Real Estate Market - St Louis Real Estate News

Another Major MLS Stands Up to Compass and Defends an Open Real Estate Marketplace

By Dennis Norman, on October 21st, 2026

Well, it looks like Compass is finding out that not everyone in the MLS industry is willing to give in to its demands. On October 20, 2026, OneKey MLS, which serves New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley, announced it was rejecting Compass’s demands to change its rules regarding publicly marketed listings. OneKey joins California Regional MLS (CRMLS) and Texas-based Unlock MLS in standing up to Compass and defending the cooperative MLS system that has served buyers, sellers and real estate professionals for decades.

I’ve been following this battle closely and have written about Compass’s initial threats against Continue Reading →

Fastest Selling Zip Codes in St. Louis: Where Homes Are Moving Quickest Right Now

By Dennis Norman, on October 16th, 2026

The St. Louis real estate market continues to show brisk activity, with certain zip codes standing out for their exceptionally fast-moving listings. Topping the list this month is zip code 63143 in St. Louis City, where homes are selling at a remarkable pace. With 15 listings averaging just 23 days on the market and an average asking price of $296,240, 63143 demonstrates the kind of demand that both buyers and sellers need to pay attention to in today’s market.

Top Five Fastest Selling Zip Codes

The data, compiled by MORE, REALTORS®, ranks only those areas with at least 15 Continue Reading →

Affton 101 Tops List of Fastest Selling School Districts in St. Louis Metro

By Dennis Norman, on October 12th, 2026

The St. Louis metropolitan real estate market continues to move at a brisk pace, with some school districts seeing homes sell much faster than others. According to the latest data compiled by StLouisRealEstateNews.com, Affton 101 in St. Louis leads the pack with homes spending an average of just 29 days on the market. This ranking is based strictly on areas with at least 15 homes currently listed for sale, ensuring that the results reflect meaningful market activity rather than being skewed by a single quick sale in a very small area.

St. Louis Metro’s Fastest Selling School Districts

Here Continue Reading →

So, What’s Happening at the Auffenberg Site in Kirkwood?

By Karen Moeller, on October 3rd, 2026

If you’ve been wondering what happened to the proposed condominium development around the former Auffenberg dealership on North Kirkwood Road, there’s an update. The original rezoning proposal did not ultimately move forward, but the developer behind it says the condominium plans are not going away.

I spoke with Lorenzo Debrecht of Debrecht Properties, who told me the company expects to resubmit, although he would not give me a specific date. Debrecht said controversy surrounding the design contributed to the decision to pull back. He said the company is working with the City toward a condominium development that better fits the Continue Reading →

When a House Changes Hands, What Happens to Everything Inside It?

By Karen Moeller, on September 29th, 2026

This fall, my sister and her adult sons were helping our dad clean out his garage and workshop. As things headed toward the discard pile, my sister kept rescuing certain items. We’d grown up seeing them in Dad’s workshop, so the fact that they had been there for as long as we could remember made them seem important.

Dad eventually came out, looked around and wanted to know why they’d left all that junk behind. Apparently, we had confused longevity with sentiment. Some of those things hadn’t survived decades because Dad treasured them. They had survived because Dad hadn’t Continue Reading →

Aging in Place: The House Is Only Part of the Equation

By Karen Moeller, on September 26th, 2026

“Aging in place” sounds wonderfully simple. Stay in the house you know, in the neighborhood you know, surrounded by the things and people that make life familiar. It is also what most people say they want. AARP’s latest Home and Community Preferences Survey found that 75% of adults age 50 and older want to remain in their current homes as they age, although 44% expect they will eventually have to move.

That gap raises a question that doesn’t get nearly as much attention as grab bars, stair-free entrances and first-floor bedrooms: What does it actually take to keep a Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling Zip Codes in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on September 16th, 2026

The St. Louis metropolitan area is witnessing a dynamic real estate market, with certain zip codes standing out for their rapid property sales. Leading the pack is Washington, where homes are flying off the market with an average listing period of just 4 days. Currently, Washington boasts an active listing with an average price of $527,500, making it an attractive area for both buyers and sellers seeking swift transactions. This trend reflects a high demand, indicating that properties here are not only desirable but also competitively priced for the market.

