Last updated October 30, 2026
Atlanta and St. Louis both have mature trees, hills and suburbs that grew in waves, so the houses can feel familiar. What differs is where each era ended up. Match the decade and style of your Atlanta house to the St. Louis areas built in the same years, using 2026 sales here and Census figures there.
The answer changes by decade. Alpharetta’s 1990s two-stories line up with Wildwood, Marietta’s 1980s houses with Arnold and High Ridge, Woodstock’s 2000s subdivisions with Hillsboro and Fenton, and Decatur’s bungalows with Kirkwood, Webster Groves and Maplewood. Decade by decade ↓
Wildwood, in West County. Alpharetta’s median house dates from 1996, and more than half its housing went up in the 1980s and 1990s; Wildwood’s 2026 sales had a 1992 median and 3,342 sq ft above ground. Alpharetta’s match ↓
Yes, mostly in Jefferson County. Woodstock’s median house dates from 2005; in 2026 resales, Pevely’s median was 2001, Hillsboro’s 2002, Fenton’s Jefferson County side 2003 and Herculaneum’s 2009. Woodstock’s matches ↓
Kirkwood and Webster Groves come closest: walkable downtowns, older houses and a school district that shares the city’s name, the way Decatur runs its own system apart from DeKalb County. Maplewood is the smaller, lower-priced version. Decatur’s matches ↓
It depends which Buckhead. For a detached house on a big lot, Ladue and Clayton, with 2026 medians of $1,430,000 and $1,240,000. For a high-rise condo, the Central West End and Clayton. Buckhead’s matches ↓
Sources: St. Louis figures from 2026 MLS (MARIS) closed single-family sales on this site’s area pages; Atlanta-area house ages from U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey data (via Point2Homes); Virginia-Highland history from the Atlanta History Center.
Find its decade. Atlanta’s suburbs grew outward in rings, from intown bungalows to 1980s Marietta, 1990s Alpharetta and 2000s Woodstock, and St. Louis has an area built in each of those decades.
| Your Atlanta-area house | Where it’s common | St. Louis areas to tour first |
|---|---|---|
| 1990s two-story in an established suburb | Alpharetta | Wildwood, then Chesterfield |
| 1980s house in an older suburb | Marietta | Arnold, Festus and High Ridge in Jefferson County |
| 2000s–2010s subdivision house | Woodstock and the Canton corridor | Hillsboro, Fenton, Herculaneum and Pevely |
| Pre-war bungalow near a walkable downtown | Decatur, Virginia-Highland | Kirkwood, Webster Groves, Maplewood and South City |
| Buckhead estate or high-rise | Buckhead, Midtown | Ladue and Clayton; the Central West End for condos |
Treat the right-hand column as a first tour list. Prices, taxes and local rules still differ; here’s what changes.
Tour Wildwood first. Alpharetta isn’t new construction: its median house dates from 1996, 56.6% of its housing went up in the 1980s and 1990s, and only 2.6% since 2020, according to Census data. Wildwood was built in the same years.
| Area | Median year built | Median size | Median price | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildwood | 1992 | 3,342 sq ft | $599,000 | 136 |
| Chesterfield | 1982 | 3,326 sq ft | $685,000 | 120 |
For more space at a slightly older age, Chesterfield’s median house is about the same size, from 1982. Both sit in West County, the region’s higher-priced corner. Every West County city compared →
Look across the Meramec, in Jefferson County. Marietta’s median house dates from 1987, and the 1980s are its biggest single decade, a quarter of its housing, according to Census data. Arnold and Festus have the same 1987 median, at prices around $300,000.
