Cass County · MO
Peculiar, MO
Founded 1868 · 26.2 miles from downtown Kansas City · population 5,958
The market, last twelve months
Half of the homes that sold went under contract within 34 days. Cumulative days on market runs higher at 45, the gap indicating homes that were relisted rather than selling on the first attempt. The median sale closed at 100.0% of asking - at list. 41% closed at or above the original list price, which is the better measure of how much room a buyer actually has.
Aggregated from Heartland MLS closed sales, twelve months to July 2026. Individual sale prices are not shown - Kansas and Missouri are non-disclosure states and MLS rules do not permit their public display. Ask for the full report if you need them.
How it came to befounded 1868 · where the name comes from · 4 dated events
Platted on July 29, 1868 by Robert Cass, the Cass County surveyor, who divided the site into lots, blocks and streets; the certified plat was filed as 'The Town of Peculiar'. The post office had been established a month earlier, on June 22, 1868, with Edgar Thomson as first postmaster. source 1 source 2
The name. The settlers' preferred names were repeatedly rejected by the Post Office Department as already in use - postmaster Edgar Thomson's first choice, 'Excelsior', was taken by a town in Atchison County. Exasperated, the petitioners wrote back that they did not care what name they were given 'so long as it is sort of peculiar'. The department took them at their word. source 1 source 2
Incorporated as a village in the 1890s and reorganized as a fourth-class city in 1953. source
- 1868Post office established (22 June) and the town platted by county surveyor Robert Cass (29 July). source
- 1953Reorganized from a village into a fourth-class city. source
- 1968Nine-day centennial celebration marking 100 years since the town's founding. source
- 2024City zoning amended to delete data centers as a permitted use, ending the proposed $1.5 billion Harper Road Technology Park. source
The housing stockmedian built 2006
The median home sold here was built in 2006. Most of what sells was built between 1975 and 2025. The Census puts the median year built for all housing at 1996, so the homes changing hands skew newer than the stock as a whole. 60% of sales included finished basement space beyond the above-grade footprint - which matters here, because square footage quoted above grade can understate a house considerably.
What's herewhat the place is known for
The name. Peculiar is one of the best-known unusual place names in Missouri and appears in Margot Ford McMillen's standard reference on Missouri place names, 'Paris, Tightwad and Peculiar' (University of Missouri Press, 1994). source
In 2024 the city removed 'data center' from its zoning ordinance, an amendment effective October 17, 2024, which blocked Diode Ventures' proposed $1.5 billion Harper Road Technology Park west of Harper Road between 203rd and future 211th Street. source
Neighborhoods with their own market data1 with enough sales to report
1 subdivision in Peculiar had enough closed sales in the last twelve months to report on individually.
| Subdivision | Sold | Median price | $/sq ft | Days | Built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuscany | 32 | $352,995 | $221 | 63 | 2025 |
Practical detailschool district · highways and transit
People from hereBrutus Hamilton, Paul Coffman and Chase Coffman
Thinking about buying or selling here?
The numbers above describe the market. What they cannot tell you is what your own house is worth in it, or which of these streets fits what you need. Ask me about Peculiar.