St. Louis ranks among the top-performing cities for Starting a Business

• In St. Louis, businesses can expect an efficient process for Dealing with Construction Permits. The city is among the best performers for number of procedures and waiting time across the 10 cities covered in this report. Total costs for construction permits are approximately 1% the cost of construction.
• St. Louis earns top marks for Registering Property due to the minimal number of procedures, low waiting time, and low administrative costs for the transfer of a commercial property. The city is one of two cities in the report that does not have a real estate transfer tax. The city eliminated property transfer tax several years ago.
• St. Louis is a top-performing city when it comes to Enforcing Contracts. Entrepreneurs can expect efficiency in the number of procedures, moderate level of waiting time, and low administrative costs when entering a contractual dispute in a court of law.

St. Louis performs well in four out of the five areas of local regulations that this report reviews. The city is second in the overall ranking, reflecting its continuing efforts to develop programs and initiatives to strengthen the business environment, provide access to capital, and encourage economic growth at the local level.

The St. Louis Regional Chamber of Commerce has played an important role in building the infrastructure and ecosystem for the city's start-up community. St. Louis is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country in the technology sector. Recognizing this growth, the business community and the city have worked together to create dozens of incubators and accelerator groups that provide mentoring, networking opportunities, and coworking spaces for start-up companies.

The St. Louis Regional Chamber was a key player in the growth of SixThirty - an accelerator that has received national media attention for its success and innovative business model. SixThirty gives emerging tech start-ups an investment of $100,000, connection to top financial services companies, and a rigorous four-month accelerator program to help the company grow. Another incubator - T-REx—has grown to 70 companies and hopes to expand to 150. And it is not just the technology sector that's driving entrepreneurs in the city. The St. Louis Biogenerator provides mentoring, access to capital, and lab space to early-stage life sciences companies.

Greater St. Louis is driving for the development of start-up companies and a network for entrepreneurs to thrive in the city.

~ from the Regulatory Climate Index 2014: St. Louis, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.