January 2012

Have you thought about checking out the new Laurel Apartments in downtown St. Louis? Well the old Dillards Building is ready for you to stop by and do a little apartment shopping. These beautiful units are finally ready and available for immediate move-in on floors 6-11. (The first 5 floors house the Embassy Suites Hotel.) Amenities galore, indoor parking, and walking distance to everything. One bedrooms start at $900 per month so what are you waiting for?

An improving US economic outlook was negative for mortgage rates this week. Reduced concerns about Europe also caused a partial reversal in the flight to safety trade. As a result, mortgage rates ended the week higher.  Look for a slight improvement early this upcoming week as the Greek Tragedy toils on.

Early in the month, the December Employment report showed a larger than expected increase of 200K jobs, and the Unemployment Rate continued to move lower. This week, Weekly Jobless Claims fell to the lowest level since April 2008. The labor market is one of the most important factors in the health of the economy, and many investors now view the outlook as brighter than it has been since the financial crisis began. If this is the case, it will be great

Who should attend: real estate professionals, condo owners,homeowners associations/condo boards, property managers, developers

Why wonder what it takes to get a condo unit or building approved for financing when you can get the facts from the professionals.  Attend this free seminar and get the information you need.

Learn about Condo Project Approval, FHA, FNMA, and the services that some lenders provide to help with financing and refinancing condominiums.  The information you learn can help you, your neighbors, and your building.  It is in your self-interest to get the facts.

New Yaeger Conference Center - 1st Floor
Laclede Gas Building 
720 Olive St.
Saint Louis, MO 63101

Tuesday, January 31, 2012 from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM (CT)

MGM Resorts International and Dubai World believe that the timing is right to bring its inventory to market, with a package of price-reductions and other incentives that will lead to total reductions of up to approximately 50% from its original release pricing.

New Pricing

• Pricing has been reduced, on average 30% from the original 2006 Prices.
• New pricing promotions include a 10% further reduction from the most recent developer programs.

Deal Incentives

• Cost of ownership incentives is available up to 15% of the purchase price.
• Combined with the new pricing, this amounts to incentives of approximately 25% over the prior developer program or total of 47.5% over original pricing.

These incentives are in the form of two

by Carla Hill

The latest NAR Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers showed a growing trend among recent buyers.

The latest figures show that 89 percent of buyers purchased their home with the help of a real estate or broker. This is a sharp increase from a decade ago in 2001, when only 69 percent of buyers enlisted the help of an agent or broker.

Why do today's buyers buyers choose to work with an agent? Let's look at just a few of the many reasons an agent can be your biggest ally.

First, agents are licensed professionals, which means they had to complete coursework and pass an exam in order to become and agent. They have the education and experience to help you navigate what will be one of the biggest purchases of your life.

They also

Increased concerns about Europe helped mortgage rates improve this week, although the impact of the recently passed extension to the payroll tax reduction is beginning to push up mortgage rates for certain loans (discussed below).

The news from Europe was mostly negative this week. Economic growth in Germany was slower than expected. Negotiations on restructuring Greek debt did not progress as planned, increasing the risk of default. S&P is downgrading the debt of several European countries, including France. Finally, the European Central Bank (ECB) provided no relief, as it gave no indication that it would increase the level of aid available to troubled countries. As a result, investors shifted funds to relatively safer investments, including US

Are you looking for a new place to lease in the Central West End? One of the most exclusive addresses is the Park East Tower. This luxury high-rise usually has a new lease come available once every few months. Well now you can choose from not one, but two units that just became available.

Click here to see the units, and contact Bret Staehling to arrange a tour!

Technology has allowed buyers and renters alike to access real estate and property data faster than every before.  With so many websites at their disposal clients often find themselves overwhelmed with so much information that it becomes difficult to remember where the information was displayed.  The information displayed often can vary from site to site and the estimates given for property values from different may also be different further adding to the confusion.  

Enter Highrises.com.  With easy to use navigation bars users are able to quickly find top buildings and properties within a city and view both for sale and lease properties.  Typical user comments include how easy it was to find properties that matched the users needs, quickly

During the first week of the new year, mortgage rates continued to be influenced by the same factors as in 2011. Stronger than expected US economic data roughly offset continued concerns about Europe, and mortgage rates ended the week nearly unchanged.

Friday's Employment report provided further support that the US economy is gaining strength to begin the new year. Against a consensus forecast of 150K, the economy added 200K jobs in December. The Unemployment Rate unexpectedly fell to 8.5%, the lowest level since February 2009, from 8.7% in November. The decline was partly due to the increase in jobs and partly due to people dropping out of the labor force. Average Hourly Earnings, a proxy for wage growth, increased 2.1% from one year ago. This was

ALL GOOD NEWS THIS WEEK!

While economic growth was well below average for the first three quarters of 2011, a pickup during the fourth quarter bodes well for stronger housing market activity next year. Nearly all of the economic data released during the fourth quarter pointed to improvement. The labor market picked up, consumer confidence rose, and home sales activity increased. This week, in the final piece of housing data for 2011, Pending Home Sales rose 7% from the prior month, to the highest level of the year.

Low mortgage rates also contribute to the improving environment for the housing market. As we enter 2012, mortgage rates are at the lowest levels in decades, making homes very affordable. While there are factors which could push rates