What is the difference between St. Louis County and the City of St. Louis?

They are two completely separate governments. In 1877, the City of St. Louis separated from St. Louis County following the "Great Divorce" vote of 1876. Since then, the city has been an independent city — not part of any county — with its own assessor, courts, and services. St. Louis County is a conventional county government based in Clayton. If you live in the City of St. Louis (zip codes like 63101-63141 in the city proper), your county government is the city itself. If you live in Clayton, Chesterfield, Kirkwood, Florissant, Webster Groves, or any of St. Louis County's 91 municipalities, your county government is St. Louis County.

How do I appeal my St. Louis County property tax assessment?

Start with an informal review at the Assessor's Office when your assessment notice arrives in May. If unresolved, file a formal appeal with the St. Louis County Board of Equalization (BOE) by the second Monday in July — call 314-615-7195 for an appeal form. The BOE hears cases through August. If the BOE denies your appeal, you may appeal to the Missouri State Tax Commission by September 30 or within 30 days of the BOE decision, whichever is later.

How often does St. Louis County reassess property?

Missouri law requires reassessment of all real estate every odd-numbered year. 2025 was a reassessment year. The 2025 assessed values apply to both 2025 and 2026 tax bills. The next reassessment will be in 2027.

What is Missouri's senior property tax freeze and how do I apply in St. Louis County?

Missouri's senior property tax freeze (Section 137.1050 RSMo) allows participating counties to freeze the county portion of property taxes for qualifying seniors at the base year level. St. Louis County participates. You must be 62 or older as of December 31 of the application year, own your primary residence in St. Louis County, and apply annually during the application window. The freeze applies only to county taxes — not school, library, or special district levies. Check stlouiscountymo.gov for the current application window.

Why does St. Louis County have 91 municipalities?

Missouri's strong tradition of municipal home rule, combined with the post-World War II suburban expansion pattern across the county, produced a proliferation of small incorporated communities. Each municipality maintains its own government, zoning authority, and typically its own police department. This fragmented structure — producing 91 separate governments in a county of about a million people — has been criticized as inefficient and was a contributing factor in the national spotlight on municipal courts following the 2014 Ferguson events.

Does Missouri have a state estate tax or inheritance tax?

No. Missouri has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. Estate transfers in Missouri are subject only to federal estate tax, which applies above the federal exemption threshold currently exceeding $13 million per individual. Missouri's Transfer on Death deed also allows real property to pass directly to named beneficiaries without probate.

St. Louis County - County Offices

Emergency & Disaster

EMERGENCY & DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Office: St. Louis County Office of Emergency Management – operates from the Emergency Operations Center within the Chief William Karabas Communications Building, Ohlendorf West Park, Ballwin, MO; also houses the Emergency Communications Commission and the County Police Department’s 911 Dispatch Center.

Police: St. Louis County Police Department – Headquarters, 7900 Forsyth Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63105 | Non-emergency (636) 529-8210; formed July 1, 1955, succeeding the former County Sheriff’s Office as the primary law enforcement agency; roughly 800 sworn officers across 8 precincts and 12 substations, serving a jurisdiction of 520 square miles and over 1 million residents; governed by the Board of Police Commissioners; note that many individual municipalities within the County (such as Clayton) maintain their own local police departments.

Sheriff: St. Louis County Court Sheriff Department – 105 South Central Avenue, Clayton, MO 63105 | (314) 615-8029 | Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-5 PM; now functions primarily as a court-security and civil-process agency, following the 1955 creation of the County Police Department.

Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.

Property Tax

Missouri’s property tax system is administered at the county level. The St. Louis County Assessor’s Office, located at 41 South Central Avenue in Clayton, handles assessment of all real and personal property in the county. If your property is in the City of St. Louis rather than St. Louis County, contact the City Assessor separately.

Missouri’s assessment ratio

Missouri assesses residential property at 19 percent of true value. This is not the market value – it is the assessed value used for tax calculations. A home worth $300,000 has an assessed value of $57,000 (19% × $300,000). The tax rate (levy) is then applied to that assessed value. Commercial and industrial property is assessed at 32 percent of true value. Agricultural land is assessed at 12 percent. This tiered system means the nominal tax rate (expressed as dollars per $100 of assessed value) is much higher than the effective rate on market value.

The median effective property tax rate in St. Louis County – meaning actual taxes paid as a percentage of market value – runs approximately 1.36 percent. The gap between the lowest median tax bill in the county ($835 in Berkeley) and the highest ($18,955 in Clayton) reflects the enormous variation in property values and local levy rates across 91 municipalities.

Missouri reassesses every odd year

Missouri law requires reassessment of all real estate every odd-numbered year. 2025 was a reassessment year. Assessment notices were mailed in May 2025, based on market conditions as of January 1, 2025. Many St. Louis County homeowners received increases of 15 percent or more, reflecting the region’s strong residential market in recent years. The 2025 assessed values apply to both 2025 and 2026 tax liability.

The appeal path

Missouri’s appeal process moves on a tight calendar. When notices arrive in May, property owners have a narrow window to act:

Step 1: Request an informal review with the St. Louis County Assessor’s Office. This is the fastest and lowest-cost path to a correction – factual errors (wrong square footage, incorrect bedroom count, condition issues) are often resolved here without a formal hearing.

Step 2: File a formal appeal with the St. Louis County Board of Equalization (BOE). The BOE conducts hearings from July through the last Saturday in August. The formal appeal deadline is typically the second Monday in July. Obtain the appeal form by calling 314-615-7195. The BOE hears evidence from both sides and issues a written determination.

