Dennis Norman - St Louis Real Estate News

Get The “Fax” Before You Buy A Home

By Dennis Norman, on July 3rd, 2013

Yes, I know how to spell “facts” and am aware that “fax” machines have went the way of the dinosaurs and therefore would never advise someone to get one, so what exactly am I talking about in my post title? Actually, my recent discovery of a company that was launched in 2012 called Housefax prompted me to do this post, hence “fax”, however, I also mean to suggest that you should get all the “facts” you can (about the house and market) before you buy a home.

First, about Housefax. The company was launched last year and it’s top Continue Reading →

Will Home Prices Rise Much More In The Next Year?

By Dennis Norman, on June 28th, 2013

Over the past few months we have seen St Louis home prices rise as the inventory of homes declines and buyers snap up the best deals about as fast as they hit the market. The question now is, “will home prices rise much more in the next year” and, if so, will they continue at the current pace? Well, 70 percent the agents surveyed during the month of June by Redfin say they expect home prices to rise “a little” over the next 12 months and just 16 percent said they felt prices would rise “a lot” (down from 44 Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Sales Peak In June

By Dennis Norman, on June 27th, 2013

St Louis home sales peaked around the midpoint of June at the same time our Market Action Index (MAI) for the St Louis MSA peaked as well. The week of June 14th saw 1,964 homes leave the market in the St Louis MSA, most as a result of sale) and during the same week our Market Action Index (the black line on the chart below) hit 42, well into “seller’s market” territory (above 30 up to a max of 60). Since that peak, both the number of homes for sale that have left the market as well as our Continue Reading →

St Peters Is Top Booming Suburb In Missouri

By Dennis Norman, on June 26th, 2013

St. Peters is the top booming suburb in Missouri, according to a newly released ranking by Coldwell Banker of “Top Booming Suburbs In America”. In compiling this ranking, Coldwell Banker ranked 1,500 suburbs around the U.S. based upon job growth, unemployment rates, neighborhood amenities, community safety and more. St. Peters, with a score of 859.35 out of a possible 1,000 scored the best of the Missouri suburbs. The top suburb in the U.S.? Cottage Lake, Washington with a perfect score of 1,000.

St Peters Homes For Sale (click here)

By state, here is the list of Continue Reading →

St Louis Foreclosures At Lowest Rate In Over 3 Years

By Dennis Norman, on June 25th, 2013

St Louis Foreclosures fell in April to 1.2 percent of all St Louis homes with a mortgage, a decline of 33 percent from a year ago when the rate was 1.78 percent and is now at the lowest rate in well over 3 years, according to a report just released by CoreLogic. This puts St Louis foreclosures less than half the national rate for April of 2.65 percent.

In addition, the report reveals that St Louis mortgage delinquencies are also down significantly for April 2013 which 3.96 percent of St Louis mortgage being 90 days or more delinquent, a Continue Reading →

St Louis Housing Markets On The Rebound

By Dennis Norman, on June 24th, 2013

There are St Louis Housing markets on the rebound with prices and demand on the rise and inventories down. For the 9 areas of St Louis where the real estate market is on the rebound listed below, I have charts showing what home prices have done over the past 3 years (the red line) as well as what our Market Action Index is for the area (an index that rates an area based upon supply and demand – the Olive colored line). As the data shows, these markets are seeing home prices on the rise and the market heating up!

Continue Reading →

Now is the time to buy a home survey shows

By Dennis Norman, on June 21st, 2013

A survey by LendingTree reveals that now is the time to buy a home if you want to beat the coming higher home prices and interest rates. According to the survey of individuals that say they are considering buying a home in the coming year, 68% say they feel home prices will rise and 64% think interest rates will rise in the next 12 months.

Of the would-be home buyers surveyed, 57 percent are first-time home buyers and 45 percent said they are “actively” shopping for a home while the remaining 55 percent said they are “casual” shoppers.

Click here Continue Reading →

Home Builders’ Market View Best In Over Six Years

By Dennis Norman, on June 20th, 2013

Home builders’ market view is more optimistic today than it has been in over 6 years, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The index, which compares how many home builders have an optimistic outlook on the market with those with a negative outlook to arrive at an index number. An index about 50 indicates more builders are optimistic about the market than negative on the market.

