Residential

Mid-Missouri has an exceptionally strong residential real estate market featuring a wide range of housing opportunities to suit virtually any lifestyle. From traditional family neighborhoods to country estates, housing is considered a bargain when compared with other areas of the nation.

According to Money magazine, the price of an average home puts Columbia in the most affordable 15% of all cities, and the cost of living places it in the best 20%. Housing costs are 7 to 8% below the national average according to the ACCRA Cost of Living Index.

With the State of Missouri and the University of Missouri providing employment for thousands, the area has an extremely stable workforce. That stability translates into a stable housing market.

"We don't really have the ups and downs in our economy like some areas that are more dependent on other kinds of industries for their major employers," says Sharon Keating, a broker for Re/Max Jefferson City. "We don't have those drastic inflationary increases in the value of property because the state salaries that drive the economy here don't go up by huge leaps and bounds." Keating says the avg. sales price in the market is $101,888. Executive housing is from $275,000 to $500,000.

"We have a number of upper-end subdivisions near Jefferson City Country Club," she said. "We also have a lot of upscale small-acreage subdivisions that are close-in. These developments feature 3 to 5 acre lots and are very popular."

In addition to low unemployment, and crime rate and the friendly atmosphere, Keating says a mid-Missouri address provides residents with easy access to the rest of the state. "From Jefferson City, we can get to the Lake of the Ozarks in 45 minutes or less and we're 30 minutes from Columbia," she said. "If we want to visit St. Louis or KC, we're only 2 to 2 1/2 hours away."

Retail

With a growing population and an extremely stable economy, mid-Missouri is an attractive market for retailers.

"Our retail real estate market is very strong," says Larry Kolb, owner of Kolb Properties in Jefferson City. "Four or five years ago, the national chains like Lowe's, Best Buy, Perkins and Olive Garden wouldn't look at a market the size of Jefferson City. Today, those are the kinds of stores that are coming here."

With retail leases averaging from $9.50 to $15 per square-foot, mid-Missouri offers a wide range of affordable space. Kolb says national chains are recognizing the opportunity and developing a new strategy for operating in smaller markets. "Instead of building an 80,000 square-foot store like they might in a market like KC, they'll build a 25,000 square-foot store here and be very successful," he said. "Red Lobster is a good example. They came to Jefferson City about four or five years ago and built one of their smaller stores. We're seeing a lot of other national retailers following the same strategy."

"Lowe's is building on a 22 acre site on the west end of Jefferson City. Across the street, we're developing a 150,000 square-foot center that will house approximately seven different national retail stores. We plan to begin construction in March with an opening date of August 2001. This is the first major retail center that's gone up in Jeff City in a number of years. Although we haven't broken ground, we already have commitments on 100,000 of the 150,000 square-feet. Things are moving quite well on that project."

The retail market in Columbia is even better. "Being a college town, Columbia is always a great market," he said. "Their mall is 100 percent full with retailers on a two-year waiting list. Our company is developing a 10,000 square-foot site in front of a Home Depot there. Columbia has a very stable economy and the lowest unemployment of any university or capitol city in the nation at less than 1%."

Commercial

With a growing population base and ongoing demand for office space, mid-Missouri's commercial real estate market remains healthy.

"We have a pretty strong commercial market," says Paul Land of Plaza Real Estate Services in Columbia. "There's a player for every property. We don't have extraordinarily high vacancy rates."

Land says Columbia offers businesses the opportunity to serve a large amount of customers. "Mid-Missouri is a much larger market than it appears at first glance. There are 81,700 people who live and 83,700 who work here. There is a huge amount of economic influx into Columbia every day. We have a very vibrant economy."

In Jefferson City, the commercial market may be cooling slightly after a strong run. "We've enjoyed tremendous success in the commercial market during the last two years," says John Parker, president of Septagon Construction. "Right now, I'd say our office space inventory is adequate to meet the area's needs."

Lease rates for Class A office space in Jeff City range from $13 to $14 per square foot. In Columbia, Class A space runs between $13 and $17.50.

"We think our rental rates are consistent with those of Kansas City and St. Louis," Land said. "Demand is high in Columbia and I don't see anything in the near future that's going to change it."

Industrial

With a central location, an outstanding transportation network and an excellent workforce, mid-Missouri is an attractive location for industry.

"The industrial real estate market is good throughout mid-Missouri," says John Parker. "Although we're not attracting a great deal of new industrial businesses in the Jefferson City area, we're seeing a lot of existing businesses expand their operations."

Parker says a good workforce and business climate are primary reasons why businesses are attracted to mid-Missouri. "It's easy to do business here. It's not overregulated, but there is enough regulation to establish a good benchmark of expectations. The work ethic here is excellent. Most people are willing to give a good day's work for a good day's pay."

Although Parker hears talk of the industrial market softening, he hasn't seen any signs of that happening. "Our prospect level is probably as strong as we've seen in two or three years," he said. "It's hard to look too far down the road, but I'd expect the market to remain strong for the coming months."