St Louis Real Estate News - Page 25 of 108 - Daily St. Louis real estate news, market analysis, home prices, and mortgage rate updates from local industry professionals.

Why an online auction may be the best way to buy or sell a home in St Louis

By Dennis Norman, on April 17th, 2023

Recently I wrote a lengthy article about various current issues that are likely to bring significant changes to the real estate industry. These changes will also affect the process of buying or selling a home for consumers. Although I may be in the minority within the industry, I strongly believe that most, if not all, of the changes will benefit both consumers and real estate professionals.

One of the first changes that may happen is the elimination of the requirement for sellers to pay the commission to the buyer’s agent in order to list their property in the REALTOR® MLS Continue Reading →

St Louis Real Estate Market Report

By Dennis Norman, on April 13th, 2023

Below is our St Louis Real Estate Market Report for March 2023 for the City and County of St Louis combined. You can access the full infographic, containing data for St Charles, Jefferson and Franklin Counties as well by clicking on the image below.

Search St Louis Homes For Sale Search St Louis Upcoming OPEN HOUSES St Louis Real Estate Report for March 2023

(click on infographic for complete report including other counties)

Continue Reading →

Do you need a buyer’s agent when buying a home in St Louis?

By Dennis Norman, on April 6th, 2023

Earlier this week I wrote an article addressing some of the current issues that will likely significantly impact the residential real estate business. IIn the article, I suggested that, as a result of the various challenges to present-day practices, sellers may no longer be required to pay commissions to the buyer’s agent in the near future. Does this mean the role of the buyer’s agent in a transaction is going away and that buyer’s agents are not needed? The short answer is no, buyer’s agents are not going away.

So, buyer agents won’t be impacted by these changes?

Wait, I Continue Reading →

How the real estate industry is going to be turned upside down and why sellers may no longer have to pay buyer agents

By Dennis Norman, on April 1st, 2023

Let me begin by saying that I’m not a sensationalist, nor am I an advocate for everything I write about. Additionally, I am not an attorney, so this not a legal opinion. I am simply a real estate broker that has been very active in the profession and industry for over 40 years now. I strive to stay on top of industry and market changes so that the agents in our firm, MORE, REALTORS®, and their clients can avoid surprises and be prepared. Another reason I do this is to share what I have learned with consumers. I believe that Continue Reading →

Two of the Three Fastest Growing Missouri Counties are In the St Louis Metro Area – So is the 3rd Fastest Shrinking One

By Dennis Norman, on March 30th, 2023

According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 estimates of population and components of change report released yesterday, Lincoln County was the Missouri county that experienced the highest percentage gain in population from 2020 – 2022. As the list below shows, Lincoln County saw a 6.0% increase in popular during the period from 2020 to 2022, with Wright County coming in 2nd at 5.3% and another St Louis MSA county, Warren County, coming in 3rd on the list with a 4.8% increase in population.

At the other end of the list was the City of St Louis which saw a 5.0% Continue Reading →

St Louis New Home Building Permits in February Fall By Double-Digits From A Year Ago In Four of Seven Counties

By Dennis Norman, on March 29th, 2023

There were 4,170 building permits issued for new single-family homes in the St Louis area during the 12-month period ended February 28, 2023, a decrease of 10.69% from the same period a year ago when there were 4,669 permits issued, according to the latest data from the Home Builders Association of St. Louis & Eastern Missouri (St Louis HBA). Six of the seven counties covered in the report saw a decline in building permits from the same period a year ago with four of them experiencing double-digit declines. Franklin County, on the other hand, saw an increase of nearly 19%.

Continue Reading →

Do the Fed Funds rate and M2 money supply really matter to the St Louis real estate market?

By Dennis Norman, on March 25th, 2023

For the past several months there have been many reports anticipating the moves of the Federal Reserve regarding interest rates then followed by tons of articles, blog posts and videos analyzing then predicting the impact of the Fed’s decision on the economy. The other popular topic in this area is the “Money Supply”, usually M2 money supply and whether it’s increasing or decreasing as well as the impact on the economy.

Should St Louis homeowners and potential home buyers really care about the Fed Funds rate or M2 money supply?

First, let’s talk about the Fed Funds rate and what Continue Reading →

Missouri State Assistance for Housing Relief (SAFHR) Can Help Homeowners Struggling To Make Their Payments

By Dennis Norman, on March 24th, 2023

The State of Missouri received $138 million from the U.S. Treasury’s Homeowners Assistance Fund (HAF) and are using those funds to help qualified homeowners that are struggling to make their house payments. Missouri State Assistance for Housing Relief (SAFHR) is responsible for paying out these funds to help individual homeowners.

