Igor Blevin's, "A Native Californian in Knoxville" (Morristown: rental, car registration)

[Igor Blevin]

I just got my 2023 motor vehicle registration renewel for my 8 year old car.

$40. Cheap living.

[Igor Blevin]

Georgous late March day in Knoxville. Cool temps, no bugs, no pollen. March is when a retiree can hold back a day trip destination for a spontaneous trip on a beautiful day like today.

3 weeks ago it was 80 degrees. Last week, we had 3 days of freezing night-time temps with low daytime highs. One day was so cold my nose hurt.

You just don't know what you will get in Knoxville during March. Plenty of freezing cold days but not consistently so as you might get in the north. You get a nice smattering of ideal weather for outdoor fun. I don't see how a worker can plan it for weekend getaways, but great opportunities for a retiree that can leave town at a moments notice and head for the Mountains or play in Nashville or what have you.

Caveat - overnight we were hit with a powerful rainstorm, lightening and thunder. Deadly tornadoes hit Mississippi. Who knew today woud be so beautiful in Knoxville?

[Igor Blevin]

I have been hitting up Realtor.com each week to see what has sold recently.

Sales and inventory are just abysmal around town. It helps to be able to afford $700k and up in the areas I want -- Farragut, West Knox west of the Pellissippi, Karns, Powell. Below $500k it is still competitive despite high mortgage interest rates. Few sellers and really rough finding one-story homes.

They are building homes all over town, so we will see if inventory rises. It seems homes are selling faster than they are being built.

Tough environment to buy in. I may have to lease up another year. I am so grateful I love my apartment and am blessed to have an amazing unit in a wonderful neighborhood. If you have to be stuck renting while waiting to purchase a home, I am stuck in a fabulous situation.

Yep, I am blessed.

I have criticized Knoxville walkability but I am fortunate to have a terrific walk connected by sidewalks all the way from my apartment to an adjacent upscale neighborhood that is a joy to walk through, especially at night. I will miss these beautiful, relaxed walks when I move.

[feliformia]

Originally Posted by Veniceman

I agree with your assessments on driving and walkability. My girlfriend is 75 and I'm 70 and we have visited eastern Tennessee twice and Asheville NC once and we decided against these places because of our age. We felt it would be too hard to drive and walk as we get older. Few sidewalks and narrow winding roads wouldn't be good. Otherwise I think the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee are beautiful and the weather is suitable too. We are in a coastal city on the Gulf coast of Florida and hate the weather here 90 percent of the year. We do have sidewalks and bike lanes but I wouldn't ride in any bike lane here for fear of getting mowed down by my fellow oldsters.

I see your point about driving on small windy roads when one is a senior or has limited vision. That's definitely something to keep in mind as one ages and wishes to relocate for retirement.

For now I remain in a metro working. Retirement is still aways off, but I think about it more and more. I enjoy visiting the beach but have no desire to retire to such an area. The driving can be somewhat easier since it is so flat near all the coasts and in large swaths inland.

Unfortunately, in many parts of the US, there are few sidewalks to use so that an immediate area is more walkable. Usually this is outer suburbs or exurbs if you will. I would love to ride a bike, but because people drive so crappy where I live, like you I would be afraid of being mowed down. All places one chooses to live are definitely a give and take.

The Knoxville area has a lot of advantages for people of all ages but still it is a small market for jobs. I've not lived there but had family who had years back. Tennessee is beautiful, especially from the Nashville area to the east. It's utterly amazing how over developed a lot of it is now vs. about 2 decades ago.

[feliformia]

Originally Posted by Igor Blevin

Your Knoxville/East Tennessee housing update for 2023, from WATE 6 TV news.

I am still house hunting and finding nothing I want west of the Pellissippi Parkway in my $450,000 price range. I will give it one more year before I strongly consider giving up on West Knox and settle for Powell, Halls Crossroads, or Maryville.

It looks like I will be on the sidelines again all 2023. I am waiting for the right home, not for a price reduction or any kind of a "crash". The longer I wait, the more I will have to pay as Knoxville homes are still appreciating on strong demand.

Knoxville is still booming.


The WATE video below is short, but here is the jist of it.

It is still a Seller's Market in Knoxville/East Tennessee.

New homes are selling as fast as they are built, with waiting lists for new construction. No starter homes or affordable homes are being built. Builders are going for maximum profit. Who can blame them when everything is selling?

Existing home inventory is back to 2019 pre-pandemic levels, when supply was still inadequate for the demand, but not massively so.

Existing home sales are slowing and price appreciation is flattening. Area homes will appreciate another 5% this year.

Knoxville median selling price is $318,000, down from $335,000 last May, so sales of luxury homes are probably falling off faster than less expensive homes. The least expensive homes are still being immediately snatched up.

The most expensive areas are Farragut, Concord, Bluegrass, Hardin Valley, and downtown Knoxville. They didn't mention tony Sequoyah Hills, so maybe nothing is even for sale there.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWunjyjsaUk

Hopefully you can get a home sometime soon. You offer some great info here for the lurkers and others who wish to move to the great Knoxville area. The recent run up on real estate almost everywhere is eye-watering for someone like me in the middle class. There is some correction going on but hard to say how it will turn out in the long run.

