Real estate · Metro area · Missouri
Home inspectors in the Columbia, MO metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for home inspectors in the Columbia, MO metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 23 out of 100: Low
Ranked #236 of 243 scored metro areas
#4 of 5 scored metro areas based in Missouri
- Listings
- 14
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- 6
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $1.2B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $13,921 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 33
- 67% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 1.6
- 2.7 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 219,062
- +3.9% since 2020
See the home inspectors around any address in the Columbia metro area
The site report maps the home inspectors on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Columbia metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for home inspectors in the Columbia metro area is 23 (low), #236 of 243 scored metro areas and #4 of 5 scored metro areas based in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Columbia metro area spend about $1.2B a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $13,921 per household, 16% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per business is 67% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money home inspectors take in.
The Columbia metro area has 14 home inspectors on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations, against 3% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 1.6, 2.7 times the U.S. rate of 0.6.
In 2023, official counts showed 6 businesses with payroll in the Columbia metro area classed as building inspection services. That is one for every 14,399 households, against one for every 17,237 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Columbia metro area grew 3.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Columbia metro area compares
The same measures for Missouri and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Columbia metro area | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 1.6 | 0.6 | 0.6 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 33 | 83 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 14,399 | 20,228 | 17,237 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +18.1% | +6.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.9% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $13,921 | $13,809 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $72,340 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 23 | 25 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6
- Employees, 2023
- 7
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $313K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 140 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 5The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as building inspection services in the Columbia metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Columbia metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 219,062+3.9% since 2020
- Households
- 86,393
- Median age
- 36.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 60%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,714 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 125
- Median household income
- $72,340+32.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $97,624
- Median home value
- $258,700
- Jobs located here
- 114,165
- Daytime population
- 231,692Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Columbia metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the home inspectors on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Columbia metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardHome inspectors across Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Missouri for home inspectors, numbered among those based in Missouri, with the Columbia metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Kansas City, MO-KS | 49 | 59 | 0.7 | 85 | +3.4% | #131 of 243 |
| 2St. Louis, MO-IL | 46 | 69 | 0.6 | 94 | −0.2% | #145 of 243 |
| 3Springfield, MO | 29 | 18 | 0.9 | 56 | +5.1% | #222 of 243 |
| 4Columbia, MO | 23 | 14 | 1.6 | 33 | +3.9% | #236 of 243 |
| 5St. Joseph, MO-KS | 6 | 5 | 1.1 | 47 | −2.0% | #240 of 243 |
Other business types in the Columbia metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
- Real estate32
- Real estate agents and brokers34
- Property management32
- Mortgage brokers and lenders41
- Home inspectors23
Funeral services
Questions
How many home inspectors are in the Columbia, MO metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 14 home inspectors in the Columbia metro area. None of them are chain locations. The listings count home inspectors. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as building inspection services in 2023.
How much do households in the Columbia, MO metro area spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $1.2B a year, or $13,921 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 14 home inspectors on map listings, housing spending per business is 67% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money home inspectors take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 86,393 households in the Columbia metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Columbia, MO metro area compare with the U.S. for home inspectors?
The Columbia metro area has 1.6 home inspectors per 10,000 households, 2.7 times the U.S. rate of 0.6. The index of housing spending per business is 33, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of home inspectors to household spending, the Columbia metro area would have about 5, against 14 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 14,399 households, against one for every 17,237 across the U.S.
How fast is the Columbia, MO metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Columbia metro area at 219,062 people in 2025, up 3.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 86,393 households. The median household income in the Columbia metro area is $72,340 a year, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.0% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Columbia metro area scores 23 for home inspectors (low), #236 of 243 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Columbia metro area. It maps the home inspectors on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for home inspectors · All 56 business types in the Columbia metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Columbia metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Columbia metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.