You might be a recent college graduate, starting a career in a new city and wanting to meet other young professionals doing the same. You might be newly married and wanting to start a family in an area with other young couples. 

Whatever your situation, location is one of the most important factors when looking for a home, and it's nice to move to an area where you can meet people on a similar life path. To help figure out what area is best for you, let's dive into the most trendy, up-and-coming neighborhoods for young adults in St. Louis and Kansas City. 

St. Louis

Kings Oak/McRee Town

These neighborhoods are next to St. Louis University, so it's a very student-centered living area. It's in the center of nightlife adjacent to downtown and close to the beautiful Forest Park. The Grove is the highlight of nightlife in the area with a whole strip of bars, breweries, clubs, and a brand new tiki bar. These neighborhoods are within walking distance or a short Uber ride away from all of the restaurants and nightlife there. It's also close to downtown if you find yourself needing to travel there for work.

Shaw/South City St. Louis

These neighborhoods give similar vibes to Kings Oak/McRee Town, but there are fewer college students living there, so more removed from the university. There is Tower Grove Park that has a great farmer's market and an amazing holiday light display during December. It's also home to the original, famous Ted Drewes frozen custard. 

Kirkwood/Webster Groves

These two neighborhoods are more family-friendly, and about 20 min from downtown. Both have great school districts and Webster is even set up where most kids can walk to school. They are still great for young professionals as well because they are close to great food, breweries, and shops. Downtown Kirkwood is home to a farmer's market, Kaldi's coffee, great restaurants, and a St. Louis favorite, Strange Donuts. 

Kansas City

Midtown/Plaza

This neighborhood is an area within downtown KC. It's definitely the most centrally located to all restaurants and nightlife. The most popular is the Power and Light District which includes upscale restaurants, bars, clubs, and shopping. There are a couple of universities in the area, including the University of Missouri-Kansas City, so the average age is college/young professional age. The Plaza is also a popular area to shop with boutique stores and restaurants.

Mission

This neighborhood is a suburb of Kansas City (on the Kansas side) and has a good urban/suburban mix feel. There are plenty of places to rent as well as buy, so many young professionals decide to live in this area. This area is more family-friendly with good school districts, but there's still access to fun entertainment and nightlife. 

Lee's Summit

This area is another suburb of Kansas City but on the Missouri side. This is a much quieter area with a cute downtown, much like the downtown in Kirkwood. It has shops, restaurants, bars, and an Amtrak train station. It's 30 minutes from downtown, so still close enough to go for a night out but not in the middle of the hustle and bustle. 

If you're a young professional looking to move, both St. Louis and Kansas City are great cities with a mix of the hustle & bustle of city life and the family-friendly suburban life. Feel free to check out some of our other blogs that give helpful advice (especially for first-time homebuyers) about the home-buying process.