[TheShadow]

Originally Posted by feliformia

I see your point about driving on small windy roads when one is a senior or has limited vision. That's definitely something to keep in mind as one ages and wishes to relocate for retirement.

For now I remain in a metro working. Retirement is still aways off, but I think about it more and more. I enjoy visiting the beach but have no desire to retire to such an area. The driving can be somewhat easier since it is so flat near all the coasts and in large swaths inland.

Unfortunately, in many parts of the US, there are few sidewalks to use so that an immediate area is more walkable. Usually this is outer suburbs or exurbs if you will. I would love to ride a bike, but because people drive so crappy where I live, like you I would be afraid of being mowed down. All places one chooses to live are definitely a give and take.

The Knoxville area has a lot of advantages for people of all ages but still it is a small market for jobs. I've not lived there but had family who had years back. Tennessee is beautiful, especially from the Nashville area to the east. It's utterly amazing how over developed a lot of it is now vs. about 2 decades ago.

There are numerous jobs in the Knoxville area. Unemployment is at 3.5%. We don't have big techcompanies like Silicon Valley or lots of banking jobs like Charlotte or NYC, but we have tons of jobs here, lots of manufacturing, and employers like to bring their plants to TN because of the tax structure and location on a major cross-country highway.

It's developed in the last 20 years I'm sure (I've only been here for 10), but I don't know that I'd call it OVER-developed.

[Igor Blevin]

Knoxville just landed 200 auto parts jobs with ATC Drivetrain. This after 800 new jobs set for Amazon's Warehouse in Alcoa, and 750 new jobs for relocating the Smith & Wesson headquarters to Maryville.

I continue to see "We Are Hiring" signs for entry level jobs everywhere throughout town. The labor shortage is alive and well here.

[JOinGA]

Originally Posted by TheShadow

There are numerous jobs in the Knoxville area. Unemployment is at 3.5%. We don't have big techcompanies like Silicon Valley or lots of banking jobs like Charlotte or NYC, but we have tons of jobs here, lots of manufacturing, and employers like to bring their plants to TN because of the tax structure and location on a major cross-country highway.

It's developed in the last 20 years I'm sure (I've only been here for 10), but I don't know that I'd call it OVER-developed.

There are not enough professional jobs. A lot of young people seem to move to Nashville for better job opportunities.

[TheShadow]

I was responding to a comment that it was "a small market for jobs", not anything about professional jobs.

[Igor Blevin]

I like Knoxville weather. I really do. I am finding I much prefer it to the Sacramento Valley in CA.

I have been enjoying taking walks under cloudless blue skies during spring in cool temps. Just wonderful. Evening walks this time of year without bugs has been wonderful and I have found some beautiful neighborhoods with beautifully lit gorgeous homes to walk amid.

Winter is colder and I do spend less time outside, but it brings the anticipation of a few dustings of beautiful snow. That is a winter pick-me-up and good memories besides. At the same time, I have good warm gear from head to toe, but I rarely felt my nose go numb or hurt during a Sacramento winter. That has happened a few times here, and I am forced indoors.

Spring is very nice except the worst of allergy season. I don't have allergies, but there are a couple of April weeks with clouds of messy, choking pollen. I am not looking forward to that. I should wear a mask. Other than that, spring is nice and a great get-outside time.

Yes, summer is hot. So was the Sacramento Valley. I am mostly inside something running AC during Knoxville summers -- my home, my car, a store or restaurant -- but that was no different than Sacramento with all its dry 105 degree days.

I bored dreadfully from 6 or 7 unbroken months of dry weather in Sacramento. Here I am, anxiously looking forward to summer thunderstorms and cloud bursts. They are fun and really break up the dry spells, but not constant like Seattle. It is a nice variety of clear and stormy weather. It is fun to see a swollen stream or creek after a heavy summer rain storm.

The bugs do put some damper on Knoville summer. I didn't have that in Sacramento. I will try to get out for more evening walks this summer and see if there are times the bugs are gone. Maybe they just swarm around sunset. Maybe some later walks will be bug free. We will see. That would be nice if the bugs die down just as the night warmth is getting tolerable.

The good news is, the humid temps are lower than Sacramento by a good 10 degrees most of the time. The car cools off faster and the apartment AC doesn't need to run all night.

Then there is Fall.

I spent a lot of time running around the mountains last fall, from Cade's Cove in TN to Boone and Cherokee in NC. Just beautiful in the mountains. Go enough and you will hit the peak. It is not as dramatic with the ample reds and oranges of sugar maples in Vermont and New Hampshire, but there are still reds and oranges to see.

Last fall, I drove out of the park taking Rich Mountain Road in my rear wheel drive coupe. Not the best car for driving up a rutted dirt and gravel mountain road, and I had to pull over for trucks several times, but it was aso worth the drive. The foliage was beautiful. At one point, the low sun perfectly backlit a grove of trees to where the yellow and orange leaves glowed like fire. It was stunning and I only left to race the setting sun so I wasn't caught in the dark on Rich Mountain Road.

There is really only one time I dislike Knoxville weather and that is on humid days with temps between 70 and 85. Those are the temps where Sacramento shines, but Knoxville feels a little warm and stuffy. Hey, If you only have one complaint, then you are blessed. I am so looking forward to summer thunderstorms. Can't wait.