The chart below shows the history of the index.

Looking for a new home in St Louis? Click here to see all for sale

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Are St Louis Home Price Gains Threatening Another Housing Bubble?

By Dennis Norman, on June 19th, 2013

It has only been recently that economists started using the word “recovery” in the same sentence as “housing market” and now there is talk about a possible housing bubble? CoreLogic, in it’s June MarketPulse report, citing a 12.1 percent increase in their home price index from April 2012 to April 2013 cautioned that the double-digit home price gains “prompt caution” and makes some ask “are we witnessing a new housing bubble?”

The CoreLogic report encompasses the largest metro areas in the U.S. so I decided to look at the St. Louis area specifically to see if what we are Continue Reading →

Noise Tops List of Reasons For Disputes With Neighbors

By Dennis Norman, on June 18th, 2013

In the Bible we are told to “love our neighbor as yourself” but it seems over 4 in ten people out there may have a problem with this and noise is the culprit almost half the time. According to a new survey by FindLaw.com, forty two percent (42) of Americans say they have had a dispute with a neighbor and almost half of that group (48 percent) cites noise as the reason for the dispute.

Continue Reading →

You Have To Act Quick To Buy A St Louis Foreclosure

By Dennis Norman, on June 13th, 2013

If you want to buy a St Louis foreclosure, you will have to be prepared to move quick, and pay up to be successful! Over the past 60 days, there were 929 new foreclosure listings (bank and government owned homes) in the St Louis core market area (St Louis City & County, St Charles, Jefferson and Franklin Counties). These new St Louis foreclosures for sale have an average listing price of $84,467 and almost 50 percent of them are already sold (48%), selling in a median time of 11 days and for an average of 106 percent of the list Continue Reading →

St Louis Homeowners With Negative Equity Falls 10 Percent

By Dennis Norman, on June 12th, 2013

There were 88,367 St Louis homeowners with negative equity during the first quarter of this year, according to a report just released by CoreLogic. This represents 15.7 percent of the St. Louis homeowners with a mortgage and is a decline of 10 percent from the prior quarter when there were 98,365 St Louis homeowners with negative equity, or 17.5 percent of all St Louis homeowners with a mortgage.

For the State of Missouri as a whole, there were 120,056 homeowners, or 15.3 percent of all homeowners with a mortgage, with negative equity during the first quarter of this year. On Continue Reading →

Three out of Four People Say Now Is The Time To Buy A Home

By Dennis Norman, on June 11th, 2013

Over three of every four people (76 percent) say now is a good time to buy a home according to the National Housing Survey for May just released by Fannie Mae. Would be sellers are also feeling better about the housing market with 40 percent saying now is a good time to sell a home.

When it comes to financing that home purchase, American’s are getting more optimistic as well, with 46 percent saying it would be easy to get a home loan today, however 50 percent believe it would be difficult to obtain a mortgage.

Thinking of Continue Reading →

St Louis Real Estate Home Prices and Sales Market Update VIDEO

By Dennis Norman, on June 10th, 2013

St Louis Real Estate Market Shows Strengthening in May!

The St Louis Real Estate Market remains in seller’s market territory this month, according to the latest market data from MORE, REALTORS. The inventory of homes for sale remains low while home sale and prices are increasing.

Thinking of selling and want to know if your neighborhood is a seller’s market? Contact us and we’ll answer that question for you.

This is not the market to be an uniformed participant in though or not have qualified, professional representation. This can lead to frustration as a buyer as you continue to “miss” Continue Reading →

Missouri Attorney General Offers Tips To Avoid Timeshare Scams

By Dennis Norman, on June 7th, 2013

Missouri Attorney General, Chris Koster, has joined in with Attorney Generals from around the U.S. to combat time share buying scams. According to Koster, deceptive timeshare resellers will often falsely claim to have buyers or renters in place who are ready to pay top dollar for consumers’ timeshare properties. The scamming companies ask timeshare owners to pay hefty up-front fees and do nothing in turn.

