Kansas City, KS — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Kansas·Kansas City

Wyandotte County · Kansas City · population 156,752

First-time buyers
Kansas City, KS
Image: Wikipedia · Kansas City, Kansas
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
View watchlist →
68
Rising
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Kansas City stands

At or near all-time high.

Median home $202,558
1-year +1.1%
5-yr CAGR +6.1%
vs 5-yr peak +0.0%
Population +0.0%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2026-04$203k$71k$118k$164k$211k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
30/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
30/100
Minimal transit
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
82/100
Excellent for remote work
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$1,338/mo$908$1,163$1,418202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent134138100120140202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 12.6
Buy

At a 12.6 price-to-rent ratio, buying generally beats renting in Kansas City on a long-enough horizon. The headline math is that one year of mortgage payments approximates 12.6 years of rent — well below the 15+ threshold where ownership starts to dominate.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
56 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
70 · w22%
Distance from peak
90 · w18%
Population growth
45 · w16%
Rent YoY
70 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
89 · w10%
Long thesis

Kansas City has held up across the cycle: home values at $202,558 with +6.1% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Kansas City's bear case is the boring one: the cycle is real and any market that's run hard can stall. Watch for slowing population growth, rising days-on-market, or builder discounts as the early warning signals.

About Kansas City

Kansas City is a city in Wyandotte County, Kansas, with an estimated population of 156,752. The median home value in Kansas City is $202,558 as of 2026-04, up 1.1% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +6.1% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Kansas City average $1,338 per month, up 3.7% year-over-year. The composite momentum score is 68 of 100 (Rising). The market is healthy with prices supported by underlying demand.

▲ Bull case

●Healthy 5-year run: +6.1% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
●Held the highs: currently +0.0% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.

▼ Bear case

○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Kansas City (Wikipedia)

Kansas City is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 156,607, making it one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area. It is situated at Kaw Point, the junction of the Missouri and Kansas rivers. It is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified Government". It is the location of the University of Kansas Medical Center and Kansas City Kansas Community College.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

City facts

MayorChristal E. Watson
Area128.30 sq mi
Elevation869 ft
Founded1872, 1886
Nickname"KCK"
Densityauto/sq mi
Named forKansas City, Missouri

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

You're not in a frenzy but you're not getting bargains either. Make a competitive offer with normal inspection terms. Don't lowball — the listing will move with or without you.

Seller

Price at fair market value; expect movement in 30-45 days. Don't get clever with terms (rent-back, contingencies) — buyers in a Rising market have options.

Investor

Appreciation tailwind exists but cash flow requires discipline on price. Run the numbers conservatively and confirm rent comps before committing.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Wyandotte County right now.

NWS active alerts (KS)Kansas Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Wyandotte County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Neighborhoods of Kansas City

39 tracked · ranked by median home value
1Piper Estates$578,900+4.1%
2Canan Woods$488,370+1.9%
3Quail Creek$465,341+2.3%
4Piper$420,639+3.3%
5Prairie Oaks$418,737+2.9%
6Westmore Downs$376,040+2.5%
7Meadows$363,412+5.2%
8Normandy West$329,394+2.9%
9Delaware Ridge$322,085-1.5%
10Morris$292,096+4.4%
11West Wyandotte$291,139+2.4%
12Presidential Highfields$274,507-0.8%
13Pomeroy$254,985+6.7%
14Muncie$234,449+1.2%
15Rosedale$225,684-0.5%
16Turner$219,034+0.3%
17Parkway Pointe$215,079+4.6%
18Turtle Hill$214,212+3.8%
19Stony Point/Hunters Glen$213,915-2.7%
20Welborn$194,467+2.2%
21Argentine$193,030+2.8%
22Westheight Manor$182,726+9.6%
23Brentwood Hills$174,411-2.1%
24Coronodo Hills$172,851+0.3%

See the full neighborhood ranking →

Cities like Kansas City

Topeka, KS63 · RisingWichita, KS71 · RisingEmporia, KS66 · RisingLawrence, KS73 · Rising

Run the numbers for Kansas City

ToolCan I afford Kansas City?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Kansas City rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Kansas City to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolKansas City cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
41° / 21°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
89° / 66°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
230
~63% of year
Annual precip
30″ rain
15″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
Very high
Wildfire
Low
Earthquake
Very low
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Kansas City area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Kansas City listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
65%
Moderate climate
Median household income
$69,700
Kansas state median
Top industries (state-level)
Aerospace (Wichita)AgricultureHealthcare

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

Cities similar to Kansas City

Explore other places with comparable momentum or affordability.

See all Kansas cities →    Browse best-of lists →