenue, they do pretty much apply to everyone but the FSA in government housing. Even renters pay property taxes through their landlords. Property taxes in Missouri are set by local levy so it is something that as a community there is a great deal of control over. You can also choose your tax rate to some degree by buying in an area with a low levy. Where I live it is at the state minimum of $2.75. Some areas just a few miles away are in the $4's! |
Your body can never go where your mind has never been.
ARFCOM Callsign: COLD WAR
ARFCOM Callsign: COLD WAR
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It's terrible here. I want to move to NYC and live in a drawer inches from every variety of scum that the world can find. As above taxation is theft, ticks, humidity. Snow is wonderful and if they would quit making cars so safe it would weed out more dumbasses. |
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I moved here from Western NY a few years ago and love it, don't plan to leave. Be sure to meet up with some local arfcommers, I've made great friends that way. Personal property tax is pretty gay, two year vehicle safety inspection is cool (instead of annual), you get used to the humidity unless you work in AC every day, everyone speeds and the cops are pretty cool for the most part. |
It is better to be a living dog than it is to be a dead lion.
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I get that everyone may speed up near the cities, but down here in the sticks, Troop G specifically the Highway patrol pull no punches and routinely pull over speeders for 7-10 MPH over the limit. I see more Highway Patrol between Willow Springs and Poplar Bluff than between Poplar Bluff and Chicago! It's crazy! I guess they are doing saturation patrols looking for large drug shipments. TLDR; Don't speed in Southern MO! |
Your body can never go where your mind has never been.
ARFCOM Callsign: COLD WAR
ARFCOM Callsign: COLD WAR
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This should answer some of your questions . . . If you want a truly rural, isolated lifestyle choose a darker Trump county. If you want a paycheck, slightly better restaurants, access to quality medical care, shopping, etc., look for lighter Trump colors. If you want even more amenities, fancy restaurants, and access to big city things, well your choices should be obvious. Greene County/Springfield defies that a bit with big city amenities and yet still mostly conservative. 
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In a truly free country, Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms would be the name of a convenience store, not a federal agency
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Here's the other thing you need to know about Missouri. There are four distinct geographic regions and the experience in each is vastly different: North: Rolling hills, pasture, crops -- Call it southern Iowa. Corn, soybeans, pigs and cattle. This is the southern edge of the great glaciers that once covered North America. West-south: Prairie -- Think East Oklahoma. Poultry, Cattle, horses. This is the eastern edge of the vast Western prairie. Ozarks: Trees, hills, streams, caves -- Hillbilly Land (north Arkansas). Timber, meth. The remnant of perhaps the oldest (and now most eroded) mountain range in America. Bootheel: Flat, vast, lowlands, the Delta -- You might as well be in the Old South. Rice, cotton, soybeans. This is the northern edge of the Mississippi Delta. 
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In a truly free country, Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms would be the name of a convenience store, not a federal agency
| If you like data, you could look here: Missouri Economic Research and Information Center |
In a truly free country, Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms would be the name of a convenience store, not a federal agency
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Originally Posted By Bladeswitcher: If you like data, you could look here: Missouri Economic Research and Information Center Thanks for all of these posts! We are looking at southern MO in the Ozark region of that map, which incidentally coincides with Trump country on the other map. 😃👍 |
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Hi, Like sleepercaprice1 said, it's nicer than Illinois. We, too, moved here from Illinois and never looked back. We live in SW Missouri, about 1 hour west of Branson, 1 1/2 hours southwest of Springfield. We have 5acres of land and a ranch(#bed, 2bath), I have a small range in my backyard and shoot regularly. Neighbors are horses, cows, sheep, and chickens. Love the serenity and peacefulness of living between farms. I would invest in a wood stove also, since wood is still cheap. Plant grape vines (had a boatload of Concords), apple trees, peach trees(very sweet white peaches), and had a 50'x 50' garden. You will love Missouri, if you move here. Just leave the Illinois politics in Illinois and join the free people. John Krzos |
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F it, I'll thread-res a month-old thread. Moved here in '13 from NY. *spit* Took some adjustment to how taxes and shit work, but now? You couldn't pay me enough to move back. My property taxes in NY were double what I pay here. My dollars didn't go as far. I miss NY snow and legit hills and the lakes, but I sure don't miss the NY bullshit. MO state parks are free to visit. There are a bunch of state ranges, some staffed and some not, that are all inexpensive (or free). Beautiful open space. Winters aren't awful, especially to someone used to Great Lakes and beyond. Cost of living is WAY less. (Legit, my "dollar purchase power" went from like $0.87 to $1.20 when I got here. 30% raise right off the bat.) Sales taxes are higher (9-10% is normal). Personal property tax is a pain in the ass. People are way friendlier. Pull the handle, make the move, find a nice place and settle in to a free state. |
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Originally Posted By sleepercaprice1: Stockton Lake is less than a mile from the house and has great fishing. Our taxes on this place are less than $1000/yr. Our house in Missouri cost less than what we sold our Illinois home for. Howdy neighbor! I live about 2 miles away from Stockton lake. Everything else written is mostly correct. Humidity in summer isn't nearly as bad, depending on where in MO you are. If you're in the Ozarks, it's far worse than, say, Arizona, but not nearly as bad as... Texas, gulf states, or anywhere east of the Mississippi. When I first moved here 9 years ago, I bought a 3/2 manufactured home on 5 acres for $23.5k, so the housing market was majorly inexpensive here when compared to other areas. It's caught up a bit since then. I regret selling the place, last year, for only $52k. |
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Originally Posted By zapthycat: Howdy neighbor! I live about 2 miles away from Stockton lake. Everything else written is mostly correct. Humidity in summer isn't nearly as bad, depending on where in MO you are. If you're in the Ozarks, it's far worse than, say, Arizona, but not nearly as bad as... Texas, gulf states, or anywhere east of the Mississippi. When I first moved here 9 years ago, I bought a 3/2 manufactured home on 5 acres for $23.5k, so the housing market was majorly inexpensive here when compared to other areas. It's caught up a bit since then. I regret selling the place, last year, for only $52k. Whereabouts? I live east of the lake between Crabtree Cove and Masters. |
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Originally Posted By zapthycat: Howdy neighbor! I live about 2 miles away from Stockton lake. Everything else written is mostly correct. Humidity in summer isn't nearly as bad, depending on where in MO you are. If you're in the Ozarks, it's far worse than, say, Arizona, but not nearly as bad as... Texas, gulf states, or anywhere east of the Mississippi. When I first moved here 9 years ago, I bought a 3/2 manufactured home on 5 acres for $23.5k, so the housing market was majorly inexpensive here when compared to other areas. It's caught up a bit since then. I regret selling the place, last year, for only $52k. Whereabouts? I live east of the lake between Crabtree Cove and Masters. |
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I have a question for those of you that live near Stockton Lake within a mile or so, or on a creek that drains into the lake. Do septic systems get extra regulation from the Corps or Missouri Dept of Natural Resources to protect the lake? (I know about the city of Stockton's ordnances.) |
Keep your powder dry, and watch your back trail.
