Meet Nick

Your real estate guide, whenever you are ready

HomeBuildSTL is free to use on your own. When you’d like someone in your corner at the model, at the contract and at the walk-through, that’s Nick Dalba.

Talk to Nick

Why buyers ask Nick

Nick has sat on the builder’s side of the table. Before he represented buyers, he estimated, sold, ran operations and built homes himself, so he knows how a builder prices, schedules and negotiates, and what to check before you sign.

Nick’s background

• 1989
  Construction estimator for St. Louis subdivisions.
• 1997
  Epic Homes, Sales Director. Led sales across five communities, guiding buyers through homesites, plans, options, selections and financing. Home Builders Association of St. Louis Homer Award, 1997.
• 1998
  Missouri real estate broker. Earned his agent and broker licenses the same year, so the builder could run its own in-house sales team.
• 2000
  Epic Homes, Operations Director. Ran accounting, estimating, purchasing and field operations, tightened change orders, and added a design center in each community. Revenue grew from $2 million to $12 million.
• 2006
  Dalba Development, owner and builder. Built custom homes of 4,500 to 6,500 square feet, priced from $1 million to $2.5 million, in established St. Louis communities: land, financing, design, bidding and construction management.
• 2011
  Grayhawk, VP of Development and Residential Construction. Directed a 2,000-acre gated lake community in Ste. Genevieve: its exclusive builder, a new 1,000 to 1,600 square foot home line, and designated broker for its resales.
• 2013
  Founded Nickolas Dalba Real Estate, a boutique brokerage for buyers and sellers, with new construction as its specialty.
• 2015
  Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) and member of the Home Builders Association of St. Louis.
• 2019
  Licensed Mortgage Loan Originator (NMLS #1839931). Added the lending side of the purchase, so he can help buyers understand how a new build is financed, from preapproval to the rate lock at closing.
• 2026
  Broker Associate, The Gellman Team at eXp Realty, developing the team’s new-construction division. Founded HomeBuildSTL.

Education: B.A., Psychology, Southern Methodist University.

What Nick does for a new-construction buyer

• Gets you registered with the builder before your first model visit
• Compares communities, builders, homesites and premiums with you
• Reads the builder’s purchase agreement with you before you sign
• Walks the house with you at pre-drywall and before closing
• Helps with warranty items after you move in

Selling to build?

Nick can sell your current home and time the sale with your build, so the two line up as closely as possible. How the money works when you sell to build

What’s your home worth before you build? Tell Nick about your current home and he’ll prepare a market analysis of what it should sell for.

Talk to Nick