Advice on Kansas City MO neighborhoods (Raytown, Grandview)

[Julie McCoy]

Hey all, 

I'm an out-of-state investor very interested in the SFH market in Kansas City, and am hoping to purchase my first property by the end of the year, if the right thing comes along. I've seen a lot of discussion about Raytown and Grandview as solid B-grade cash-flowing working-class neighborhoods, which is my target area. However, I have some questions that I'm hoping those with local knowledge can help me with.

Crime - I've got a prospect I like in the 64129 zip (outside the 435, close to Eastwood Hills Elementary), and when I look at crime heat maps the area appears pretty good - a handful of thefts, but no violent crime or B&E in the immediate area.  However, reports from Rentfaxpro and City-Data show the crime rate in the area to be very high (disproportionately so, when compared to the actual incidents I've seen reported).  Can anyone shed light on this seeming discrepancy?  

School districts - It appears that, on the whole, public schools in KCMO are pretty terrible.  The only thing that's turning me off of Grandview as an area is the rock-bottom school ratings on GreatSchools and Education.com (Raytown doesn't seem to be much better). Can anybody comment on the impact this has on tenants/tenant duration, especially in regards to the KC market?  My mind says better school districts will encourage tenants with children to stay longer, but is that reflective of actual experience in these areas?

Thank you in advance for any insight you can lend!