| Community | Median year built | Median size | Median price | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Festus | 1987 | 1,759 sq ft | $295,000 | 106 |
| Arnold | 1987 | 1,633 sq ft | $305,000 | 97 |
| High Ridge | 1988 | 2,072 sq ft | $318,950 | 54 |
High Ridge gives you more room, about 2,070 sq ft at the median, for a little more money. Arnold is a city with its own rules at a sale; High Ridge is unincorporated, so the County’s rules apply. Jefferson County’s communities compared →
Jefferson County again, a little farther south. Woodstock is Atlanta’s newer-exurb story: 42.6% of its housing went up in the 2000s and another 25.6% in the 2010s, for a 2005 median, according to Census data. St. Louis County has little of that age, so the closest matches are these Jefferson County towns.
| Community | Median year built | Median size | Median price | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pevely | 2001 | 1,437 sq ft | $272,000 | 25 |
| Hillsboro | 2002 | 1,916 sq ft | $357,500 | 64 |
| Fenton (Jefferson Co. side) | 2003 | 1,892 sq ft | $350,500 | 51 |
| Herculaneum | 2009 | 1,691 sq ft | $319,900 | 19 |
Expect a smaller footprint than a Woodstock subdivision house, roughly 1,400 to 1,900 sq ft above ground, often with a basement below. Ask whether the subdivision has an HOA and what it covers before you assume amenities. What each budget buys, by ZIP →
Start with Kirkwood and Webster Groves. Decatur mixes a pre-war core, nearly a third of its housing built before 1950, with a wave of 2010s infill, according to Census data, and Virginia-Highland’s bungalows went up from 1909 to the 1930s, per the Atlanta History Center. St. Louis’s walkable older suburbs are mostly the original houses.
| City | Median year built | Median size | Median price | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maplewood | 1929 | 1,344 sq ft | $295,000 | 17 |
| Webster Groves | 1936 | 1,936 sq ft | $444,500 | 82 |
| Kirkwood | 1951 | 2,315 sq ft | $566,750 | 80 |
Like Decatur, Kirkwood and Webster Groves each have a walkable downtown and a school district named for the city, and Kirkwood’s downtown has an Amtrak station. Maplewood is the smaller, lower-priced option, and South City neighborhoods such as Lindenwood Park and Tower Grove South have the bungalow streets. Kirkwood vs. Webster Groves →
Decide which Buckhead you’re leaving. Only 26.5% of Buckhead’s homes are detached houses, and 47.0% are in buildings of 50 or more units, according to Census data, so the estate reputation describes a minority of its homes.
For a detached house on a large lot, look at Ladue, with a 2026 median of $1,430,000 for about 4,400 sq ft, and Clayton, at $1,240,000 for about 3,600 sq ft. For a high-rise or condo, the Central West End puts Forest Park and the hospitals within walking distance, and Clayton has condo towers in its office district. Clayton vs. Ladue under $1 million →
Quite possibly. In Atlanta, it depends on the lot: daylight basements on sloped north-side lots, crawlspaces under many older intown houses, slabs on flat subdivision lots. In St. Louis, a lot of the ranches and two-stories in the tables above sit on a full basement whether the lot slopes or not.
If you’re leaving a crawlspace or slab house, that basement is extra room the listed square footage doesn’t count. Comparing square footage and checking a basement →
Less than you’d expect about the houses, and more about the map. Four things to know:
Older houses here mean older sewer lines. I recommend a sewer scope on every St. Louis home; it runs $150 to $300.
Before you move
Yes. Atlanta is a long drive or a short flight away, so you can tour on live video, rely on a full inspection report, and close remotely through the title company. Buying from out of state →
Some do, especially newer ones, but many older St. Louis neighborhoods have no HOA at all. Ask for the HOA documents, dues and what they cover before you compare monthly costs. Where to live in St. Louis →
Yes: Chicago, Dallas and Houston each have a house-type match like this one. Moving to St. Louis →
This is one piece of the St. Louis home buying process. See how it all fits together:
📚 Complete St. Louis Buyer Guide →House hunting in St. Louis from Atlanta? Send me the address instead of filling out a listing-site form, and skip the calls trying to book you a showing. Why it matters →
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