Smell the fresh cut grass, admire the colorful flowers, sleep with the windows open and a cool breeze at night…Spring is here in Brookside! For Sale signs are stuck in front yards, advertising homes on the market. Let’s take a look at the April sales stats for single family homes in Brookside:
APRIL 2024
APRIL 2023
Median list price:
$497.250
$519,000
Median sales price:
$523,000
$516,000
Days on market:
2
3
No. of homes sold:
22
17
Most buyers paid over the list price by about 5%; a few more contracts closed and prices were up a modest 1.3% compared to April 2023. The lowest closed price was $300K and the highest was $1,050,000. Here are the year-to-date numbers:
JAN-APRIL 2024
JAN-APRIL 2023
Median list price:
$499,950
$550,000
Median sales price:
$517,500
$537,250
Days on market:
3
7
No. of homes sold:
66
62
Here we see something unusual; prices were down 3.6% YTD over 2023; yet most buyers paying over list price. A few more homes changed owners this year. Currently there are 19 homes listings in Brookside with a median asking price of…..$920,000!! Most homes are priced over $500K, including 7 homes over a million. The lowest priced home is $450,000 and the highest is $8.5 million.
(All stats taken from Heartland MLS; deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
Encouraging children to discover and explore their interest in arts and music is a priority for many parents. Here in Brookside, there is a new locally owned business that can help–HeartBeat Studio.
Christi Coffey
Founder Christi Coffey offers year round classes at her central Brookside space, including special summer camps. There’s a music room for guitar, piano and voice lessons; a large space for dance and theater classes and an art room for working with clay, fiber and print making. All of the summer camps are themed–including one on Taylor Swift, of course! Year round classes are offered for ages 1-18; the six week summer camps are geared toward ages 4-13. In addition, Christi hosts the “Kid’s ARTventure Night” on the first Friday of each month. For $35, you can drop off your youngster at 5:30pm and come back at 9:30 for pick up…and enjoy an evening to yourself! HeartBeat Studio hosts birthday parties too.
Christi has a BFA in musical theater from SE Missouri State and has been teaching in the arts for twelve years. She worked at the Coterie Theater, the Jewish Community Center and KCYA. During the pandemic, she purchased a Tippi Toes franchise which she still owns. “I love teaching” says Christi, ” and childhood is the most important time in life to explore the arts. I love to see a shy kid blossom and gain confidence through classes–art can help a child grow emotionally”. Brookside was her preferred location for the new business as she saw a real need. “There are so many families in the area, wanting this type of service”. I think this is especially true for summer camps as most families have two working parents. Christi doesn’t have much free time but when she can relax, she enjoys her backyard ducks and tending her large vegetable/fruit garden in Hyde Park.
Heartbeat Studio dance room
HeartBeat Studio is located at 6314 Brookside Plaza, next to Jalapeno’s.
Last month I attending a public meeting at Hale Cook Elementary, hosted by the Kansas City Public Schools. KCPS is proposing turning the former Bryant School into housing for teachers. Bryant was built 1915-1938 on just over four acres of land at 319 Westover, and has been vacant since 2009. Whatever happens to this property, it will affect home values and the immediate neighborhood. As a Realtor, I wanted to find out more about the plans….and share them with you!
Jesse Lang and Shannon Jaxx, who both work in “repurposing” closed schools for the district, moderated the event; Superintendent Dr Jennifer Collier kicked it off by talking about increased enrollment in the district schools and the recent hike in teacher salaries. When KCPS conducted a survey of first year teachers, one of the questions was about housing. The survey indicated teachers are having trouble finding affordable housing and would prefer rents of $800-$1000 per month close to the schools they work in. KCPS feels converting Bryant to teacher housing would help some of these staff people. Several school districts around the country have built apartments specifically for teachers; California is “leading the way”, also Chicago and Newark. Locally, the Guadeloupe Center recently broke ground on a 50 unit apartment complex near their elementary school.
Bryant Elementary School, 319 Westover
In addition to the proposed renovation of Bryant, Dr Collier talked in detail about the $650 million in deferred maintenance of the district’s current schools, which they hope to address via COP Bonds and a spring 2025 General Obligation (GO) Bond, which would require voter approval. These measures would not fund the Bryant project.
Approximately 50 persons were present at the meeting and overall, there didn’t seem to be any strong objections to the teacher housing proposal. I jotted down several notes and have summarized the information in quick bullet points below. You can also find slides from the presentation here.
*The land Bryant sits on is divided into four tracks, currently zoned for single family or school use. KCPS would need to have the neighborhood “restrictive covenants” changed to allow the apartments. KCPS will also apply to have Bryant on the National Register of Historic Places to qualify for tax credits.
*Approximately 27-40 units would be built, with the possibility of a few single family homes (at market sale rate) on the eastern track.