Who is eligible for assistance from SAFHR?

According to the SAFHR program guidelines, to qualify for SAFHR for Homeowners assistance, an individual or household must:

Earn no more than 150% of the area median income for the region where the property is located, as set forth in the HUD income Continue Reading →

Smart Home, Smarter Seniors

By John Donati, on March 22nd, 2023

What happens when you pair up Ted Gottlieb, Certified Senior Advisor® (CSA®) that’s a real estate broker with a real estate broker (me) that’s Smart Home Certified? You end up with solutions for older adults that allow them to live more efficiently, for longer, in their current home by increasing safety, security, accessibility and independence. Before I get to the Smart Stuff, let me explain what a CSA® is and how rare it is for a REALTOR® to also be a CSA®. Ted is the first, and only as of this article, in Missouri to achieve this.

A Certified Senior Continue Reading →

What (Most) Seniors Don’t Want You to Know

By Ted Gottlieb, on March 21st, 2023

Note: I’m generalizing ……..

Seniors don’t want to leave their homes. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told “I want to be carried out feet first”.

For most, the thought of selling the home is overwhelming – often paralyzing. Maybe it’s the memories, the years of accumulated “stuff”, lack of energy or the fear of what comes next. No matter the reason, just like you and me, older adults want to be where they feel safe. Enjoying their “independence” – when many times they are anything but.

So, it’s status quo until a life event Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Prices Increased At Twice The Rate Of Rental Rates From 2018-2022

By Dennis Norman, on March 19th, 2023

Should I rent or buy a home in St Louis? This is a question St Louis REALTORS® are often asked, especially in the past few years while homes appeared to be increasing weekly, there were often more than a dozen offers on a listing and generally the market seemed out of control. Granted, some of that pandemonium has eased somewhat lately given the increase in interest rates and questions about the economy but the question still remains. While there are many non-financial reasons people choose to buy their own home or condo versus rent, we’ll just look at the cost Continue Reading →

St Louis Area Home Sales Down Nearly 17 Percent In Past 12-Months

By Dennis Norman, on March 17th, 2023

There were 28,500 homes sold in the St Louis 5-county core market during the 12-month period ended February, 28, 2023 a decline of 16.80% from the prior 12-months when 34,256 homes were sold according to MORE REALTORS® exclusive STL Market Report below. As the report below shows, the median price of homes sold in St Louis increased 7.62% during the same period.

While the supply of St Louis homes for sale is still historically very low, it has increased significantly over the past two years rising from under a 1-month supply to the current 1.64 month supply of homes currently Continue Reading →

Think Twice Before Using a Marital Waiver Without an Attorney

By Dennis Norman, on March 16th, 2023

Don't use marital waivers without legal counsel

In Missouri real estate transactions, a “marital waiver” may come into play when one spouse is not on title but still has legally protected property rights. While it may sound like a simple workaround, it’s anything but. A marital waiver is a legal document that can significantly impact a person’s rights and should never be handled casually.

For homeowners, signing a marital waiver without proper legal counsel can be risky. These waivers often release homestead or marital rights in real estate and are typically required to complete a sale when only one spouse is on the title. However, in Continue Reading →

New Home Building Permits in January Fall By Double-Digits From A Year Ago In 4 of 7 St Louis Counties

By Dennis Norman, on March 15th, 2023

There were 4,147 building permits issued for new single-family homes in the St Louis area during the 12-month period ended January 31, 2023, a decrease of 13.48% from the same period a year ago when there were 4,793 permits issued, according to the latest data from the Home Builders Association of St. Louis & Eastern Missouri (St Louis HBA). Six of the seven counties covered in the report saw a decline in building permits from the same period a year ago with four of them experiencing double-digit declines.

Search St Louis Homes For Sale Search St Louis New Continue Reading →

A Smart Home is an Efficient Home

By John Donati, on March 14th, 2023

As the region’s only Smart Home Certified broker*, I’ve been asked many times how smart technology can benefit a homeowner’s energy usage so here are a few brief examples:

Energy Monitoring: Smart home devices such as smart thermostats, smart lighting, and smart appliances can help monitor energy usage and identify areas where energy is being wasted. Automated Energy Management: Smart technology can automate tasks such as adjusting thermostat settings and turning off lights and appliances when not in use, thereby reducing energy consumption. Energy Efficiency: Smart devices can optimize energy usage by adjusting heating and cooling systems based on occupancy Continue Reading →

St Louis Real Estate Market Report

By Dennis Norman, on March 13th, 2023

Below is our St Louis Real Estate Market Report for February 2023 for the City and County of St Louis combined. You can access the full infographic, containing data for St Charles, Jefferson and Franklin Counties as well by clicking on the image below.

