Tips on buying a new home in St. Louis, MO
St. Louis, MO - New Home Market Profile
St. Louis is a beautiful city rich in history and optimistic about the future. It is the 18th largest metropolitan area in the US with 2.5 million residents in the Greater St. Louis region. Fifteen Fortune 500 companies make their home here, including Anheuser-Busch, Emerson, May Department Stores, and Graybar Electronics. This isn't only a great place to visit but also a great place to call home. Fortune Magazine recently rated St. Louis as the nation's Third Best Place to Live and Work. The close knit, friendly communities and high quality educational resources bring many families to the region. In addition to the nation's 16th ranked Washington University in St. Louis, Saint Louis University, ten universities and four year colleges, and eight two-year institutions drive St. Louis' robust work force and enhance this intellectual city's quality of life.
In and around town, St. Louisans have a variety of activities to be entertained by. For the sports fan, Cardinals baseball, Rams football, and Blues hockey all play in downtown venues. For shopping, nightlife, and everyday fun, Laclede's Landing is a riverfront district that offers riverboat casinos, restaurants, shops, and the Gateway Arch Park. In addition, Union Station, the city's former train terminal, now features a comedy club, hotel, specialty shops, and a man-made pond for paddle-boating. As for the outdoor enthusiasts, Forest Park welcomes runners, rollerbladers, and picnickers.
Population (year 2000): : 348,189
Estimated median household income in 2005: $30,874 (it was $27,156 in 2000)
Climate: St. Louis has been known to be a humid continental climate and has neither large mountains nor large bodies of water to moderate its temperature.
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St. Louis Real Estate Zindex (Provided By Zillow.com):
- St. Louis: $141,718
- Missouri: $157,814
- United States: $254,569
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Most common industries for males:
- Accommodation and food services (9%)
- Educational services (7%)
- Construction (7%)
- Public administration (7%)
- Health care (6%)
- Professional, scientific, and technical services (5%)
- Administrative and support and waste management services (5%)
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Most common industries for females:
- Health care (18%)
- Educational services (11%)
- Accommodation and food services (8%)
- Finance and insurance (6%)
- Public administration (6%)
- Professional, scientific, and technical services (5%)
- Social assistance (4%)
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Buying New Makes Sense
One quick glance at today's headlines, and it's no wonder that, as concerned consumers, we're pinching pennies more than ever. In a recent survey conducted by HSBC Bank USA, 64 percent of us plan to cut unnecessary spending this year. And, in a similar survey by Discover Financial Services, about half of consumers plan to cut down on such non-essential spending as dinners out and movies - even remodeling.
Still, when it comes to buying a house - something that many consumers are doing because of the many good deals to be had in a slow market - most of us prefer new. Even better, buying a new home also makes good financial sense. New homes offer countless advantages for consumers when it comes to saving money. Perhaps the biggest plus is that, since they're brand-new, the maintenance headaches that often accompany maintenance - as with older homes - simply don?t exist, and won't for a while.
New homes also use the latest in whole-house systems, like heating and air conditioning, so they're not likely to break down, saving consumers money. They're also more energy-efficient, which is also good for saving lots of green. Speaking of green, with interest rates that aren?t too far away from historic lows (just over 6 percent for a 30-year fixed mortgage as of March 11), consumers can also save money on new home mortgages. And, since mortgage interest and real estate taxes are deductible, it's another way to save money by buying a new home, especially when it comes to tax time.
Click here to read more about "Why You Should Buy New".