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Loma Linda, Missouri

Loma Linda is a small town of about 1,000 people in Newton County, Missouri. It has grown about 7% since 2020. A typical home costs about 3 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Tulsa, is about 94 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
1,009
up 6.9% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$275,700
Newton County prices up 21% since 2022
Household income
$92,292
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Joplin area
85.7
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
6 miles
Joplin, MO
To Tulsa
94 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 14.3% below the U.S. average in the Joplin metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Loma Linda itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in townNo public schools inside the town. The nearest high school is Galena High, about 6 miles away.
  • A hospital close byFreeman Health System - Freeman West in Joplin, about 6 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityTulsa is about 94 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Loma Linda meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$275,700U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 21%Newton County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$879 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$92,292U.S.: $80,734
Typical property tax bill
$2,188 a yearMissouri: $1,948
Homes built before 1940
1%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
5%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
4%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
85.7U.S. average = 100 (the Joplin metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 21% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Joplin metro area, not Loma Linda alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
1,0092020: 944
Median age
43.9 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
16%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
34%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
7%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (20%); transportation, warehousing and utilities (11%); other services (10%)
Unemployment rate
4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
20 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
6%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
13%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Freeman Health System - Freeman West, Joplin, MO, about 6 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

There are no public schools inside Loma Linda itself. The nearest public high school is Galena High, about 6 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Missouri's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with any internet subscription
92%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
25°F
July average high
90°F
Days 90°F or hotter
53 a year
Nights at or below freezing
87 a year
Rain and melted snow
50 inches a year
Snow
8 inches a year
Elevation
1,012 feet

Weather stations: Joplin Regional Airport (12 miles away) and Neosho (15 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Freeman Health System - Freeman West, Joplin, Tulsa.

Newton County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • George Washington Carver National Monument13 miles
  • Wilson's Creek National Battlefield23 miles
  • Pea Ridge National Military Park46 miles
  • Fort Scott National Historic Site59 miles

Read about Loma Linda's history on Wikipedia.

Know Loma Linda?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Grand Falls Plaza, MO108 people, 4 miles
  • Redings Mill, MO159 people, 5 miles
  • Shoal Creek Drive, MO381 people, 5 miles
  • Leawood, MO643 people, 6 miles
  • Shoal Creek Estates, MO108 people, 6 miles
  • Peoria, OK131 people, 7 miles
  • Saginaw, MO333 people, 7 miles
  • Lowell, KS (unincorporated)278 people, 8 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.