Kansas City’s Briarcliff West Is an Affluent Enclave With a Low-Key Vibe—Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift Aside

The Chiefs’ tight end has owned a home in the Missouri neighborhood for the past five years, but it’s otherwise an under-the-radar spot with big houses and a country-club feel.

Briarcliff West, once an under-the-radar neighborhood in Kansas City, Missouri, got its moment in the national spotlight when NFL star Travis Kelce, who’s owned a house there for the past five years, started dating Taylor Swift in the summer of 2023. Paparazzi and other curious eyes descended on the neighborhood to the extent that Kelce, a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, reportedly snapped up a more remote mansion further afield. But popstar girlfriends aside, affluent residents of Briarcliff West typically find a low-key, country-club-like community.

“Briarcliff West is stately and elevated, yet overwhelmingly family-oriented and friendly,” said Tanya Brewer, global real estate adviser at Element Sotheby’s International Realty. “Homes are well-built and well-maintained, and lawns are manicured. There is an air of quiet luxury. The single road traversing the neighborhood definitely conveys the entrance to a purposeful space.” One road—North Mulberry Drive—winds through Briarcliff West from the southern border of Briarcliff Parkway to the northern border of NW Vivion Road.

Briarcliff West is bounded on the north by Interstate 29, on the east by U.S. 169, and on the south by Gateway Road. The western boundary is the subdivision itself; there is no road. The roads within the community are cul-de-sacs within cul-de-sacs that are accessed via North Mulberry Drive. (One section of the community, Towne Villas, which is on the east side of U.S. 169 on North Jarboe Court, is a separate cul-de-sac that is accessed via the Briarcliff Parkway.) There are three sections in the community: the Residences, the West Villas and the Towne Villas.

In 2023, the price range for the three areas was $440,000 to $1.5 million, according to Ron Henderson, a broker at Keller Williams Kansas City North. Over the past two years, the price range of the Residences has been between the mid-$600,000s to $1.35 million, Brewer said, adding that the average has been $895,000. During the same time period, prices of the West Villas have ranged from $475,000 to $530,000 and Towne Villas have ranged from $430,00 to $455,000, she said. Home styles and lot sizes vary in each of the three neighborhoods within the community.

The Residences are luxury single-family suburban-style custom houses, which were built in the 1990s to the early 2000s. Homes are a mix of styles, including colonial, Mediterranean and Mid-Century Modern. The houses on the southern side, Brewer said, have larger lots and square footage, averaging 1.2 to 1.9 acres and 5,000 to 8,000 square feet. “They often have grand landscaping,” she said, “which contributes to an estate feel.”

On the northern side, the houses average 3,000 to 6,000 square feet and typically are sited on 0.3 to 0.75-acre lots. “They have well-manicured, lush green spaces,” she said, adding that “between the two sections is a generous mix so that one never feels the transition—it’s almost a balayage effect.” The West Villas average 2,500 to 5,500 square feet and are on lots of 0.15 to 0.28 of an acre. “The one entrance from North Mulberry Street, still continuing with the sweeping roads and polished landscaping, creates an almost secret garden feeling,” Brewer said. “Styles are less varied and in keeping with the traditional/Mediterranean feel, all in ranch or reverse one-and-a-half story.”

Towne Villas, which are just outside Briarcliff West proper on the east side of U.S. 169, are also maintenance-provided patio villas in traditional ranch or reverse one-and-a-half-story styles. “The road they are on is a long, winding cul-de-sac with an elegant entrance and well-appointed landscaping,” Brewer said.

The houses typically have a main level that’s 1,800 to 1,900 square feet, a basement that’s 900 to 1,900 square feet and smaller lots. Its location is prime: It’s only a 10-minute drive to downtown Kansas City, said Henderson, adding that “it’s an exclusive luxury neighborhood with winding, tree-lined streets and a beautiful retail development.”

Brewer added that “Briarcliff West is luxury suburban living but only just north of the river and overlooking the Kansas City skyline.” She noted that the community incorporates some of the signature aesthetics of legendary 20th-century Kansas City developer J.C. Nichols. Briarcliff West has a community pool, common areas, basketball, tennis and pickleball courts and wooded walking trails.

The Village at Briarcliff, at the southern end of Briarcliff West, features locally owned specialty shops and restaurants, including the Argentinian steakhouse Piropos, the Italian establishment Trezo Mare, which has patio seating overlooking the city’s skyline, the home-furnishings boutique Nell Hill’s, the small-plate eatery Ombra and the Spa at Briarcliff.