*No projected cost was mentioned for the project. Several for profit and nonprofit developers have expressed interest in submitting a proposal. Philanthropic support will be needed to keep rents below market value. KCPS needs to decide if the land would be a long term lease or sale to the developer.
*Other alternatives for this property are: demolish the building and KCPS keeps the site as a vacant lot; or sell it to a developer for new, market rate single family homes.
*It was also mentioned that KCPS is “evaluating” the current Southwest High School building for a third middle school location.It is not being considered for teacher housing.
The next steps are this: over the next several months, KCPS will solicit feedback from the community, make a recommendation to the school board and in the Fall, “proceed with critical actions”. KCPS promises to “participate in good faith negotiations with the property owners” and will “solicit community feedback prior to choosing a developer” if the teacher housing proposal goes through.
KCPS wants your feedback! You can complete a survey online by May 17. I’ll plan on attending other public meetings related to this topic and keep you updated via the blog—thanks for reading!!
As we head into the usually busy Spring home buying season, it’s interesting to note that overall, home prices are trending downward; however buyers are still paying over list price. That sentence…can seem confusing, especially if you are in the market as a buyer. Let’s take a look at the numbers; I’m tracking single family home sales in the main Brookside zip code of 64113:
March 2024
March 2023
Median list price:
$475,000
$657,000
Median sales price:
$520,000
$650,000
Days on market:
2
12
No. of homes sold:
17
16
Here we see that the number of homes sold remains steady, and buyers paid 9.5% over the asking price. Compared to March 2023 however, home prices are down 20%. Last month the lowest closed price was $260,000 and the highest was $1.3 million. Ten of the 17 homes sold were priced over $500K and two were over $1,000,000.
Here are the year-to-date trends:
JAN-March 2024
JAN-March 2023
Median sales price:
$510,000
$550,000
Median list price:
$517,500
$542,500
Days on market:
3
19
No. of homes sold:
44
45
These YTD numbers aren’t as drastic but still reflect the trend: about the same number of homes are changing owners; buyers pay over asking price (YTD about 1.5%) and values are down 4.6%.
Currently there are just 12 homes for sale in the 64113 zip code, with a median list price of $974,500. Only one home is priced under $500K and five have prices over $1,000,000. There is just not enough inventory at the under $500K price point and when there is–the home goes under contract within a day or two.
(All stats taken from Heartland MLS; deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
The busy Spring home buying market started early this year–every week I see more homes coming on the market and getting snatched up quickly! Home values in Brookside continue to climb-let’s take a look at the numbers. I’m reporting for the main Brookside zip code of 64113, single family home sales:
february 2024
february 2023
Median list price:
$638,000
$650,000
Median sales price:
$630,000
$650,000
Days on market:
11
3
No. of homes sold:
11
13
Although the median sales price was down 3% compared to a year ago, most sellers last month closed close to asking price. There were three $1,000,000+ sales last month; the highest was $2,000,000 and the lowest was $318,000. Most homes sold well over $500K. Here are the year-to-date stats:
jan-feb 2024
jan-feb 2023
Median list price:
$515,000
$439,000
Median sales price:
$515,000
$430,150
Days on market:
9
47
No. of homes sold:
27
17
Year-to-date, home values are up over 19% compared to 2023, and more homes are selling in a shorter amount of time. Part of the higher median price can be attributed to more higher priced homes selling–over half the homes that closed were over $500K, and we’ve had four multi-million dollar sales in the first two months of the year.
Currently there are just 10 homes listed in the 64113 zip code, with a median price of….$1,222,500 and 28 days on the market. None of the currently listed homes are under $500K; there are five priced over $1,000,000 with the highest list price at $8.5 million.
(All stats taken from Heartland MLS; deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
And another year has begun; it was quite a month we had, with weeks of frigid temps, frozen pipes, Restaurant week and football playoff games – congratulations again Chiefs! Last year finished strong for Brookside home values, up 15% from 2022. All indications point to another busy buying season with bidding wars for the priced right properties. Let’s take a look at what happened last month; I’m tracking single family home sales in the main Brookside zip code of 64113:
january 2024
january 2023
Median list price:
$437,500
$429,975
Median sales price:
$445,000
$430,075
Days on market:
4
49
No. of homes sold:
16
16
Already prices are up around 4% compared to a year ago. Last month the lowest sales price was $312,000 and the highest was $1.195 million. Currently there are 12 homes for sale in Brookside with a median list price of $924,950! The reason for that high number is this: only two homes are listed under $500K; and there are 5 listings over $1,000,000. Most buyers want an under $500K price tag.
If you are thinking of selling or buying in the Brookside/Waldo area–contact me for a market analysis. There are always people who want to sell and buy; making the perfect connection is what I do!
