Best Places to Buy Rental Property in Missouri (2026)

There is no honest way to rank Missouri cities by rental return without rent data, and this page does not have it. What it does have is transaction evidence: the median price homes actually closed at inside each city's limits, and how many closings happened. That answers the two questions that come before any cash flow analysis, what it costs to get in and whether you can get back out.

What this page measures, and what it does not

Every city below cleared at least 100 closings in its reporting window, which filters out markets too thin to read. They are ranked cheapest first by median closed price, from $125,000 to $287,150. You will not find rent estimates, rent-to-price ratios, cap rates, cash-on-cash projections or gross yield rankings here. Resideline does not have verified rent data for these cities, so publishing those numbers would be invention rather than analysis. Entry price and transaction volume are what the data supports. Every figure describes closings inside the city limits, not the wider postal area that shares the city's name. The two can differ a lot: a postal area usually reaches into surrounding townships, which pulls the median toward whatever those townships are worth. Missouri's statewide median closed price is $295,000 across 38,690 tracked closings.

The rankings

1. Poplar Bluff, $125,000, 252 closings

At $125,000 the entry price is about 42 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 252 closings there over the last last 12 months, roughly 21 a month. About 98 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Poplar Bluff market page.

2. Sedalia, $179,000, 336 closings

At $179,000 the entry price is about 61 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 336 closings there over the last last 12 months, roughly 28 a month. About 96 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Sedalia market page.

3. Florissant, $180,000, 329 closings

At $180,000 the entry price is about 61 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 329 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 55 a month. About 95 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Florissant market page.

4. Joplin, $183,450, 244 closings

At $183,450 the entry price is about 62 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 244 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 41 a month. About 99 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Joplin market page.

5. Saint Joseph, $189,900, 555 closings

At $189,900 the entry price is about 64 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 555 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 92 a month. About 93 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Saint Joseph market page.

6. West Plains, $199,900, 255 closings

At $199,900 the entry price is about 68 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 255 closings there over the last last 12 months, roughly 21 a month. About 100 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the West Plains market page.

7. Lebanon, $205,000, 230 closings

At $205,000 the entry price is about 69 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 230 closings there over the last last 12 months, roughly 19 a month. About 98 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Lebanon market page.

8. Springfield, $217,000, 1,225 closings

At $217,000 the entry price is about 74 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 1,225 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 204 a month. About 96 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Springfield market page.

9. Independence, $225,000, 876 closings

At $225,000 the entry price is about 76 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 876 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 146 a month. About 94 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Independence market page.

10. St. Louis, $244,900, 2,082 closings

At $244,900 the entry price is about 83 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 2,082 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 347 a month. Full detail is on the St. Louis market page.

11. Rolla, $248,000, 235 closings

At $248,000 the entry price is about 84 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 235 closings there over the last last 12 months, roughly 20 a month. About 97 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Rolla market page.

12. Jefferson City, $262,750, 330 closings

At $262,750 the entry price is about 89 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 330 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 55 a month. About 91 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Jefferson City market page.

13. Republic, $270,000, 241 closings

At $270,000 the entry price is about 92 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 241 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 40 a month. About 99 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Republic market page.

14. Warrensburg, $285,000, 183 closings

At $285,000 the entry price is about 97 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 183 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 30 a month. About 93 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Warrensburg market page.

15. Jackson, $287,150, 246 closings

At $287,150 the entry price is about 97 percent of the Missouri median. Resideline tracked 246 closings there over the last last 12 months, roughly 20 a month. About 96 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Jackson market page.

How to use this list

Treat it as a shortlist, not an answer. A citywide median cannot price a specific address: property type, size, condition and location move a number far more than the city line does. Run any address on this list through Resideline for the comparable set behind its value.

Figures last updated August 23, 2026 from closings Resideline tracked.