Bell City, Missouri

Population

Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.

453

people, the 484th-largest of Missouri's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Missouri's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

94.8%

of 116 jobs located in Bell City are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 15% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$525

a month. Missouri's median is $1,033.

Census ACS 5-year, 2015-2019 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent jumps $242.

A $242 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Stoddard County.

• $715 Tract 4702
• $957 Tract 4708

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

$1,017–$1,525

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $525 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2015-2019. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 1 homes permitted, 2022–2025
• 0% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 89% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.4% to the 230 homes here.

1

is the estimated number of missing housing units; all three estimates agree.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 79% less than Missouri's.

$47,500

median home value in Bell City.

• $47,500 Bell City
• $230,300 Missouri
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year