the STL housing market (or economy in general)

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go birds
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the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by go birds »

So, over the weekend, i made my glorious return to STL for a wedding. It's been roughly 8 years since i was there last.

Since we were staying downtown, my gf and i walked over to a place called Roosters (off locust if im remembering correctly) for brunch. Great brunch spot btw.

Anyway, for sh*ts and giggles, i whipped out zillow and looked at the pricing on nearby condos and my jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

Lofts with double (and in some cases triple) the square footage of lots of places in Nashville at less than 1/3 of the price.

Now i understand the difference between the two cities at the moment but i just couldn't believe what i was seeing.

We got to talking and imagine my surprise when my gf said she would consider moving to STL because the housing market was just much more affordable than it is in nashville. Fortunately both of us have the luxury working remote, if push comes to shove i think its possible.

All that to say...do you guys see in upswing in the economy in st louis?

She likes the idea of living downtown and i admittedly do too. Some of the places we were looking are off washington avenue, which from what i understand, is not what it used to be and not in a good way. Obviously crime is a huge concern, but i mean it seems to me people are moving back down that way so in theory things should get better.

I kinda feel like property value can only go up because it seems like its at rock bottom right now.

What are some other good neighborhoods to look at? Good as in safer.

AWvsCBsteeeerike3
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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by AWvsCBsteeeerike3 »

I don't have much to offer, but...obviously.

http://www.onecardinalway.com/

AWvsCBsteeeerike3
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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by AWvsCBsteeeerike3 »

Also, there's this. No idea if the growth rate is still negative, but that doesn't lend itself to growing economies iirc.

http://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cit ... opulation/

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heyzeus
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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by heyzeus »

Yeah, every time I see a listing for a beautifully restored 2500 sq ft. red brick 1890s house in South City for like $220,000, it gives me some amount of longing to move back. You can't even get a vacant lot in the worst part of Austin for $220k now. Unfortunately, there are so many structural problems in St Louis that I don't see any economic upswing in the foreseeable future. And personally speaking, there wouldn't be a job waiting for me there, so it's a no-go.

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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by Freed Roger »

Wish I could help you. Not too familiar with condo and lofts especially downtown.

Haltz?

I only visit these places but look into Central West End (seems solid.) Cherokee St up and coming (may not have condos). Soulard. Tower Grove.

I like the Stl area for living, raising a family. Food and beer scene is pretty good (and affordable, accessible ..otherwise what is the point of having good food scene if you cant participate in it). Plenty of cheap things to do. Decent access to trails and outdoor stuff. Top notch for mountain biking, paddling. Then there is Forest Park, the Cardinals etc etc.

I have been to Nashville -I like that town a whole lot too. Has some common features to Stl. I suspect you could find a sutiable alternative for your food and rec lifestyle stuff here. Like Nashville - it is pretty easy to navigate. The up and coming vibe in Nashville (you have new downtown development) - you wont have that as much here.

And I am weird, but I like the history that goes with St Louis. Things like that St Louis Browns documentary remind me of this cool [expletive].

Always been interested in moving to the city (we are 4 miles out)
I am happy and content where we are though. A sense of community here. And I like my my freedoms - being able to walk my dogs all times at night. No real worries about wife and daughter out and about or hassles with securing cars bikes. Dozed off in my backyard lounge chair last week -slept out there until the morning birds chirped. ...not that i couldnt have freedom in the city, i just dont know the lay of the land.

Economy. That all depends. Some housing and jobs markets are solid.

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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by G. Keenan »

In my anecdotal experience, StL has come up a lot in the last decade or so. The last time I visited was May of 2016 for a wedding and there was so much more going on than there ever was when I lived there. My friend who got married lives in The Grove, which wasn't even a neighborhood when I lived in StL back in the day. I mean, Tower Grove was a neighborhood of course, but there was nothing to do there for young 20 and 30 somethings except walk in the park. It looked like there were micro breweries and coffee shops all over the city. I even saw a white hipster friend chicken place. On trend!

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go birds
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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by go birds »

heyzeus wrote:Yeah, every time I see a listing for a beautifully restored 2500 sq ft. red brick 1890s house in South City for like $220,000, it gives me some amount of longing to move back. You can't even get a vacant lot in the worst part of Austin for $220k now. Unfortunately, there are so many structural problems in St Louis that I don't see any economic upswing in the foreseeable future. And personally speaking, there wouldn't be a job waiting for me there, so it's a no-go.

man i feel ya. nashville is just as bad. i've enjoyed my time here, but im ready to move on. It's cliche but i really wish i'd gotten "in" sooner.

Take for instance east nashville--10 years ago, real estate valued at around $90K is now worth between $400K - $600K. It's ridiculous.

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go birds
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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by go birds »

Freed Roger wrote:Wish I could help you. Not too familiar with condo and lofts especially downtown.

Haltz?

I only visit these places but look into Central West End (seems solid.) Cherokee St up and coming (may not have condos). Soulard. Tower Grove.

I have been to Nashville -I like that town a whole lot too. Has some common features to Stl. I suspect you could find a sutiable alternative for your food and rec lifestyle stuff here. Like Nashville - it is pretty easy to navigate. The up and coming vibe in Nashville (you have new downtown development) - you wont have that as much here.


Always been interested in moving to the city (we are 4 miles out)
I am happy and content where we are though. A sense of community here. And I like my my freedoms - being able to walk my dogs all times at night. No real worries about wife and daughter out and about or hassles with securing cars bikes. Dozed off in my backyard lounge chair last week -slept out there until the morning birds chirped. ...not that i couldnt have freedom in the city, i just dont know the lay of the land.

Economy. That all depends. Some housing and jobs markets are solid.
doesnt necessarily have to be a condo but admittedly, i really don't want the responsibility of owning a house. a quick search reveals a lot of nice places in soulard at what i consider to be reasonable prices.

And I'm not necessarily concerned with the economy as much as i am about my and my girlfriends safety.

I'm keeping my eye on some places and we continue to kick the idea around.

We shall see

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haltz
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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by haltz »

Plenty of people live downtown and move downtown, they just move in single or as a couple and move out as threes and fours.

The two lofts I lived in on Washington were great (Packard and Eastbank) but they are really hit and miss in general. I'd be careful about which building you buy into.

I liked my time downtown, but I bought a house off the Page extension in St Charles (right on the river though so the commute is easy) just like everyone else once it wasn't just me and my buddies and my priorities changed.

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Re: the STL housing market (or economy in general)

Post by lukethedrifter »

I’m hurt.

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