Diane Bicket

Know the Facts About the Real Estate Market

Diane Bicket — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 16:05:00 GMT

There has been much talk in the news of the dour real estate market. While the data certainly indicates that we are not experiencing the "highs" of 2003, 2004, and 2005 when interest rates were at record lows, there is good news to report. And it's always helpful to Know the Facts.

That's why I've gleaned some details from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) for your review.

30% of all homes in the United States are owned free and clear (no mortgage)
Only 3% of existing mortgages are in foreclosure
2007 will be the fifth highest year on record for existing-home sales
One out of 16 American households is buying a home this year
The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $224,500 in August, up 0.2 percent from August 2006 when the median was $224,000

And just like in politics, all real estate is local! So here's data on the St. Louis metro area market, sourced from MARIS (Mid America Regional Information Systems) -- the local MLS. Data is as of June 30, 2007 -- 3rd Qtr data not yet compiled.

St. Louis County, MO	Qtr 1 2007	Qtr 2 2007
Average Price	$207,100	$229,600
Number Homes on Market	7,299	12,019
Number Homes Sold	4,785	3,128
Number New Homes Built	364	356
Avg. Number Days on Market	91	104

St. Charles County, MO	Qtr 1 2007	Qtr 2 2007
Average Price	$215,500	$206,100
Number Homes on Market	2,942	3,923
Number Homes Sold	977	1,042
Number New Homes Built	621	763
Avg. Number Days on Market	90	102

St. Louis City	Qtr 1 2007	Qtr 2 2007
Average Price	$145,200	$158,200
Number Homes on Market	2,503	4,926
Number Homes Sold	784	910
Number New Homes Built	72	78
Avg. Number Days on Market	124	124

Jefferson County, MO	Qtr 1 2007	Qtr 2 2007
Average Price	$160,200	$165,400
Number Homes on Market	2,288	2,075
Number Homes Sold	617	480
Number New Homes Built	223	354
Avg. Number Days on Market	111	116

Keller Williams Adds Power to Your Home Listings!

Diane Bicket — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 16:26:00 GMT

Keller Williams is constantly working to create partnerships to add value for both sellers and buyers. Their recent partnership with Homescape will expand your home's visibility on the internet when you list with a Keller Williams agent! Please note the article below posted from Inman News.
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Real Estate Articles from Inman News

Homescape partners with Keller Williams for listings

Company continues strategy to get listings directly from brokers

Monday, October 01, 2007

Inman News

Homescape, the online real estate venture operated by a group of five newspaper publishers, has inked a new partnership with a major U.S. brokerage franchise company that will beef up Homescape's property listings to more than 2.7 million.

Homescape today announced an agreement with Keller Williams Realty that will add an additional 75,000 listings to the Homescape Web site.

The move comes a few months after Homescape announced it was changing strategies to work directly with brokers and agents to gather property listings from markets around the country. The company formerly was a private brand that acquired listings via the more than 100 newspapers that comprised its network, which limited the company's coverage to only those markets where it had newspaper relationships.

Homescape says it aims to provide a comprehensive resource of property listings and real estate information to consumers online. In addition to listings, Homescape.com includes new construction, open house and other newspaper classifieds content, as well as home valuations, local market snapshots and the ability for sellers to add a single home listing.

The company in August said it already had formed partnerships with some regional brokerage companies, including Prudential Fox & Roach, Prudential California, ERA Masiello, GMAC Real Estate of Atlanta, and Prudential Gary Greene.

Homescape is a division of Chicago-based Classified Ventures, which is owned by five major media companies -- Belo Corp., Gannet Co., McClatchy Co., Tribune Co., and Washington Post Co.

Housing Market in Jefferson County Missouri is Bucking National Trend

Diane Bicket — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 13:52:00 GMT

The St. Louis area real estate market is still strong, despite the trend occurring in other parts of the country. Take note of the comments in the following article written by Kevin Carbery in the recent issue of the Suburban Journals. Robin Haynes, who is quoted in this article, is the Team Leader for my office, Keller Williams Southwest.
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By Kevin Carbery Suburban Journals
Sunday, September 30, 2007

According to national press reports, the housing market is in the midst of a serious slump.

But, that information -- however valid -- is not necessarily the case locally, according to those who work in real estate.

While residential sales in Jefferson County may no longer be booming, houses are being sold, said Robyn Haynes, the Jefferson County Board of Realtors president.

"Overall, the housing market is very strong in Jefferson County," Haynes said. "We're still seeing appreciation in the overall market in St. Louis. Jefferson County, overall, is only down 4 percent."

Which is much less than the 10 percent drop in home sales nationwide during the first half of the year, according to published reports. Haynes explained that the real estate sales along the Pacific and Atlantic seaboards historically fluctuate a great deal more than what occurs in the heart of the country.

"I think you have to understand the coastal markets that have been hit extremely hard," she said. "Like, in California, the $3 million homes that went up to $6 million now are back down to $3 million. The values were artificially inflated.

"In the Midwest, it takes a lot longer for trends to get to us. The trends don't affect us as much. We've seen minor adjustments, of course."

Jefferson County residents who wish to sell their homes should go ahead and try, said Haynes.

"I think the boom has ended," she said. "The reason is, you're going to have a market correction.

"You're either in a sellers' market, a buyers' market or a transition market. We're really in a transition market, which is not that bad. Homes are still selling.

"It's still a great time to buy and sell. Sellers need to know there is more competition. Because of that, they need to price it right and make sure the condition is superior."

A real estate market researcher and consultant says that Jefferson County currently has a solid balance of supply and demand in its new housing market.

"One of the key indications we look at (involving housing markets) is if supply is in balance with demand," said Joe Zanola of St. Louis-based ZanolaCo. "The rule of thumb we have is, if the current percentage of new homes available equals 20 percent of the previous year's closings.

"We have a report period that came out n July '07 and our audit showed an inventory of 213 homes - that's the new homes for sale at the time of the audit. We had an annual closing rate of 1,000 homes for July '06 to July '07. We're forecasting for '07-'08 a closing of 1,013 homes. So, the 213 currently available comes out around 21 percent."

This puts Jefferson County in a strong position among the counties in the region in terms of new home sales, said Zanola.

"Of the 10 counties in the metro area we audited, Jefferson County is in the best balance for new homes," he said.

One company claiming there is a strong interest in its Jefferson County development is TMC Homes, developer of the Estates at Timberwolf along Route 61, south of Festus. The builder received contracts on more than 10 percent of the 32 homes in the development during its grand opening weekend over the summer.

"I think there are a couple of important reasons," said Patrick Barry, the TMH Homes director of development. "First of all, it's new. The second one is, which is as important, the display homes are very nice.

"We think the lots we have are a great selling point. They're all approximately a half acre and go back to woods."

The location of the Estates at Timberwolf apparently is a draw to many who live north and south of Festus, said Barry.

"They're really coming from all over," he said. "We've been really pleased with that. They're coming from the St. Louis area, Festus, down to Cape Girardeau."

The Estates at Timberwolf is a development of 32 homes starting at about $200,000 and ranging in size from 1,800- to 3,000-square feet. TMC Homes is a division of The Meyer Company, which is based in St. Louis.