by Robin Tidwell

Created on: January 26, 2009   Last Updated: March 10, 2011

There are many affordable housing solutions in St. Louis, Missouri, but one may have to be a bit creative in order to find them. The St. Louis area is comprised of much more than just the city of St. Louis. The county of St. Louis spreads for over 500 square miles and there are housing bargains to be found in almost any township or city.

Make a list of all the things you may require in housing: type of residence, family size, location and proximity to work or school, square footage needs, and so forth. Decide if you're planning to buy or rent and how much you are able to budget for rent or mortgage payments; don't forget to include downpayment, deposits, and cost of utilities.

If you're looking for an apartment, www.craigslist.org is inundated with listings from apartment complexes; most offer great deals such as free rent, move-in bonuses, and roommate finding services. Many, too, cater to families, and some offer sizeable apartments and comprehensive amenities.

Craigslist also contains ads for home rentals as well as homes for sale, usually "by owner", but often realtors advertise here too. You can search by number of bedrooms and bathrooms, or price, or zip code/city.

Another good place to search is www.realtor.com. You can search by size, price, and location for both rent and purchase. You are more likely to see pictures and details on this site as opposed to Craigslist, and of course will be working with professional agents versus homeowners.

The location of housing in the St. Louis area is the main factor which will determine cost and affordability. One must, naturally, decide which things are the most important to have. For example, a good school district will be found in most areas, but the most highly rated are located in Clayton, Ladue, and in the western part of the county.

If neighborhood amenities are important to you, many subdivisions in St. Louis county provide pool and tennis clubs; YMCAs and JJCs abound there as well. Always remember, with an excellent highway and road system, and St. Louisans tendency to slightly ignore speed limits, nothing anyone could want is farther than a 15-20 minute drive.

Houses can be purchased from $65,000 on up to several million dollars; location is the key factor. Of course, homes on the higher end will be equipped with comparable facilities and services, larger lots, and so forth. But one can find, in a good area, family-size homes from around $100,000. Condos, too, are quite numerous, and will start at about

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