The Missouri Attorney General’s office offers the following tips to avoid becoming the victim of a timeshare scam:

Continue Reading →

St Louis Ranked As 4th Best City To Buy Fixer-Upper Bargain Homes

By Dennis Norman, on June 6th, 2013

Dennis Norman,Broker-Officer,MORE, REALTORS

St. Louis 4th Best City in the U.S. To Buy Bargain Real Estate

According to a report released today by RealtyTrac, St Louis is 4th on the list of the best cities in the U.S. to still be able to buy fixer-upper bargain homes. In compiling the list, RealtyTrac considered the number of homes each city had that were bank owned homes (REO’s), built before 1960 (indicating the opportunity to increase value by updating and/or improving) and had an estimated value below $100,000. The complete list of the top 15 cities is below as well Continue Reading →

Missouri Has 5th Lowest Average Down Payment In Nation

By Dennis Norman, on June 5th, 2013

The average home buyer in Missouri makes a down payment of 13.2 percent and borrows an average amount of $172,998.59, according to the latest data from LendingTree.com. The state with the lowest average down payment is Mississippi at 11.9 percent and the highest, New Jersey at 20.5 percent.

Report Says St Louis Home Price Appreciation 2nd Worst of Major Metros; Lets take a closer look though

By Dennis Norman, on June 4th, 2013

St Louis was ranked number 2 on the list of “Lowest Performing Major Metro Markets” just released by Clear Capital. The Clear Capital report listed the top 15 performing housing markets in the U.S. as well as the 15 worst performing housing markets in the U.S. during the month of May 2013, based upon home price appreciation on a quarter over quarter basis. At the top of the list of top performing markets is Las Vegas with a 4.5 percent increase in home prices from the prior quarter and a staggering 27 percent increase over the past year. In Continue Reading →

St Louis Foreclosures Up Almost 19 Percent From Year Ago

By Dennis Norman, on May 30th, 2013

St Louis foreclosures rose during the 1st quarter of this year to 2,505 foreclosure sales in the St Louis metro area during the quarter, an increase of 18.83 percent from the year before, according to a newly released report from RealtyTrac. The average sales price of St Louis foreclosures during the quarter was $89,229 and, on average, St Louis foreclosures sold at a 37.95 percent discount from non-distressed sales.

Continue Reading →

Survey Shows Homebuyers Accepting Reality of Higher Home Prices As Result of Sellers Market

By Dennis Norman, on May 28th, 2013

A survey just conducted by Redfin of recent homebuyers shows that homebuyers are accepting the fact that they must pay higher prices as a result of being in a sellers market.

Here in St Louis we are seeing this with homes selling, as the chart shows below. for a higher percentage of the list price and in shorter time.

Ten Fastest Selling Areas In St Louis

By Dennis Norman, on May 24th, 2013

The fastest selling areas in St. Louis in April included 7 areas in St Louis County, 2 areas in St Charles County and 1 in the City of St. Louis, according to the latest data from MORE, REALTORS. At the top of the list of the ten fastest selling areas in St Louis is the 63121 zip code, comprised primarily of the city of Normandy in St Louis County where the median time on the market of homes sold in April was under three weeks.

[wpsharely id=”5779″]Would you like to SELL your home FAST Too? Click HERE for my free Continue Reading →

Over 1 in 4 St Louis Homeowners With A Mortgage Are Underwater

By Dennis Norman, on May 23rd, 2013

Slightly over 1 of every 4 (26.4 percent) St Louis homeowners with a mortgage are underwater or, in other words, in a negative equity position owing more on their mortgage than their home is currently worth, according to a report by Zillow. This is slightly higher than the national rate of 25.4 percent and, unfortunately, is predicted by Zillow to increase in the coming months to about 26.7 percent by January 2014.