Following closely are the zip codes in Jefferson and Madison, Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling School Districts in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on September 12th, 2026

In the vibrant St. Louis metropolitan area, the real estate market is buzzing with activity, particularly in the school districts where homes are selling at lightning speed. Leading the pack is the CHRISTOPHER DIST #99 in Franklin, where the single active listing has been snapped up in an average of just 1 day, with an attractive average list price of $85,000. This district’s swift sales pace highlights its appeal to families seeking affordable and desirable living options.

Following closely is BRUSSELS DIST 42 in Calhoun-IL, where the average time on the market is only 7 days across three listings. Meanwhile, Continue Reading →

Is Not Owning a Home Really a Failure?

By Karen Moeller, on August 25th, 2026

A buyer I have been working with recently decided to put their home search on hold for a year. They were qualified to buy, but because they needed to ask sellers for closing-cost concessions, their offers weren’t as competitive as they wanted them to be. Their plan was straightforward: keep renting, save more cash and return to the market in a stronger position.

Then they called me. A friend was doing what they described as “renting to own” through a lease option program, and they wondered whether that might be another path.

The concept was familiar. Years ago, Continue Reading →

Could This SpaceX-Inspired Homebuilder Change the Way We Build Starter Homes?

By Dennis Norman, on August 17th, 2026

For years we’ve heard plenty of talk about America’s housing affordability problem, but most of the proposed solutions seem to come down to some version of the same thing: lower interest rates, loosen zoning, subsidize buyers or somehow convince traditional homebuilders to build less expensive homes. A relatively new company in Austin, Texas, is taking a very different approach. The American Housing Corporation is trying to reinvent how the house itself is built.

What caught my attention is that this isn’t simply another modular-home manufacturer. American Housing is attempting to combine real estate development, manufacturing, software and engineering into one Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling Zip Codes in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on August 16th, 2026

The St. Louis metropolitan area is witnessing a dynamic real estate market, with certain zip codes in both Missouri and Illinois showing remarkable speed in home sales. Leading the pack is a zip code in Madison County, Illinois, where homes are selling at lightning speed, averaging just 2 days on the market. This zip code currently has one active listing with an average list price of $325,000. Hot on its heels is another Madison County zip code, with properties taking an average of 3 days to sell. Meanwhile, Monroe County, Illinois, also boasts a fast-moving market, with homes in one Continue Reading →

The House Is a Relocation Sale. What Changes for the Buyer?

By Karen Moeller, on August 14th, 2026

I recently represented buyers in a multiple-offer situation. The house was being sold through a corporate relocation company, and before making their offer, my buyers had quite a bit of information about the property. They had read the Seller’s Disclosure completed by the people who had lived in the home and reviewed reports provided as part of the relocation transaction.

Given the competition for the house, they made a calculated decision to waive their own inspection to make their offer more attractive. Before they did, we talked more than once about the additional risk they would be taking on. Continue Reading →

Apparently, I Had a Squatter

By Karen Moeller, on August 12th, 2026

Earlier this spring, I was cleaning my house when I suddenly smelled skunk.

I have a much more sensitive nose than my husband, so when he couldn’t smell anything, I tried to talk myself out of it. Maybe someone had walked down the street smoking marijuana. Maybe a neighbor was outside smoking. But the smell persisted, and as I moved around the house, I became convinced it was strongest near my air vents.

That’s when my imagination went somewhere considerably less pleasant: What if an animal had gotten into the ductwork?

I went outside and inspected the Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling School Districts in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on August 12th, 2026

The St. Louis metropolitan area continues to attract home buyers with its diverse and thriving communities, and recent data highlights the fastest selling school districts in this dynamic region. Leading the charge is the Gasconade Co. R-I School District, straddling Gasconade and Montgomery counties, where homes are selling at lightning speed. With only one active listing averaging just 20 days on the market and a list price of $439,500, this district is a hot spot for families seeking a swift home buying process.

Following closely is the Columbia DIST 4 School District, serving parts of Monroe and St. Clair counties Continue Reading →

New Report Targets Real Estate “Junk Fees” In Real Estate, but the Real Issue May Be Transparency

By Dennis Norman, on July 29th, 2026

St Louis Real Estate Transaction Fees and Admin Fees

A July 2026 report from the Consumer Policy Center, “Junk”Fees Charged to Both Home Sellers and Buyers: An Overview”, written by Stephen Brobeck and Wendy Gilch, raises concerns about administrative, transaction, technology, and other fees charged to home buyers and sellers. The report says these fees are commonly between $400 and $600, although some reported examples exceed $1,000 and a few were above $2,000. Those numbers deserve attention, but they also need to be viewed in the proper context because the report does not establish the national frequency or average amount of these fees through a comprehensive database or statistically Continue Reading →

Congress Adds to Growing Scrutiny of Private Listing Networks

By Dennis Norman, on July 23rd, 2026

Private listing networks continue to attract increasing attention from lawmakers, regulators and the courts. What was once primarily an industry debate has become the subject of lawsuits, requests for federal investigations and now congressional interest. While none of these developments establish that anyone has violated antitrust laws, they do suggest that policymakers are taking a much closer look at where the industry is headed.

