In compiling the April issue's cover story, we learned a lot about real estate in St. Louis. Below are 50 of the most interesting tidbits, from downtown to New Town, Metro East to Far West County. Still, it's important to keep in mind that no single piece of advice is applicable to every single neighborhood. Whatever your circumstances, it's vital to do further research—talk to realtors and residents, consider crime and housing stats, explore neighborhoods firsthand—before making a decision about your living situation, whether buying, renting, or selling.
1. This year "is shaping up to be last year on steroids," notes one realtor. "There is a severe shortage of well-priced homes for sale, and this is creating a chaos like we haven’t seen in years."
2. One forecast predicts St. Louis will see a 30 percent increase in the median price of a single-family home between 2012 and 2018.
3. Despite the recession, downtown still continued to add about 500 residents per year.
4. “We’re over 90 percent occupancy with residential properties,” says Kevin Farrell of the Partnership for Downtown St. Louis.
5. In midtown, developer Jassen Johnson says, “We’re looking at two more big development projects, and both of those have a residential component.”
6. In the Central West End, there's a proposal for a 12-story, $61.5 million luxury high-rise near the corner of Lindell Boulevard and Euclid Avenue. And in December, Mills Properties broke ground on a 38,500-square-foot Whole Foods that will fill the ground floor of City Walk.
7. The market for historic housing in the CWE is heating up.
8. Younger baby boomers are in a better position to "rightsize," as older boomers are not as flexible, with many kids returning to the nest.
9. A national trend that’s just gaining traction locally is that “smaller—much smaller—is better.”
10. Traditional larger homes sell more quickly when they have been retrofitted, or “resized,” to fit today’s lifestyle.
11. Old North St. Louis Restoration Group has acquired the property at 1227 St. Louis. “It’s the highest-profile property in the neighborhood—literally, it’s the tallest property,” says Sean Thomas, executive director of the group.
12. Shakespeare in the Streets has selected Old North as its featured neighborhood in 2015.
13. On the near South Side, the hottest areas are the walkable ones: Benton Park, Lafayette Square, Shaw, and Tower Grove. The best deals are in Tower Grove East and The Gate District, the latter lying between Compton Heights and Lafayette Square.
14. Many people are watching to see what happens in Botanical Heights and Forest Park Southeast, which will likely be most affected by development around the new IKEA.
15. The Mississippi Bluffs condo development might have some flirty new neighbors generating buzz.
16. Southampton, North Hampton, Princeton Heights, and The Hill are getting a new kind of buyer: couples with young children.
17. Home prices in the St. Louis area are up 3 percent to 5 percent from 2012.
18. A lot of older homes in Kirkwood are being snapped up fast and torn down for new construction.
19. The hottest market in the 63122 ZIP code range from $150,000 to the $400,000-to-$500,000 range.
20. For younger buyers looking in Webster Groves, Webster Acres is one of the most in-demand areas.
21. When it comes to flipping houses, “It is about being smart where you are buying and buying in an area where you are comfortable.”
22. “You have to take every mistake you make and learn from it" when flipping houses.
23. “Clayton used to be so much more expensive than University City. Now, it’s getting a little bit closer, price-wise,” says one longtime U. City realtor.
24. The most in-demand houses in Clayton are in the $500,000-to-$750,000 price range.
25. The condo market’s recovery has been underway for a while in neighborhoods like Clayton, downtown, and the CWE. In Clayton, the average price per square foot of condos sold in 2012 versus 2013 is up 12 percent.
26. In Maplewood, Michele Jianakoplos Brown is hoping to transition her neighborhood, with energy-efficient, multi-purpose buildings along Yale Street that will include Mountjoy Designs and Nosri’s Kitchen.
27. At Brentwood Forest, “only a certain percentage of the units can be leased out, and there’s a waiting list,” says realtor Andrew Bauer.
28. Realtor Doug McKay says, "I often have buyers tell me they don’t mind doing some work, but during the home-buying process, I find that to be not really true, and even small projects become deal breakers.”
29. Big building is back with a bang in Ladue, Frontenac, and Town & Country.
30. Ladue’s steady, but buyers who want a new home for less money in the same school district are often opting for Creve Coeur.
31. The do-it-yourself nightmares are usually plumbing-related, notes one inspector. Another says, “When we smell fresh paint, we recognize that a house certainly shows better that way, but we are looking very carefully at what’s been painted."
32. In much of West County, “we are seeing the inventory so low, it’s ridiculous,” says one realtor.
33. "Ten years ago, anybody looking for a villa was 55-plus," notes one West County realtor. "Now, we are seeing people in their thirties and forties."
34. in most of West County, the focus is on the new: Pulte Homes’ Reserve at Chesterfield Village, Claymont Development’s Enclaves at Cherry Hills in Wildwood…
35. The average age of homes in Chesterfield is 30 years, making its housing stock newish by comparison to other parts of West County. But the average age of a Chesterfield resident is 46, older than, say, Ballwin (40) or Wildwood (41).
36. Last year, 44 percent of all new homes in the metro area were built in St. Charles County, where land is cheaper than in much of St. Louis County. “After a dramatic fall, we’re probably back up to between 40 and 45 percent of what might be considered normal volume of home-building, based on what has occurred in the past in this market,” says Pat Sullivan of the Home Builders Association of St. Louis and Eastern Missouri. “There’s a lot of room for growth.”
37. The Wentzville and Francis-Howell school districts both saw a 23 percent increase in the number of houses sold from a year earlier.
38. St. Peters had the highest rate of housing starts of all the cities in St. Charles County last year.
39. For a midrange home, you’ll recover 86 percent of the cost of adding a steel entry door, according to Remodeling magazine. For upscale homes, the best investment is replacing siding with fiber cement (79 percent).
40. Average prices in North County were up 12 percent from 2012 to 2013.
41. In North County, homes along the Missouri River bluffs are a perpetual draw.
42. “There are very few foreclosures, and buyers are much more wary of what they’re getting into,” says Elizabeth Braznell, president of the St. Louis Association of Realtors.
43. In South County, "anywhere you can find [an undeveloped] brown pocket is attractive for developers,” says one realtor.
44. In Metro East, many of the rejuvenated downtown streetscapes and building storefronts have nice new loft apartments.
45. Experts believe Metro East sales will increase by about 4 percent this year.
46. Of the nation’s 20 largest metro areas, St. Louis has the lowest rentership rate.
47. Still, St. Louis rental occupancy was around 90 percent in late 2013. Rents are rising, and complexes are competing on amenities.
48. In an age of Zillow, HGTV, Houzz, Pinterest, and realtor.com, people have all the data they can handle, but not always the process to create value with that data. Agents or companies who are learning to make sense of data for clients will thrive.
49. Sellers now know what the house down the street really sold for, and what it looks like inside.
50. “It’s very easy for someone who’s never left St. Louis to regurgitate that housing is cheaper,” says St. Louisan Brian Cross, founder of creative firm Elasticity. What he finds rare and valuable “is the neighborhood feel.”
