Homesteading Forum banner

Missouri?

2K views 19 replies 16 participants last post by  Mutti 
#1 ·
Hi,

My wife and I are new to this forum. Had a question though. We are thinking about leaving the 20 acres we have in Texas to get away from the heat and fire ants. We are strongly looking in southern Missouri. Justed wanted to know if anyone lives up there that could get us some good information about the area.


Thank you,
Mike
 
#2 ·
If you are looking for city life then I suggest either Joplin or Springfield.
If you are looking for a place in the country then try anywhere around those two citys so you have a better chance of finding work.
Sorry to say you may not get completely away from the fire ants though. Like the armadillo, they too have come north. We may not have near as many as they do down there but we make up for it with ticks and chiggers.
We have very little soil here but we substitute rocks. They are our #1 crop.
Heck! you don't even have to water them. They just pop right up out of the ground with no help at all! :haha:
The scenery is beautiful. The rivers are clear, for the most part. Don't count shoal creek in Joplin. We get all kinds of weather here. Snow and ice in the winter and 100+ days in the Summer.
 
#3 ·
Missouri is also hot and extremely humid and the ticks & chiggers are awful! If I was looking for a place to go from TX...I would pick Colorado! Clean, clear air that is oh so dry. You can sleep with the windows open until winter, and there are no chiggers. Colorado Springs is the place to be...forget MO or Missery as we call it! :no:
 
#4 ·
HEY! STOP THAT! I love it here! Ticks, chiggers, humidity and all! WAIT! You are right. Colorado would be better (we have too many people here as it is)
Whew! Thanks for the help! I just wasn't thinking!
 
#5 ·
To tell the truth I like Missouri over Texas or Colorado.Springfield does have Jobs.If it was me and needed good Jobs,Lower cost of Living, and not much change from Southern Missouri,other than Rocks.I would consider Boonville or Jefferson City.

big rockpile
 
#6 ·
I can tell you right now, the last breath of fresh air in colorado got used up several years ago. Cof cof cof. I had to leave colorado cause I couldn't breath!
 
#8 ·
JMHO, but Missouri, Arkansas, and Tenn are all getting rushed into by folks looking for a country life. I just love other people and have never minded having good neighbors, but now the prices on land and homes have gone so ridiculously high that you can't afford much anymore. We just moved back here last summer, we were only gone a year and can't get over the differences in the prices and how much more difficult it is to find homes that are affordable.

All of that aside, I LOVE Missouri. You can't find a much prettier place to live and there is a little bit of everything weather wise. There are jobs and can be quite a few of them depending on what you do. It may be getting a bit more crowded (especially in central MO) but it is still absolutely beautiful!!!

Good luck on your decision.
 
#9 ·
jynxt said:
JMHO, but Missouri, Arkansas, and Tenn are all getting rushed into by folks looking for a country life. I just love other people and have never minded having good neighbors, but now the prices on land and homes have gone so ridiculously high that you can't afford much anymore. We just moved back here last summer, we were only gone a year and can't get over the differences in the prices and how much more difficult it is to find homes that are affordable.

All of that aside, I LOVE Missouri. You can't find a much prettier place to live and there is a little bit of everything weather wise. There are jobs and can be quite a few of them depending on what you do. It may be getting a bit more crowded (especially in central MO) but it is still absolutely beautiful!!!

Good luck on your decision.
I know a fella from Missouri who says the Law is very rough there--rougher
than Texas and Florida, and he has lived in both.
james
 
#10 ·
Well, I can certainly address this question. I have a home and acreage on the coastal bend of Texas -- and a home and small acreage in southern Missouri.

Texas - hot and humid in summer, fire ants, wonderful 'winters' so mild you don't need winter clothes, no ticks or chiggers where I am (thanks to the fire ants), straight roads that get you from A to B without a roller coaster ride.

Missouri - moderate summer with hot and humid days occasionally, ticks that carry a variety of debilitating diseases, chiggers that drive you NUTS unless you use Deep Woods Off EVERYDAY, fantastic fall leaf color and weather, cold winters with occasional snow and ice. If you live on a gravel road in the Ozarks, expect to have trouble getting in and out. When it rains heavily, my road turns to pudding, and I can't get up the hills to the hard top. To get to decent shopping, it's a 45 minute roller coaster ride. If you get carsick, this is a problem. Also, it's several hours to a Home Depot. :waa:

My solution is to have a home in each state. Summers here in Missouri; winters in Texas. I realize this isn't possible for most folks.