Search St Louis Homes For Sale Search St Louis Upcoming OPEN HOUSES St Louis Real Estate Report for February 2023

(click on infographic for complete report including other counties)

Continue Reading →

One in four St Louis city homeowners with a mortgage are underwater

By Dennis Norman, on March 9th, 2023

A new report just released by ATTOM Data revealed that nearly one of every four homeowners (24.3 %) in the city of St Louis that have a mortgage, are underwater on equity (meaning property owner owes at least 25% more on their home than the current value). At the other end of the spectrum was St Charles County where just 3.9% of homeowners with a mortgage are underwater.

Below is a list of the larger counties in the St Louis MSA and the percentage of the mortgages in the respective county that was underwater during the 4th Continue Reading →

Where People In St Louis Came From and Went To Last Year

By Dennis Norman, on March 6th, 2023

Allied Van Lines just released its Allied Magnet States Report which revealed that, across the U.S., fewer people moved in 2022 than in 2021. The report shows the number of people moving to or from a State as well as for the metropolitan areas located in that state. For last year, Missouri was considered a “balanced” state with the numbers of inbound and outbound movers being about the same at 52.3% and 47.7% respectively. Our neighbor to the east, Illinois, didn’t fair as well. Illinois was labeled as a “high outbound” state for 2022 with 66.1% of the moves being Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Loan Originations Fall to a 12-Year Low

By Dennis Norman, on March 2nd, 2023

During the 4th quarter of 2022, 7,622 home buyers in St Louis applied for a home mortgage according to the latest report from ATTOM Data. According to the report, this is the lowest number of mortgage applications in a quarter from home buyers in St Louis since the 1st quarter of 2011 when there were just 5,629 applications. Mortgage applications to purchase a home peaked in St Louis in the 3rd quarter of 2005 when there were 18,002 applications.

As the chart below illustrates, the drop in St Louis homeowners refinancing their mortgage is even more dramatic. During the last Continue Reading →

FHA Loans Just Became A Little More Affordable

By Dennis Norman, on February 22nd, 2023

Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced a reduction in the mortgage insurance premium charged to borrowers on FHA loans. The mortgage insurance premium is a charge over and above the interest on the loan that is the fee to HUD for insuring the loan. Currently, the FHA mortgage insurance premium varies from 0.45% to 1.05% of the loan amount depending upon the loan term (15 or 30 years) and the LTV (loan to value). Effective with FHA mortgages endorsed for insurance by FHA on or after March 20, 2023, the rate will be reduced by Continue Reading →

St Louis Distressed Home Sales Trending Upward But Still Low

By Dennis Norman, on February 21st, 2023

There have been a fair number of reports about the increase in distressed home sales in various markets around the country and on the national level. However, in St Louis, distressed home sales are on the rise, they are still at levels that are historically quite low.

Distressed home sales that involve some sort of distress or other condition that would typically result in the home not selling for a normal “retail” price like it would if it were a typical listing in market ready condition with normal marketing time allowed. The chart below shows distressed home sales in the Continue Reading →

New Listings Continue To Outpace New Contracts In Four out of Five Counties In St Louis Area

By Dennis Norman, on February 15th, 2023

Last week, there were 405 new listings of homes for sale in the St Louis 5-county core market, according to the STL Real Estate Trends Report from MORE, REALTORS®. During the same week, there were 365 new sale contracts written on homes for sale resulting in a new listing to new contract ratio of 1.11. As the tables below illustrate, the only county that had more new sales last week than new listings was Franklin County with 16 new sales and 15 new listings.

Listing supply remains low…

As the table at the bottom shows, as of today, there is Continue Reading →

St Louis Foreclosure Activity Increases Twenty-Five Percent In January From Year Ago

By Dennis Norman, on February 10th, 2023

Last month, there were 307 properties with foreclosure filings in the St Louis MSA, according to ATTOM Data’s U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. This represents an increase of 25% in St Louis foreclosures from January 2022 to January 2023.

