Is West St. Louis County a Buyer's Market or a Seller's Market? A Town-by-Town Look

Is it a buyer's market or a seller's market in West St. Louis County?
For houses, it still leans toward sellers. Houses in Kirkwood, Webster Groves, Chesterfield, Ballwin and Creve Coeur sold in a median of 5 to 8 days over the past 12 months.

Everyone asks me this, and the honest answer is that it depends on the town and on whether you are buying a house or a condo. A market is not one thing across the St. Louis Metro Area. Kirkwood does not behave like Chesterfield, and neither one behaves like a condo building.

So I pulled the numbers for five towns where I spend most of my time: Kirkwood (63122), Webster Groves (63119), Chesterfield (63017), Ballwin (63011) and Creve Coeur (63141). Here is what they show and how I read them.

How I read it

There is no single official line between a buyer's market and a seller's market, so I look at three things in each town.

• Speed: how many days the typical house took to sell.
• Sales and prices: how many houses sold compared with last year, and which way the median price moved.
• Choice: how many houses are available right now compared with how many are already pending.

All of these are medians from MARIS closed sales through November 4, 2026, which means half of the houses sold faster and half took longer. The choice numbers are a snapshot from November 4 and change daily.

Kirkwood: tight, and leaning toward sellers

• 322 houses sold, compared with 407 the year before, which is about 21% fewer.
• The median house sold in 6 days, the same as last year.
• The median price rose about 3%.
• 52 houses were available and 36 were already pending.

Fewer houses sold and the speed did not change, which tells me buyers did not leave. There were simply fewer houses to buy. If you want a feel for daily life there, I wrote about what it is really like to live in Kirkwood.

Webster Groves: fast, with the least room to wait

• 315 houses sold, up slightly from 301.
• The median house sold in 5 days, down from 6.
• The median price rose about 2%.
• 31 houses were available and 28 were already pending.

That last line is the one I watch. Nearly as many houses were pending as were available, so a buyer who waits a week may find the house is gone. Webster Groves leans toward sellers.

Chesterfield: the most balanced of the five

• 450 houses sold, up slightly from 440.
• The median house sold in 8 days, up from 6.
• The median price rose about 7%.
• 71 houses were available and 33 were already pending.

Prices rose more here than in most of the other towns, but days on market stretched a little and buyers have the most choice. For every house already pending, about two were available. If you are shopping in Chesterfield, you can usually compare a few houses instead of racing for one. It leans toward sellers on price and toward buyers on choice.

Ballwin: fast, but prices held steady

• 412 houses sold, about the same as last year.
• The median house sold in 5 days, down from 6.
• The median price slipped about 1%.
• 41 houses were available and 35 were already pending.

Ballwin is the value lane of the group. Houses sell quickly, but prices did not climb, so buyers are not chasing a rising market. Choice is tight, with only a little more than one house available for each pending house.

Creve Coeur: quick, with prices moving up

• 188 houses sold, up slightly from 184.
• The median house sold in 7 days, down from 8.
• The median price rose about 9%, the largest increase of the five.
• 30 houses were available and 17 were already pending.

Creve Coeur is a smaller market, so one or two sales can move the numbers. The direction is still clear. It leans toward sellers.

Condos are where buyers have the most room

Condos tell a different story from houses in every one of these towns.

• Kirkwood: a median of about 20 days, up from about 11.
• Chesterfield: a median of about 28 days, up from about 12.
• Ballwin: a median of about 35 days.
• Creve Coeur: a median of about 54 days.

Webster Groves had only 9 condo sales, which is too few to read. If you are a condo buyer, the numbers suggest you have time to compare buildings and room to negotiate. I will cover what to ask about condo costs and HOA rules in a separate post.

What this means if you are buying

• Know your town before you shop. A strategy that works in Chesterfield, where you can compare, will not work in Webster Groves, where houses go quickly.
• Get your financing ready first. In the fast towns, a pre-approval in hand lets you act the day a house comes up. I keep an eye on Freddie Mac's weekly rate survey, and it is worth watching.
• Do not skip the inspection. Moving fast does not mean skipping the steps that protect you.
• If you want a condo, take your time. The speed of the house market does not apply there.

What this means if you are selling

• Price for the first week. In towns where the typical house sells in under a week, the first few days matter most.
• Know your own town. In Chesterfield, buyers have more choice, so condition, photos and price carry more weight.
• Get ahead of repairs. Houses that show well on day one tend to get the strongest attention.

For wider context, the National Association of REALTORS research page is a good place to compare local trends with national ones.

Frequently asked questions

Is it a buyers market or a sellers market in West St. Louis County?
For houses, it still leans toward sellers. Over the past 12 months the median house sold in 5 to 8 days in Kirkwood, Webster Groves, Chesterfield, Ballwin and Creve Coeur, based on MARIS closed sales through November 4, 2026. Condos took longer, so condo buyers have more room to negotiate.

Which West St. Louis County town has the most houses to choose from right now?
As of November 4, 2026, Chesterfield had the most houses available compared with houses already pending, about two available for every one pending. Webster Groves and Ballwin had roughly one available for every pending house, so choices there are tighter.

How long do condos take to sell in Kirkwood, Chesterfield, Ballwin and Creve Coeur?
Over the past 12 months the median condo took about 20 days in Kirkwood, 28 days in Chesterfield, about 35 days in Ballwin and about 54 days in Creve Coeur, compared with 5 to 8 days for houses in the same towns.

Thinking about a move in West St. Louis County?

If you are buying or selling in Kirkwood, Webster Groves, Chesterfield, Ballwin, Creve Coeur or anywhere in the St. Louis Metro Area, I am happy to pull the numbers for your town and price range and walk you through what to expect. Reach out any time.

Shari Whay, REALTOR®, Real Broker LLC
Helping you find your Whay home.
Serving the St. Louis Metro Area and West St. Louis County | shariwhay.com

Data source: MARIS Matrix, single family and condominium closed sales by township, Nov 4 2025 to Nov 4 2026 (prior period Nov 4 2024 to Nov 4 2025). Median days on market is from listing to contract. Current availability is from the MARIS listings snapshot of Nov 4 2026 (Coming Soon, Active and Active Under Contract counted as available; Pending counted separately). Pulled Nov 4, 2026.