The latest development came this week when the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform and Antitrust requested briefings from Compass CEO Robert Reffkin and MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen regarding their Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling Zip Codes in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on July 16th, 2026

The real estate market in the St. Louis metropolitan area is heating up, with certain zip codes standing out for their rapid pace of sales. Leading the charge is Madison-IL, where homes are flying off the market in just 2 days. This swift movement is accompanied by an attractive average list price of $110,000, making it an appealing option for both buyers and investors. Following closely are the zip codes in Franklin and Washington, each boasting an impressive average of just 2 days on the market as well. These areas are proving to be hot spots for families looking to Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling School Districts in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on July 15th, 2026

The St. Louis metropolitan area is witnessing a dynamic real estate market, particularly in certain school districts where homes are selling at a remarkable pace. Leading the charge is CHRISTOPHER DIST #99 in Franklin, where properties are flying off the market in just 1 day on average. With only 1 active listing priced at $20,500, this district tops the list for the shortest time on the market, making it an attractive option for those looking to buy or sell quickly.

Following closely is St Libory DIST 30 in St Clair-IL, where homes spend an average of 14 days on the Continue Reading →

St. Louis Housing Shortage Shrinks as Affordability Improves

By Dennis Norman, on July 15th, 2026

America is still short nearly 4.7 million homes, but St. Louis is moving in the right direction. The St. Louis metro housing deficit fell by 392 homes in 2024 to 16,976, according to a new Zillow analysis. That may not sound like a dramatic change, but it stands out when the national shortage increased by more than 43,000 homes during the same period.

The more interesting number for St. Louis buyers is affordability. In May 2026, 59.1% of St. Louis homes listed for sale were considered affordable to a household earning the area’s median income, up from 54.5% a year Continue Reading →

St. Louis Rents Are Falling, But a Shortage of New Apartments Could Change That

By Dennis Norman, on July 15th, 2026

There is some good news for St. Louis renters. The median asking rent in the St. Louis metro fell to $1,292 in June, a decline of 1.4% from a year ago. That puts St. Louis rents about $400 below the national median of $1,692 and makes our market look relatively affordable compared with many of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas.

The part of the report that caught my attention, however, was not the decline in rent. It was the lack of new apartment construction. According to Realtor.com’s June 2026 Rental Report, the St. Louis metro permitted just 0.5 new multifamily Continue Reading →

Why There Will Never Be One Fix for Housing Affordability

By Karen Moeller, on June 25th, 2026

The House’s new ROAD to Housing Act highlights an important truth: America’s housing challenges weren’t created by a single problem, and they won’t be solved by a single law.

Every few months, a new headline promises relief for America’s housing market.

Sometimes the proposed solution is lower mortgage rates. Sometimes it’s tax credits for first-time buyers. Other times it’s down payment assistance, zoning reform, or a program designed to make homeownership more accessible. Each proposal arrives with roughly the same promise: this could be the thing that finally makes housing affordable again.

The latest example is the 21st Continue Reading →

Your Home Is Worth More Than Ever. So Why Doesn’t It Feel That Way?

By Karen Moeller, on June 19th, 2026

A recent housing graphic showing home price growth by state caught my attention. According to the data, Missouri home prices have increased roughly 43% over the past five years.

For homeowners, that sounds like good news. In many cases, it is.

A house purchased for $250,000 several years ago may now be worth well over $350,000. That’s a significant increase in wealth for many Missouri families.

Yet if you’ve spent any time talking with homeowners lately, you may have noticed something curious.

Most don’t sound 43% richer.

In fact, many sound financially stressed.

That Continue Reading →

Harvard Report Sounds Alarm: Nearly Half of America’s Renters Are Struggling With Housing Costs

By Dennis Norman, on June 18th, 2026

Harvard Report Finds Nearly 1 In 2 U.S. Renters Struggling With Housing Costs

A new report from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies confirms what many consumers in the St. Louis area already know. Housing affordability remains a challenge, not just for homebuyers dealing with higher mortgage rates and home prices, but also for renters who are seeing a larger share of their income go toward housing.