I keep threatening to bring a fire ant mound with me when I come north. :) I'd rather have fire ants that I can avoid than ticks that sneak up on me and could make me ill for the rest of my life.

That said, if you still want a Missouri place, I can put you in touch with a really nice realtor, and there are a couple of places for sale in this area.
 
#11 ·
Yes Deborah, and thank you for saying what my mind couldn't spit out in word form last night. Like you we have lived all over the country and in the end chose Missouri above all of the places we have been to. It is absolutely beautiful here regardless of the season. We feel that it is more than worth the mud in the spring and the snow or ice in the winter, and I have never had much of a problem with the ticks and chiggers we just take reasonable precautions and have been fine.

pcwerk asked about the laws here. I have never had any major problems with any of the laws here. It has been my experience that most law enforcement officers here are reasonable folks and unless provoked give you no trouble at all. I'm not sure though what law is being referred to.

Having left Missouri and come back more times than I want to count I have to say that it is by a longshot the best place I have ever lived.
 
#12 ·
I live in MO. We love it here. I have lived in TX, NV, FL and we love it hear in MO. I am originally from here and i do think that that helps. I do have to say, that someone mentions above, that there are a lot of people moving in and that much is true. But there is still lots of good property and area here.
This is a link to the small, one horse town i live in.
http://www.salemmissouri.com/
and one to the chamber
http://www.salemmo.com/
and one to the local, twice a week newspaper.
http://www.thesalemnewsonline.com/
and a real Estate place.
www.moodyrealestate.com/
You can make a much better and informed decision about missouri by doing a bit of searching on the www. Missouri is a very affordable place to live, Yes, the sketters suck but taxes dont and neither are the laws. I live one mile out of town and they are very easy going on building laws, we have never had a problem with animals and laws, they are getting more strict on septic systems.
Well, I home some of the links help you out and give you some better ideas of missouri from someone who actually lives here. Good luck.

Belinda
 
#13 ·
I moved to Missouri recently and I LOVE it. I'm on the other end of the state from most folks here- in southeastern MO- and it's beautiful.

Once you get up around Sikeston (north of Memphis) you really get into the hills and it's WONDERFUL. I live in a small town outside of Cape Girardeau- if you work in a medical field, there's TONS of jobs there. Other stuff, Springfield may be better. I think when I eventually buy it will probably be in south-central missouri between the two.

The chiggers and ticks are supposed to be real bad, but I haven't had a problem and I'm normally one of those people who gets bit up real bad. I think it may be pretty regional- that, and I'm pretty liberal with the dimectous earth..... Housing is honestly about the same price as TX, or seems to be to me.

Cait
 
#14 ·
I live in Mo and I love it.

There are many places still for sale here, about what ever size you want if you have the money.

There are still jobs. Sometimes you have to really work hard to get the kind you want.

Streams are clear. Plenty of fish to catch. Deer to hunt. Ticks and chiggers are not nearly as bad as those fire ants. I hope we never get them like they have them in Nashville, AR. At least we can prevent the ticks an chiggers from getting on us if careful. Those ants are about resistent to anything. Need to import anteaters.

We have hills, rocks, trees, flat lands, all depending on where you want to go. I perfer the hills. That is where the clear streams are.

Winters now are nothing like they were when I was growing up. We usually have a little snow and some ice and a few days below freezing.

I would suggest you vacation for a week in each season, and see what you think of it.
 