In addition to the St Louis homeowners that are underwater, the report indicates that another 20.7 percent of the St Louis homeowners with a mortgage have less than Continue Reading →

St Louis Population Continues To Shift West

By Dennis Norman, on May 22nd, 2013

St Louis did not make the list of the 15 fastest growing large cities just released by the U.S. Census Bureau and, in fact, no city in Missouri made the list. The list was based upon the 2012 population estimates just released (literally about 1 minute ago) which showed, from 2011 – 2012, the State of Missouri barely had any population growth (0.22 percent). In the St Louis area, as the table below shows which compares the 2010 population for cities and counties throughout the St Louis area to the 2011 and newly released 2012 estimates, the St Louis population Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Sales and Home Price Increases In April Outpace National Average

By Dennis Norman, on May 22nd, 2013

St Louis home sales in April increased 13.7 percent from a year ago for the five-county core area (City of St Louis and the Counties of St Louis, St Charles, Jefferson and Franklin) while U.S. existing home sales rose 9.7 percent during the same period. During the same time-frame, St Louis home prices rose from a median price of $123,000 13.7 percent to $139,900 while US home prices increased 11.0 percent.

Continue Reading →

10 Most Affordable and 10 Least Affordable Places To Own A Home

By Dennis Norman, on May 21st, 2013

The National Association of Home Builders released their housing affordability report for the 1st quarter of 2013 showing that in Mansfield Ohio, the median price for a home was $73,000 and, with the area median family income being $54,600, resulting in 97.5 percent of the new and existing homes for sale being affordable to an average family. At the other end of the list was San Francisco, with a median price of $675,000, median income of $102,000 and only 28.9 percent of its homes affordable to a family with a median income. St. Louis came in at 76 on the Continue Reading →

Better To Buy Than Rent In Over Half St Louis Neighborhoods

By Dennis Norman, on May 20th, 2013

In over half (58 percent) of St Louis neighborhoods it is a better move financially to buy a home rather than rent a home, according to a report just released by Zillow. According to the report, in 49 neighborhoods in the city of St Louis (of 76 in the report) and in 42 neighborhoods in the county of St Louis (of 87 in the report) it makes more sense to buy a home than rent.

In putting this list together, Zillow looked at the costs associated with buying and leasing a home, including up front payments, fees as well as Continue Reading →

Home Building Continues At Pace 25 Percent Higher Than Year Ago

By Dennis Norman, on May 16th, 2013

Home building continues at a pace higher than we have seen in a few years, according to the latest new construction report from the U.S. Census Bureau and HUD. According to the report, permits were issued in April for new homes at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 617,000 homes, the highest rate in over 2 years and an increase of 27.5 percent from last year. New home starts in April were at an annual rate of 610,000 homes, a slight decline from March, but a 20.8 percent gain from a year ago and the 5th straight month the rate Continue Reading →

St Louis Real Estate Market Update – May 2013 – VIDEO

By Dennis Norman, on May 15th, 2013

St Louis Real Estate Market Sees Declining Inventory and Rising Prices

The St Louis Real Estate Market remains a seller’s market this month barely, according to the latest market data from MORE, REALTORS. The inventory of homes for sale remains low while home sale and prices are increasing.

Thinking of selling and want to know if your neighborhood is a seller’s market? Contact us and we’ll answer that question for you.

This is not the market to be an uniformed participant in though or not have qualified, professional representation. This can lead to frustration as a buyer as you continue Continue Reading →

St Louis’ Top Luxury Home Markets

By Dennis Norman, on May 14th, 2013

The top four markets in the country for $1 Million+ home sales are all, not surprisingly, located in the state of California, according to a recently released luxury home sales report by Redfin. With 474 $1 million+ home sales, San Francisco was #1 on the list, followed by 469 home sales in Los Angeles, 430 in Silicon Valley and 415 in San Diego, all during the 14 month period ended March 31, 2013.

The St Louis Luxury Home market has communities that would have made the list, however Redfin does not cover the St Louis market. As you can see Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Prices Rose 8 Percent In Past Year

By Dennis Norman, on May 14th, 2013

St. Louis home prices rose 8 percent, on a year over year basis, from March 2012 to March 2013, according to new released data from MORE, REALTORS. In March 2012, the median St Louis home price (for the 5-county “core” area) was $111,000 and in March 2013 the median St Louis home price was $119,900.

On a national level, metro area home prices in the first quarter of 2013 rose 11.3 percent from a year ago.

Continue Reading →