According to Harvard’s 2026 America’s Rental Housing report, nearly half of all renter households in the United States are now considered cost burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income Continue Reading →

What Happened to This House? A Real Estate Mystery I Couldn’t Ignore

By Karen Moeller, on June 17th, 2026

One of the things I enjoy most about real estate is that houses still surprise me.

After years of walking through homes, you develop a mental catalog of things that deserve a closer look. Sometimes it’s a crack in a foundation wall. Sometimes it’s an unusual odor. Sometimes it’s a renovation that appears to have been completed by someone who was very confident and only mildly qualified.

Recently, it was a set of dark markings that appeared throughout a home I was showing to a buyer.

The mystery began in the primary bedroom. The room had floral Continue Reading →

Discover the Fastest Selling School Districts in the St. Louis Metro Area

By Dennis Norman, on June 12th, 2026

If you’re considering buying or selling a home in the St. Louis metropolitan area, knowing which school districts are experiencing the fastest home sales can be a valuable asset. Leading the pack is the Spring Bluff R-XV district in Franklin County, Missouri, where homes are flying off the market in an average of just 2 days. With only one listing available at an average price of $485,000, this district is proving to be a hotbed of real estate activity, signaling strong demand and limited supply.

Hot on its heels is the GIRARD DIST 3 in Macoupin County, Illinois, with homes Continue Reading →

How’s the Market? It Depends on What You’re Looking At

By Karen Moeller, on June 6th, 2026

“How’s the market?”

It’s one of the most common questions I get from buyers and sellers.

It’s also one of the hardest questions to answer honestly.

Not because the data isn’t available. In fact, we have more market data available today than ever before. The challenge is that different statistics, different timeframes, and different geographic areas can all tell very different stories about the same market.

That’s why two people can look at real estate data and come away with completely different conclusions.

And surprisingly, both of them may be right.

Three Charts. Continue Reading →

What My Statistics Professor Taught Me About “Best Places to Live” Rankings

By Karen Moeller, on June 3rd, 2026

Three Missouri communities recently landed on a national list of the Best Places to Live in America: St. Peters, O’Fallon, and Florissant.

Congratulations are certainly in order.

But when I saw the rankings, I wasn’t thinking about the winners.

I was thinking about a statistics class I took years ago at Purdue University.

One day, a professor presented our class with the results of what appeared to be an incredibly compelling survey. The sample size was large. The statistics were impressive. The conclusions seemed definitive.

There was only one problem.

Most of the students in Continue Reading →

Who Decides What a House Is Worth?

By Karen Moeller, on May 30th, 2026

A homeowner tells me their house is worth $500,000 because an online valuation tool says so.

The county assessor values it at $380,000.

The appraiser comes in at $465,000.

A buyer offers $450,000.

Who’s right?

Potentially all of them.

One of the most common misconceptions in real estate is that every house has a single, objective value waiting to be discovered. In reality, residential real estate is one of the few assets where several reasonable values can exist at the same time because different people are trying to answer different questions.

That distinction Continue Reading →

The Real Difference Between Home Search Sites Isn’t Always the Listings

By Karen Moeller, on May 22nd, 2026

The Zillow/MRED dispute is not currently affecting St. Louis listings, but it does reveal something important about how real estate search actually works.

A recent dispute between Zillow and Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED), the large Chicago-area MLS, generated headlines this week after MRED suspended Zillow’s access to its listing data feeds. Until the issue is resolved, MRED listings will no longer appear on Zillow or Trulia in that market, creating immediate confusion among consumers and agents wondering whether listings could suddenly disappear from the websites many buyers rely on every day.

In St. Louis, however, the answer Continue Reading →

Most REALTORS® Aren’t Employees. And That Quietly Shapes the Entire Consumer Experience.

By Karen Moeller, on May 19th, 2026

Most consumers never think about whether their real estate agent is an employee or an independent contractor.

But the structure quietly shapes many of the experiences buyers and sellers encounter every day.

Recently, the National Association of REALTORS® backed a proposed federal rule update related to how independent contractor status is evaluated under labor law. At first glance, that may sound like technical industry policy with little relevance to the average homebuyer or seller.

In reality, it touches the foundation of how residential real estate operates in the United States.

Most real estate agents are not Continue Reading →