It’s not as bad as it sounds…

While a 25% increase sounds bad, the chart below, which shows foreclosure filings for the St Louis MSA since 2006, puts it in perspective. Last year, there were 4,066 total foreclosure actions for the year so even if our foreclosure activity for 2023 would continue to be 25% higher than last years level, it would Continue Reading →

St Louis New Listings and New Contracts Trend Indicating an Easing in Demand

By Dennis Norman, on February 9th, 2023

Last week, there were 350 new listings of homes for sale in the St Louis 5-county core market, according to the STL Real Estate Trends Report from MORE, REALTORS®. During the same week, there were 442 new sale contracts written on homes for sale resulting in a new listing to new contract ratio of 1.26. So while new contracts are still out numbering new listings, last weeks margin was much lower than a year ago during the same week. As the tables below show, last year during the same week there were only 266 new listings of homes for sale Continue Reading →

Ten zip codes in St Louis with the highest percentage of equity-rich mortgages

By Dennis Norman, on February 7th, 2023

According to data released by ATTOM Data Research, during the fourth quarter of 2022, 42.37% of the homeowners with a mortgage within the 63376 zip code, were “equity-rich” meaning their mortgage balance was just 50% or less of the current value of their home. The table below shows the 10 St Louis zip codes with the highest percentage of equity-rich mortgages. Half of zip codes on the list are located within the St Charles County, four in St Louis County and one in Jefferson County

Also shown on the table is the percentage of homeowners with a seriously-underwater mortgage, meaning Continue Reading →

Ten zip codes in St Louis with the highest percentage of seriously underwater mortgages

By Dennis Norman, on February 6th, 2023

According to data released by ATTOM Data Research, during the fourth quarter of 2022, 35.7% of the homeowners with a mortgage within the 63118 zip code, were seriously underwater on their mortgage, meaning their mortgage balance exceeds the value of their home by 25% or more. The table below shows the 10 St Louis zip codes with the highest percentage of seriously underwater mortgages. Half of zip codes on the list are located within the City of St Louis and the other half are located in North St Louis County.

Also shown on the table is the percentage of homeowners Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Sales Trend Drops To Lowest Level In Over Seven Years

By Dennis Norman, on February 5th, 2023

For the 12-month period ended January 31, 2023, there were 24,993 homes sold in the St Louis 5-county core market which, as the STL Market Report below (available exclusively from MORE, REALTORS®) shows, is nearly a 17% decline in home sales from the the prior 12-month period when there were over 30,000 homes sold. The median price of homes sold during the most recent 12-month period was $266,500, an increase of 6.6% from the prior 12-month period.

St Louis home sales trend falling fast….

Below the market report is a STL Market Chart showing (also available exclusively from MORE, Continue Reading →

St Louis Area New Home Building Permits for 2022 at lowest level in seven years

By Dennis Norman, on January 25th, 2023

There were 4,361 building permits issued for new single-family homes in the St Louis area during 2022, a decline of 9.62% from 2021 when there were 4,825 permits issued, according to the latest data from the Home Builders Association of St. Louis & Eastern Missouri (St Louis HBA). As the table below shows, 4 of the 7 counties included in the report had a decline in the number of permits issued in 2022 from the year before, with there of them double-digit declines. Lincoln County saw the biggest drop percentage-wise with a decline of 38.27% followed by St Charles County Continue Reading →

St Louis Home Prices and Rental Increasing Faster Than Wages

By Dennis Norman, on January 19th, 2023

A report just released by ATTOM data shows that St Louis home prices are rising at a rate significantly higher than the rate wages in St Louis are rising and St Louis rental rates are increasing at rates higher than home prices. As the chart below shows, during the past year, wages in the St Louis metro area increased 3.8% however, home prices in St Louis increased 7.9% and rental rates increased 11.2%.

Search St Louis Homes For Sale Search St Louis Upcoming OPEN HOUSES St Louis MSA – Housing Affordability

Data source: ATTOM Data – Continue Reading →

Franklin County Home Prices Increased at nearly double the rate for St Louis County From 2021 to 2022

By Dennis Norman, on January 13th, 2023

The median price of homes sold in Franklin County increased from 2021 to 2022 at nearly double the rate the price of homes sold in St Louis County did during the same period. As the chart below shows, the median price of homes sold in Franklin County during 2021 was $206,000 and then increased 6.7% to $219,800 in 2022. During the same period, the median price of homes sold in St Louis County increased 3.4% from 246,500 to $255,000.

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Franklin County vs St Louis County Home Prices – 2021-2022

(click on chart for live, interactive Continue Reading →