1. Fields of Waving Tall Grass
Several years ago, I traveled with my boss to Overland Park,
Kansas to provide staffing for a conference of state money
officials. We landed in Kansas City, Missouri and had our map
printed from Mapquest clutched in our hands to find our way to
this prairie community.
We hopped on a bypass from the airport which apparently goes
right through some major conservation areas, including what I
believe may have been about a hundred miles of the famous tall
grass you find in this amazing prairie state. After about 10
minutes of driving through this natural area, my boss started
yelling, “You got the wrong directions! We’ll never find our
way out of here!” It was like a reverse Wizard of Oz moment
when we wanted to find our way out of being lost in the Kansas
prairie and back to where we knew there was bottled water and
shopping malls.
We finally emerged from the wilderness and drove right to our
modern-day hotel, none the worse for the wear. What we
learned is that Kansas really does have a slice of prairie life –
just like you’d imagine from the movies and books. We also
learned it is a hub for the arts, gaming, and entertainment
communities – very family friendly, but also attractive to
young professionals.
Kansas Mortgage Rates - Compare mortgage rates for
Kansas to stay on top of the average home value, market
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Banks.com.
Housing is a little high in Overland Park, with prices averaging
about $240,000. But at these prices, you’ll find real estate with
a lot of square footage, plenty of bedrooms and bathrooms, and
a fairly low foreclosure rate. In fact, there are only 33
foreclosures now listed on Zillow.com alongside the more than
1,500 homes currently available.

2. Having the foreclosure rate low helps real estate hold its value
in the neighborhoods throughout the area. When foreclosure
rates are high, all homes lose value as they are sold at lower
prices, which in turn bring the prices of other homes down with
them. In addition, the low foreclosure rate also keeps homes
occupied – vacant homes attract vandalism as windows get
broken, spray paint abounds, and grass grows tall. The irony is
sweet that in Overland Park, Kansas and its famed Tall Grass
prairie heritage, tall grass in single family residences is rare
indeed.