Google has finally added Saint Louis to the list of cities with ‘Street View’ functionality. I’m glad to see so much of the city has been covered already, with more to come! This is a great way to quickly explore a few properties you may be interested in and the surrounding streets.

Check it out here

I showed this to one of my clients last week. Lucky for everyone else, it isn’t what she is looking for. But it is perfect for someone. It is just waiting for it’s next life as a bed and breakfast, antique store, art gallery daycare/family home or any of the other endless possibilities. This is such an interesting building and is in such great shape, I hate to see it just sitting there.

This building was the former rectory of the church next door. The church sold last year for 250K and the rectory is for sale now for 118K. There are at least 8 bedrooms. The kitchen needs work but has a complete set of Geneva cabinets. The radiator is still pumping away and has probably been serviced every year since it was installed. The tax records record this at 1925 square feet but there’s no way that’s true. This place is massive. Entering from the front there is formal wood staircase and two formal parlors each with art deco style mantles fully intact and in great shape. Beyond the reception area there is another suite of rooms that look as if they were used as offices. Around the corner is the informal parlor. From there pass thru the butler’s pantry into the kitchen. On the second floor there is a suite with sitting room another great looking mantle, bedroom and private bath. In the rear of the building on the second floor there’s another parlor with mantle, a few more bedrooms and a full bath. The third floor is small with two small rooms.

The building has been well kept and in most cases untouched where you would hope it would be…the millwork and wood floors. However, certain questionable upgrades have been installed over time. The dropped ceiling and dark paneling will have to go and there are signs of water damage from the flat roof on the second floor. But the foundation looks great and the house feels solid.

Here’s a link to the MLS lisitng. Unfortunately the listing doesn’t show the correct photo. This isn’t a Circa listing but anyone in our office would be happy to help you tour it if you are looking to buy a unique space and aren’t afraid of a little work.

We have been working hard on this auction all year at Rebuilding Together and it is really shaping up to be a great event. It will be at the FK Photography Studio on Locust in the Locust Business District. A $35 donation gets you in the door and after that the food and drinks are free. There will also be FREE valet parking in a secured parking lot.

Bailey’s Chocolate Bar, Rooster Cafe, Butler’s Panty, Kirk’s Traveling Kitchen, Niche, Moxy and Vin de Set are preparing plenty of samples for the 500 attendees we expect. Local St. Louis artists (and a few from afar) are donating over 40 pieces of original work to be silently auctioned throughout the night. In addition we have been collecting donated auction items including a professional photo shoot, a single engine plane ride around the city, a week’s stay in Mexico, Coach purses, a pearl necklace and bracelet set, restaurant gift certificates, a tasting for 8 at Schlafly, sports tickets and memorabilia and much, much more.

So mark your calendars for Saturday, 10 November 2007. Doors open at 7pm. Purchase tickets online at the ArtFix website. (Generously donated by TOKY Branding & Design)

Check out this article on CNNMoney.com. The article identifies 10 cities that offer opportunites for savvy investors. Sy. Louis ranks #10, other cities include Mobile, Austin, Houston & New Orleans.

OK, so it looks like The Grove is starting to stick. But do we really have to use Groovin the Grove?? Not sure why that bugs me. But it does, especially when used within marketing remarks on a home for sale in the neighborhood.

This weekend it’s time for Grove Fest 2, I’m looking forward to it. Just in the last year, since the last Grove Fest, this area has changed and welcomed multiple new bars, businesses and restaurants. Come down to the action and look for me at one of the Roller Derby events!

http://www.grovefest.org

I searched the MLS this morning (10:30 AM, August 1, 2007) to figure out how many homes in St. Louis City and County are currently listed as ACTIVE. Let me back up and explain something. Each listing in the MLS is given a STATUS.

• ACTIVE: Available to be viewed and purchased
• CONTINGENT: Has a contract but needs to go thru inspections.
• PENDING: Has a contract without contingencies and is waiting to close.
• SOLD: Sold, no longer active, not available.

