Kansas City has a population of 441,545 according to the 2000 Census data. There is no wonder why people are flocking to Kansas City to make residence. Combined with our low unemployment rate of 4.2%, median value of owner occupied homes of $84,000 and median household income of $37,198 we are on the up-take.

There is a continued demand for workers. Employees in Kansas City receive a higher "real income" than in other cities. To ensure that companies get the best employees, local as well as national companies must offer competitive wage and benefits.

This makes the area a good place to make a living according to a survey conducted by the Kansas City Business Journal. In the study, the country's largest metro areas were ranked after taking in a number of considerations including income levels, cost of living and other economic factors, like cost of doing business, taxes and housing. Kansas City ended up ranking number 12. According to the study, residents here make in real income about 28 percent more than the national median.