Happy 2023! This feels like a typical January–very cold weather and hoping Chiefs keep winning in the playoffs! Time to take a look at the December 2023 home sales figures, and the end of year/5 year trend recap as well. And the trend is… higher prices, less inventory. Typical! I’m tracking single family home sales in the main Brookside zip code of 64113:
december 2023
december 2022
Median list price:
$575,000
$490,000
Median sales price:
$575,000
$501,000
No. of homes sold:
15
22
Days on market:
18
15
Sales prices were up 14% compared to December 2022; fewer homes changed owners and the days on market was about the same. The lowest closed price was $405,000 and the highest was just over $2.8 million. Below I’ve charted the five year trends:
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
Median list price:
$550,000
$492,450
$459,950
$419,000
$389,950
Median sales price:
$572,000
$500,000
$475,000
$416,000
$380,000
No. of homes sold:
246
294
338
326
301
Days on market:
3
3
3
8
23
These numbers tell us a few things:
*Home values up 14% from 2022-2023, up 50% since 2019.
*Homes are selling faster, and inventory continues to decline.
*For the past three years, most buyers pay list price or above.
Unless more homeowners are willing (or must) give up the lower interest rates for a move, prices will continue to rise due to a lack of inventory. As interest rates drop, more buyers will want to buy to take advantage of a lower payment. One thing is always consistent: the best time to buy a home is when you are financially able and ready for home ownership!
It’s the week of Thanksgiving 2023–lots to do!! And besides all the visiting, cooking, travel and general hoopla–remember to be grateful for this life…and your home. Now, on to the home sales stats for Brookside last month, using the main Brookside zip code of 64113:
october 2023
october 2022
Median list price:
$562,500
$584,475
Median sales price:
$570,000
$622,500
No. of homes sold:
20
18
Days on market:
3
3
Last month buyers paid just over 1% of list price, and yet the median price was down 8.4% compared to October 2022. The lowest closed price was $425,000 and the highest was $1.6 million, which was $25K over the asking price! Year-to-date stats below:
Jan-Oct 2023
jan-0ct 2022
Median list price:
$554,500
$497,000
Median sales price:
$575,000
$500,500
No. of homes sold:
212
254
Days on market:
3
3
So far this year, 16% fewer homes changed owners in Brookside; home values are up 14% YTD. There are 18 homes listed in Brookside, with a median price of $690K and 66 days on the market. Several of the multi million dollar homes have been sitting on the market a while, increasing overall days on market.
(All stats taken from Heartland MLS; deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
Prices going up, fewer homes are selling, that is the story for Brookside/Waldo home sales this year. Here are the stats for single family homes in Brookside last month, using sales in the main Brookside zip code of 64113:
september 2023
september 2022
Median list price:
$450,000
$439,900
Median sales price:
$471,000
$437,900
Days on market:
2
19
No. of homes sold:
13
25
Just under 50% fewer homes sold last month compared to a year ago; prices up 7.5% and buyers still paying over asking price. This is the time of year when home sales typically slow down, however that’s a pretty steep drop in a year. The lowest closed sale was $360,000 and the highest was $808,000. Here are the year-to-date numbers:
jan-sept 2023
jan-sept 2022
Median list price:
$554,500
$489,700
Median sales price:
$576,000
$500,000
Days on market:
3
3
No. of homes sold:
192
236
So far this year, home values up just over 15% and the number of homes sold is down 18%. Currently there are 21 active listings in Brookside, with a median price of $550,000 and 35 days on the market. The lowest price is $385K and the highest is $9.35 million.
(All stats taken from Heartland MLS; deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
The higher interest rates don’t seem to be deterring homebuyers who want to call Brookside home; fewer homes closed last month but prices continue to climb over asking price–likely due to lack of inventory. Here are the stats for single family home sales in Brookside, using the zip code of 64113:
july 2023
july 2022
Median list price:
$535,000
$540,000
Median sales price:
$570,000
$530,000
Days on market:
2
3
No. of homes sold:
29
35
Buyers paid about 6.5% over asking price and values up 7.5% compared to July 2022. The lowest closed sale was $335K and the highest was $3.5 million. There were three million dollar plus sales last month. Here are the year to date numbers:
jan-july 2023
jan-july 2022
Median list price:
$575,000
$495.000
Median sales price:
$577,000
$505,500
Days on market:
3
2
No. of homes sold:
159
182
The number of homes sold dropped by 14% so far this year, and prices are up 14%. There are just 14 active single family homes listed in Brookside as of this writing, and the median price is $870,000–certainly not affordable for most buyers. Twelve listings are over $500K and 6 are over $1,000,000.
(All stats taken from Heartland MLS; deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
Inside Brookside (And Waldo) 