#15 ·
We also live in Missouri, the NW quarter of the state. I love Missouri. The building codes vary from county to county mostly, in mine if I own it I can do anything to it and without a permit! The taxes also vary widely from county to county, but ours is pretty good. (83 acres, new house, old barn, 35x45 metal building, animals, car, truck, and implements= $285.00 a year) My State Rep has came to my house twice just to make sure I know her. My County Sherrif takes 3 sugars in his coffee and takes his coffe at my table at least once a year. The hunting is great! (take a shower with 50-50 bleach rinse...no tick or chigger problems) The Conservation Dept is absolutely fantastic! (I got 4 deer and 4 turkey permits this year, FREE) The University Extension Office is great! The Farmers Co-Ops are great! My phone and electric is both rural co-ops and both pay me back something every year. You like live theatre? We got that. You like local artisans guilds? We got that. You like crafts fairs? We got that. You like a fantastic state fair? We got that. You like a fair paying job (for the area)? We got that. You like (mostly) friendly people? We got that. You like (mostly) conservative minded folks? We got that. You like open farmers markets and the ability to sell your farm produce straight from your own farm? We got that too. You like folks who will take you at face value? We got that in spades! One more thing, I don't think a person can examine Missouri by looking at a specific place on the map because everything is less than 3 hours a way, it seems like.

Kevin
 
#16 ·
I sure don't know where all those jobs in Missouri are cause they aren't here unless you want to work for Walmart or McDonalds. The economy is terrible here, food has sky-rocketed this past year, plus all utilities too. Land prices are cheaper than other places, but have gone up so drastically that we people who have been here a long time are dizzy from it. Big two-story houses are popping up everywhere---5 acres and two big dogs. The new surburbia, I call it. Have you been to Sedalia lately? The population of various foreigners has been growing so fast that it looks like a foreign country, which is okay if they want to work and be good citizens, but Sedalia was such a nice, sleepy little country town before. Unfortunately Missouri has been "discovered" by people running from other places, I think. And, yes, my goodness, ticks and chiggers are terrible, but now we have a new one: lady bugs that swarm and bite and crawl through cracks around your doors and windows, get under your clothing and leave sores like chigger bites. Just great, what next?
 
#17 ·
Ana Bluebird don't you think a lot of the foreigners moving into Sedalia is to do with Tysons.I know we have the same problem here in Buffalo,plus I was up at Calfornia,they have the same problem because of Cargill.

big rockpile
 
#18 ·
We too have recently moved to MO (south central) LOVE IT!!! don't let all the talk of chiggers, ticks and heat turn you off. I'm an Okie and I can tell you for sure, I don't think the first two are any worse here then they are anywhere in eastern Okla. (I've spent lots of time in the Ozarks over the years, in all 4 seasons, so it's just not this year that I have to judge it on) yes it gets hot and sticky in the summer, but again usually not as hot as Okla, the humidity is about the same, BUT it at least usually cools off at night (unlike so much of Ok and Tx) I'm still amazed at how lax many of the codes are. Sort of the it's your land, build what you want???? Guess that's good and bad (we just made really sure that we didn't have poultry operations/big hog farms/puppy mill and such as neighbors before we bought. We also bought far enough out that no town will ever grow out to surround us. EVERYONE and so far, I mean EVERYONE has bent over backwards to be friendly. I've had folks actually come up to me in the stores, introduce themselves and welcome us to the area. People make eye contact and take time to chat. One of the local deputies stopped by yesterday just to check on me (he knows my husband is an over the road trucker and I'm here alone a lot) Friendly folks, some of the most beautiful land you can imagine, decent middle of the road weather/temps.......sunset and views to die for...what more could a person want??????? and those are the very reasons so many people are flooding into the area, hard to keep a good thing secret...
susie
 
#20 ·
Well,we moved from the tax state of Michigan and we love it here in MO. Live in south central area,have wonderful neighbors,120 acres with taxes less than $400 a year. Since my DH is on the road board our road is great!....of course,the grader is parked in our yard,not the most attractive sight! Jobs can be a problem. If you have medical skills it helps but a year to become a LPN means a job anywhere yesterday. We live on a hilltop and never have had a problem with skeeters. Ticks are minimal in the yard as we keep it well mowed and clear of brush. The woods are full of ticks and chiggers but personally I hate mosquitos more--my summers were torture in MI. The weather is grand...just enough winter and spring come early. Falls are glorious. An occasional ice storm but snow doesn't last and last....and no one expects you to be out and about in bad weather...our first storm here we went to town and half the stores were closed and the other owners were amazed we made it 15 miles!!!!!!! After MI winters we hadn't thought it bad at all. Two snowflakes rub together and they call off everything. Everystate has it goods and bads....but the first time we saw our farm it called our name and we've never regretted our move. DEE
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top