Step 3: If the BOE decision is unsatisfactory, appeal to the Missouri State Tax Commission (STC) by September 30 or within 30 days of the BOE decision, whichever is later. Residential property owners may represent themselves before the STC; commercial property owners must have legal representation.

Missouri’s senior property tax freeze

Missouri enacted a senior property tax freeze program under Section 137.1050 of the Missouri Statutes, authorizing participating counties to freeze property taxes for qualifying seniors at the base year level. St. Louis County adopted the program. The freeze applies to county property taxes on a primary residence – it does not freeze school district levies, library levies, or other independently set levies, only the county portion.

Eligibility: age 62 or older as of December 31 of the application year; primary residence in St. Louis County; property owner. Applications are submitted annually; the 2025 application window ran through June 30, 2025, with 82,000 applications processed. The freeze locks the county tax at the base year level – future county tax increases on the property do not apply to qualifying seniors.

OWNWELL CTA: 2025 was a Missouri reassessment year. St. Louis County homeowners received increases of 15% or more. The formal BOE appeal deadline is the second Monday in July. Ownwell manages the full appeal process – no upfront cost, you only pay if you save.

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Courts & Legal

St. Louis County’s court system centers on the 21st Judicial Circuit Court of Missouri, located at 7900 Carondelet Avenue in Clayton. The Circuit Court handles civil, criminal, family, probate, and juvenile matters for the county. The Missouri court system also includes a municipal court division – many of St. Louis County’s 91 municipalities operate their own municipal courts for traffic and minor ordinance violations, a system that attracted national attention and reform efforts following the 2014 Ferguson unrest.

Probate in St. Louis County

Probate matters – wills, estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and trusts – are handled by the Probate Division of the 21st Circuit Court, located on the fifth floor of 7900 Carondelet, Clayton, MO 63105. Call 314-615-2629 for general information.

Missouri probate is governed by the Missouri Probate Code (Chapter 473 RSMo). The process is initiated by filing a petition to open the estate, appointing a personal representative, publishing notice to creditors, inventorying assets, paying debts and taxes, and distributing the estate to heirs. Missouri offers a simplified procedure for small estates – a Refusal to Grant Letters process – when a decedent’s probate estate falls below a statutory threshold. Confirm the current threshold with a St. Louis County probate attorney.

Missouri has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. Estate transfers in Missouri are subject only to federal estate tax, which applies above the federal exemption threshold (currently over $13 million per individual under current federal law, subject to congressional change). This makes Missouri one of the more estate-friendly states in the Midwest.

Courts Directory

Court	Type	Phone	Address
21st Circuit Court (Civil/Criminal)	Major civil and felony criminal	314-615-8091	7900 Carondelet Ave, Clayton, MO 63105
21st Circuit Court (Probate)	Estates, guardianships, trusts	314-615-2629	7900 Carondelet Ave, 5th floor, Clayton
21st Circuit Court (Family)	Domestic relations, juvenile	314-615-4725	105 S. Central Ave, Clayton
St. Louis County Police Department	Law enforcement (unincorporated areas and contracts)	314-615-3941	7900 Forsyth Blvd, Clayton
St. Louis County Sheriff	Court security, civil process	314-615-4000	100 S. Central Ave, Clayton

Probate & Estate

Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.

Where to go

St. Louis County Circuit Court, Probate Division
7900 Carondelet Avenue, Clayton, MO 63105
(314) 615-2629

St. Louis County is Missouri’s most populous county, seated in Clayton. Missouri probate is handled by the Probate Division of the Circuit Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled – each of Missouri’s judicial circuits maintains its own probate division.

Step 1: figure out which path applies

Missouri probate is governed by Title XXXI of the Missouri Revised Statutes (Chapters 470-475), the Probate Code.

Small Estate Affidavit (RSMo § 473.097) – available when the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $40,000. A 30-day waiting period after death applies, and only if no application for letters is pending. If the property listed is worth more than $15,000, the clerk must publish a notice to creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. A bond may be required, in an amount not less than the value of the personal property. Once the court issues a certified small estate certificate, the affiant presents it directly to whoever holds the property (a bank, the DMV, etc.) to collect and distribute assets – avoiding full probate. A small estate affidavit can be filed at any time, even more than a year after death. Typical timeline: about two months to close, versus six months to a year or more for full probate.
Formal Administration – required for larger or more complex estates. A petition for Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (without one) is filed with the probate division. After review, the court appoints the personal representative and issues the letters, which authorize the representative to act on the estate’s behalf. Missouri offers both supervised and independent administration; independent administration can reduce bond requirements. Missouri requires an attorney to represent the personal representative in both types of administration – an important distinction from many other states.

Step 2: filing for formal probate

File a petition with the Probate Division of the Circuit Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
The court appoints the personal representative and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes a notice to creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and gives direct notice to known creditors. Creditors have 6 months from the date of first publication to file claims.
Within 30 days of appointment (unless the court extends the deadline), the personal representative files an inventory and appraisement of all estate assets.
After debts are paid and the creditor claim period expires, the personal representative distributes the remaining assets according to the will or Missouri’s intestate succession statutes, and files a final settlement with the court to close the estate.

What it costs

Missouri sets statutory minimum fees for attorneys and personal representatives based on a percentage of the estate’s value (for example, roughly 5% on the first $5,000, 4% on the next $20,000, with additional tiers), though additional fees may be allowed for extraordinary services.
Missouri has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates.

Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):

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