Luff

The namesake of the highly rated elementary school sitting in its heart, Luff has a little bit of everything despite being a 15-minute drive from Kansas City’s urban core. “There’s lots of shopping in the area,” says Shaun Ashley, Realtor for Re/Max Heritage. “It has a great price point in a good school district, with proximity to highways to get to and from work, and shopping and restaurants very near.” Indeed, this Independence neighborhood has found a way to supply oodles of entertainment options in an unlikely location, allowing for quiet yet convenient living.

Luff is a rental-heavy area; its residential streets are bookended by condos and multifamily buildings sporting up to four units. Condos here are newer, usually built in the 1980s onward. They're priced around the $150,000 mark for a two-bed, though homeowner’s association fees – covering everything from yard maintenance and community pool access to covered parking – are hefty, nearing $300 per month. Its multifamily properties, meanwhile, come with narrow yards, off-street parking and an opportunity to rent units or spare rooms out as Airbnbs for extra cash. These sell for around $400,000 and up. Traditional ’60s-era homes, typical of

Independence, fill up the rest of the neighborhood. These often come equipped with quarter-acre lots, more than 3,000 square feet of living space, two-car garages and long back porches leading into spacious back yards, with a price hovering around $375,000.

Most homes here sit mere steps from Luff Elementary. Rated an A- by Niche – one of the best scores for an Independence school – it lays a focus on student collaboration and developing self-confidence, as well as literacy. It feeds 6 miles northeast into Ridge Middle, which has a success-oriented curriculum and arts-heavy electives, and a mile north into B-rated Truman High, an A+ School offering two-year scholarships to graduates wanting to further their education at local community colleges or vocational schools.

Luff doesn’t have any parks, but one catering to a wide range of athletic niches sits just a mile north. Santa Fe Park spans nearly 35 acres and has two playsets for kids: a big, mulched one with royal-blue slides and honey-yellow monkey bars, and another with swings and turquoise slides, as well as five hard tennis courts, two grassy baseball fields and a skate park for both boarders and bikers. It connects to the Lipton Conservation Area, known for its gravel half-mile trail that leads hikers into a densely wooded area often filled with butterflies.

The weather isn’t cooperating? Head to Olaharama. This skating rink is owned by lifelong Independence residents, who offer an arcade, open skates on the weekends, private lessons each Wednesday and the ability to rent out the whole place for your next special event.

You can stay in this side of Luff for dinner, too, with a strip of beloved dining options working its way down the entire eastern side. One of the most lauded stops around, regional chain Hawaiian Bros Island Grill specializes in authentic cuisine from the Aloha State, specifically its best-selling Huli Huli Chicken smothered in teriyaki sauce with a side of macaroni salad and white rice. It offers a small menu but its flavors pack a punch, whether you opt for chicken, luau pig or a vegetable platter.

Leave enough room, though, for a sweet treat from Palacana, just a block from Olahrama. Open since the early 2000s, this Kansas-based shop is best-known for its Michoacan-style ice cream, with flavors ranging from rum with raisins to eggnog. That’s far from the only offering, however, with aguas frescas, creamsicles, juices and even authentic Mexican cuisine like Cubana tortas available. La Bonita Market awaits just a few blocks north if you want to make your own Mexican delicacy, or you can swing by Walmart Neighborhood Market just off the northeastern corner or Price Chopper in neighboring Southern.

There’s a lot to love in attraction-oriented Luff.

Written By

Bre Offenberger

Photography Contributed By

Brooke Wasson

Video By

Mallory Nolte