Our REALTOR® Association in Springfield is appropriately named the “Greater” Springfield Board of Realtors. It is so named because it represents not only Springfield and Greene County, but also the many other fine communities in neighboring Christian and Webster counties. Allow me to tell you a little about my favorite, Ozark, MO, a short ten-minute drive south of Springfield.

As a native of Springfield, my family and I moved back home in 1983 after living 17 years in the Chicago and Kansas City areas and working in “corporate” jobs. After a couple of weekends investigating our choices for our new home, our family of four (six if you count the dogs) unanimously decided on Ozark. It was the natural choice for the lifestyle we chose to pursue.

After living in large metropolitan areas, my wife, two teenage girls and I were looking for a community with a friendly small town feel. But we wanted it close to the conveniences typically found in larger cities. We wanted to live in the country, but we wanted to be close to major shopping malls, entertainment and medical facilities. We wanted to avoid the city traffic snarls, but still be able to get to the city’s conveniences quickly. We wanted a school system that was growing, supported solidly by the community and had a reputation for extraordinary learning opportunities for its students. We found it. We wanted a new church home that had solid programs for children and youth. We joined it. We wanted to live close to the lake areas south and north of Springfield, but not on the lake. We found a town with the Finley River running through it. We found Ozark and we stayed.

Our roots went down and went down deep. Our girls were quickly immersed in school activities and were well prepared for their college and university experiences and eventual graduations. Pam and I started our real estate business in a small town with a population under 3000 people and have seen it grow to almost 18,000. It seems like a lot of other folks saw what we saw.

Time has been good to Ozark and Christian County. Our community has maintained its small town quality of life while still offering everything we need and enjoy. We’re staying and we encourage you to come join us.