(There are a few more, but I will keep this simple.)

In St. Louis City and County there are currently (as of 10:30AM) 13,158 homes available for sale. 29 of those were just listed this morning August 1. Between July 1 and August 1, 1635 were sold and 1599 were listed as contingent or pending.

So how does this affect the market? Let’s look at the Absorption Rate.

Absorption Rate: The rate at which properties in a given area able to be sold.

I am not going to count the contingent/pending properties in this calculation. Even though they are spoken for, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will make it to closing. If not one more house was listed and we were working with static numbers, given the stats above it would take approximately 8 months for this market to absorb all the available housing.

If your house is currently listed and you want to sell in 4 months, you need to price your house in the lower 50% of the range for similar properties. If you want to sell in 2 months, you need to be in the lower 25% of the range.

If you are buying, you are in a good position. You will have a lot to choose from. Be careful not become over confident. There are other people out there searching (evidently about 1600 a month) for a great place in a great spot. If the house is priced well and you want to live there be careful about throwing out a lot of low ball offers and playing games. There are other people who know a good opportunity when they see it.

Looking for something FUN to do in and around St. Louis? Here are the top 25 tourist attractions ranked in terms of attendance by the St Louis Business Journal.

Harrah’s St. Louis Casino & Hotel
Ameristar Casino St. Charles
St. Louis Cardinals
Saint Louis Zoo
Jefferson National Expansion Museum
Casino Queen
President Casino St. Louis Riverfront
Argosy Casino Alton
Six Flags St. Louis
Missouri Botanical Gardens
St. Louis Science Center
National Shrine of Our Lady of Snows
Gateway International Raceway
St. Louis Rams
City Museum
Grant’s Farm
Fox Theatre
Saint Louis Art Museum
Eckert’s Inc
Fairmount Park
The Muny
The Magic House, St. Louis Children’s Museum
Anheuser-Busch St. Louis Brewery Tour
Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site

With the coming I-64/40 shutdown those trips to Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods are going to be that much more cumbersome. Thankfully we will soon have a new alternative in the city at 3148 Morganford.

Local Harvest Grocery will have its grand opening on June 1 and is operating in conjunction with the folks who put on the Tower Grove Farmers Market. In addition to some prepared foods, they will stock locally grown produce, meats, chesses and grains and sustainably produced products from outside the region.

Saturday May 12, 2007

First Annual Brewers Heritage Festival in Forest Park beginning at NOON.

Spring Wildflower Sale at Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit. 9AM-4PM. (Using Native Plants in your landscaping decreases your need for fertilizer and pesticide.)

Old North St. Louis House Tour 10AM-4PM. Check-In at St. Louis Ave. & 14th.

Spring has finally arrived and with it many opportunities to get involved in the St. Louis Community.

Saturday, April 21: Rebuilding Day. Come rain or come shine over 2500 volunteers in the St. Louis area will be working to help elderly and disabled homeowners maintain the residences. It is too late to sign up for Rebuilding Day, but not too late to get involved with Rebuilding Together-STL.

Saturday and Sunday, April 21 & 22: The Grand South Grand House Tour. Tour begins at 11am and ends at 5pm each day. This is the yearly opportunity to peak inside homes and gardens in the 5 residential neighborhoods linked by South Grand: Compton Heights, Compton Hill Reservoir Square, Shaw, Tower Grove East and Tower Grove Heights. Tour the Fleur-de-Lys Mansion Bed and Breakfast (pictured below) on Russell Blvd. Then walk across the street to get a 360 degree view of the city from the top of the Water Tower in Compton Hill Reservoir Park.

Sunday, April 22: Earth Day Festival This year’s theme is LIVING GREEN and will be held in Forest Park and on the Muny grounds from 11 AM- 6PM. Highlights include entertainment on 2 stages, healthy choice food offerings, farmer’s market and electronic recycling collection.