Real estate · County · Missouri
Real estate businesses in Cole County, MO
How Cole County, MO compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 37 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,795 of 2,229 scored counties
#54 of 82 scored counties in Missouri
- Listings
- 96
- 10 chain locations (10%)
- Official establishments
- 48
- +17.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $435.7M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $14,016 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 105
- 5% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 30.9
- 20% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 77,908
- +1.7% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Cole County
The site report maps the real estate businesses 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 Cole County. 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
For real estate businesses, Cole County has a Groundwork market score of 37 (lower middle): #1,795 of 2,229 scored counties and #54 of 82 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 96 real estate businesses in Cole County. Of those, 10 are chain locations, or 10%, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 30.9, 20% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Households in Cole County spend about $435.7M a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $14,016 per household, 16% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 5% above the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Cole County was 48 in 2023, up 17.1% from 2019. That is one for every 648 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Cole County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Cole County 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 | Cole County | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 30.9 | 32.9 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 105 | 97 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 648 | 540 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +17.1% | +15.3% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.7% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $14,016 | $13,809 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $74,876 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 37 | 37 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 41 → 48+17.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 193
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $16.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 246Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9610 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 101The 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 real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Cole County, 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 Cole County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 77,908+1.7% since 2020
- Households
- 31,086
- Median age
- 40.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 392 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 197
- Median household income
- $74,876+24.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $95,025
- Median home value
- $229,600
- Jobs located here
- 56,757
- Daytime population
- 96,838Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Cole County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Cole County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Missouri for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Missouri, with Cole County marked.
Top counties in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Andrew County, MO | 71 | 6 | 8.6 | 373 | +0.7% | #174 of 2,229 |
| 2Dallas County, MO | 69 | 7 | 10.3 | 270 | +5.2% | #229 of 2,229 |
| 3Ste. Genevieve County, MO | 66 | 5 | 7.0 | 447 | +1.1% | #324 of 2,229 |
| 4Lawrence County, MO | 63 | 22 | 15.1 | 195 | +3.7% | #458 of 2,229 |
| 5Warren County, MO | 63 | 31 | 22.4 | 148 | +9.2% | #473 of 2,229 |
| 6McDonald County, MO | 61 | 7 | 8.2 | 346 | +3.1% | #524 of 2,229 |
| 7Bates County, MO | 61 | 6 | 9.7 | 302 | +2.9% | #528 of 2,229 |
| 8Benton County, MO | 60 | 7 | 8.2 | 340 | +5.7% | #559 of 2,229 |
| 9Lincoln County, MO | 60 | 60 | 26.3 | 126 | +11.4% | #584 of 2,229 |
| 10Washington County, MO | 58 | 6 | 6.7 | 422 | +1.6% | #641 of 2,229 |
| 54Cole County, MO | 37 | 96 | 30.9 | 105 | +1.7% | #1,795 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Cole County
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
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Cole County, MO?
Cole County has 96 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 10 of them (10%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 48 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 17.1% from 2019. Official counts list 246 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Cole County, MO spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $435.7M a year, or $14,016 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 96 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 5% above the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 31,086 households in Cole County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Cole County, MO compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Cole County has 30.9 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 20% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 105, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Cole County would have about 101, against 96 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 648 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 17.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Cole County, MO growing?
Population estimates put Cole County at 77,908 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 31,086 households. The median household income in Cole County is $74,876 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.7% 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. Cole County scores 37 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,795 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Cole County. It maps the real estate businesses 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 real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Cole County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Cole County?
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 Cole County. 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.