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Inside the small Midwest town which is home to one of the hottest housing markets in the US due to a unique tax perk
A small Midwest town is charming homebuyers with its affordable houses and beautiful surroundings - and the fact it has not charged property tax in almost four decades.
Ballwin, Missouri, which is located around half an hour outside of St Louis, is home to around 31,000 people.
But the area is among the hottest ZIP codes in the US due to its unique tax perk, according to Realtor.com.
Ballwin has not charged a municipal property tax since 1987, which significantly benefits both current residents and potential buyers by reducing the overall cost of homeownership.
Instead, city services are funded through sales taxes, utility gross receipts taxes and recreational revenues.
Ballwin, Missouri, is one of the hottest housing markets in the US due to its unique tax perk
Property taxes are paid by the owner of real estate to county or local tax authorities, and go toward infrastructure improvements, public services and local schooling.
The taxes vary by state and county, and the amount is based on the assessed value of a property.
New Jersey, for example, has the highest property taxes of any state, with an effective tax rate of 2.23 percent, according to the Tax Foundation.
The lack of property tax in Ballwin might particularly appeal to retirees on a fixed income, Realtor.com found.
For other buyers, the lack of additional taxes may mean they can consider purchasing a larger property within their budget.
Homes in Ballwin are slightly more expensive than in surrounding areas, but still tend to be lower than the national average.
The median list price in the suburb is $409,000, Realtor.com found, which is around $35,000 less than $439,500 - the national average for July.
As a result, homes in the town are selling like hotcakes.
On average, listings only stayed on the market for 16 days before being snapped up by a buyer in the first half of this year.
This is more than a month - some 42 days - less than the average for the US as a whole.
Most buyers trying to break into the Ballwin market are from the surrounding area, but 41 percent are from further afield - including a significant portion from Chicago.
Alongside its small-town charm, beautiful surroundings, low crime rate and affordability, Ballwin is also within commutable distance from St Louis.
Realtor.com senior economist Hannah Jones noted that unemployment rates in the St Louis metropolitan area are lower than the national average, 'offering prospective buyers a strong economy nearby.'
Ballwin appeals to 'buyers that are willing to pay for the right combination of size and amenities within commuting distance of the office,' she added.
'The shift toward more in-office work has continued, meaning that many buyers are looking to find some desirable combination of convenience and lifestyle perks.'
Alongside its small-town charm, beautiful surroundings, low crime rate and affordability, Ballwin is also within commutable distance from St Louis
The lack of property tax in Ballwin might particularly appeal to retirees on a fixed income, Realtor.com found
The median list price in Ballwin is $409,000, which is around $35,000 less than $439,500 - the national average for July
Ballwin is located around half an hour outside of St Louis and is home to around 31,000 people
Ballwin ranked second in Realtor.com's ranking of the hottest ZIP codes in the US for 2024, behind another Midwest town.
Gahanna, a leafy suburb of Columbus, Ohio, took the top spot for the second year in a row.
A small town of just 35,000, Gahanna is attracting homebuyers who are making offers at furious speed.
The area boasts affordable homes, with a median list price of $345,000, with good access to the big-city amenities of Columbus where several billion-dollar companies, such as Intel and Google, are expanding.
'The Midwest has enjoyed sustained popularity as elevated homebuying costs concentrated demand in more affordable locales,' Jones said.