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As for a location, if I was moving in from out if state with no need to live near family and wanted a rugged, hilly, forested location, I would look hard at Perry county from a mile or so east of I-55 to the Mississippi River. Pretty country, and some of that German settler ethos resulting in clean farms and house places along the roads. |
Keep your powder dry, and watch your back trail.
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Originally Posted By AeroE: I have a question for those of you that live near Stockton Lake within a mile or so, or on a creek that drains into the lake. Do septic systems get extra regulation from the Corps or Missouri Dept of Natural Resources to protect the lake? (I know about the city of Stockton's ordnances.) Input about the Stockton area in general appreciated! I was up there a month ago and stopped at a coffeehouse that was popular with affluent women driving Mercs Is it kind of a commuter area to KC or Springfield? Unfortunately, that is more my wife's speed than mine... but the lake and countryside was beautiful |
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Originally Posted By AeroE: I have a question for those of you that live near Stockton Lake within a mile or so, or on a creek that drains into the lake. Do septic systems get extra regulation from the Corps or Missouri Dept of Natural Resources to protect the lake? I'm in Dade Co, and there are no regulations regarding that. Now if your septic is directly next to a creek, that might be an issue, but I've read that even if it's visually leaking into a creek, it's not a big deal. "The solution to pollution is dilution". The nearest creek to my property is at least a good half-mile, so my leech field has a long way to go to get there. |
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Originally Posted By TexCorriente:Input about the Stockton area in general appreciated! Is it kind of a commuter area to KC or Springfield? Unfortunately, that is more my wife's speed than mine... but the lake and countryside was beautiful Stockton lake is a big area. If you're on the south side, you can get to Springfield in an hour. If you're on the north side, I think it's a good 2 hours, at least, to get to KC, that's a little too far for me to call it in "commuting" range. The area is indeed really beautiful. Depending on your county, there's probably not building regulations, which is kind of weird, but awesome. I have a friend that built another room onto his house, no permits. That's the way it ought to be in my book. |
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Originally Posted By zapthycat: I'm in Dade Co, and there are no regulations regarding that. Now if your septic is directly next to a creek, that might be an issue, but I've read that even if it's visually leaking into a creek, it's not a big deal. "The solution to pollution is dilution". The nearest creek to my property is at least a good half-mile, so my leech field has a long way to go to get there. Originally Posted By zapthycat: Originally Posted By AeroE: I have a question for those of you that live near Stockton Lake within a mile or so, or on a creek that drains into the lake. Do septic systems get extra regulation from the Corps or Missouri Dept of Natural Resources to protect the lake? I'm in Dade Co, and there are no regulations regarding that. Now if your septic is directly next to a creek, that might be an issue, but I've read that even if it's visually leaking into a creek, it's not a big deal. "The solution to pollution is dilution". The nearest creek to my property is at least a good half-mile, so my leech field has a long way to go to get there. Cedar, Dade, and the surrounding counties are "ordinance counties" that control the septic system themselves, but that doesn't allow ignoring the state regulations. St. Charles County septic systems are dictated by a bureaucrat and are more strict than the state's. Anyway, Im curious about whether there is extra regulation to preserve Stockton Reservoir's clean and clear condition. We will probably land between Bolivar and Clinton soon. I'd rather move back to Wright County or to Douglas or Ozark County, but the kids and grand daughter are in the KC region. |
Keep your powder dry, and watch your back trail.
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Originally Posted By zapthycat: Is that near Bona? I'm just S of the lake, just E of Greenfield. I used to live out in Walnut Grove. I heard there's a nice CCW class in Stockton... No, I'm near the north end of the lake. I live a mile or 2 south of 32 and about 5-6 miles east of Stockton- about halfway between Stockton and Fair Play. My property borders corp land on the east side of the lake. I don't know anything about a CCW class in Stockton. I took my class at Cherokee Guns in Springfield. |
| My property borders corp land on the east side of Stockton Lake. My local septic guy told me the only restrictions on permits for septic installation was based on property acreage. I'm thinking if the property exceeded 10 acres, no permit was required, but I might be mistaken about the acreage number. As far as I know, there's no monitoring of septic systems. |