Cost of living in Knoxville comparing with other cities (hair salon, school)

[hiknapster]

I DON'T want city. I thought I could move in and buy a cheap fixer-upper, but forget it. I'm too much of a country girl to want to deal with the crime. I'm a big chicken.

I want a piece of crap out in the country. I live in Heiskell now, if that helps you any. I like it here. Right now, the cheapest house in the MLS is a 33-year old ranch on less than one-half acre. It has a carport and is a 4/1. It's listed at $124,900.

The good news is I think that your family's homes are worth more than they think!

[sliverbox]

Well, again, my advice is to be patient. Wait for the right opportunity, and take it.The housing market was freakish and the hangover ain't over yet. See, the way I look at it is this way: You want country, you want cheap houses, and you want something to fix up. As you might have already realized, about 75% of TN is rural.So you do have alternative options besides Knoxville.

last time I was home, we headed up towards Big South Fork. Talk about desolate.When we got there, I think we saw maybe 2 people? This was in a major national park! That IS the country. See, places like Knoxville and surrounding areas we( native Tennesseans) aways considered somewhat crowded if you can believe that. Now the country is wayyyyy out there. Of course these areas have less jobs, but it sounds like what your husband does is pretty universally in demand. We all drive cars!

Move somewhere that isn't "sexy" Knoxville just happens to be a little on the sexy side these days because it was the 5th best place to live by editors in NYC. Nobody in FL or NY has heard of.... Big South Fork, Union county or Monterery. Stay away from the cities. Then you'll find your cheap homes.

lastly, have you considered other areas entirely? One area I've found to have some neat attributes is Tulsa, OK. Nobody talks about Tulsa, but believe it or not, the city has some really interesting aspects including museums, architecture, food, music, and of course rodeos. Stuff is dirt-cheap there. Again- it isn't being broadcast in the papers as being THE place.

Anyhow, I hope it all works our just the way you want it. Hard working people deserve their piece of pie.

[hiknapster]

Thank you. What an incredibly kind post. I can tell that you are a native Tennessean!

[taxguy]

Silverbox and hiknapster you guys are great and have some great insight! Thanks for the discussion. After all I AM a tax guy so fixer uppers are not my cup of tea. I can put the occasional ceiling fan in and change out toilets but forget about complete remodel. Plus, I have to worry about the school issue so I need to stay in an area that will provide that. I think Farragut is out of the question. I will keep looking and post my outcome.

You guys are great though. I wish I could just pick a city and go but my choice of home is driven mostly by my job choice. Based upon your explanations I may have to go and apologize to my real estate agent because I was pretty hard nosed about the prices and what had to be out there.

[hoosier07]

Tax guy....JMT and hiknapster gave suggestions on an area near Strawberry Plains....called Carter. The schools are very good and housing is more affordable. I went there 2 times and planning the 3rd trip with family this time. I liked it and think it's a great place to raise a family.....15 minutes from downtown.

[sliverbox]

Well, again my opinion on housing prices might be a little out in left field. Where we live now prices are impossibly high and we would have some major problems paying the mortgage no matter what we made. We actually worked pretty hard out here and have done admirably well professionally.To a level that 'should' allow us a decent at least middle class income. But 650k for a house is difficult to stomach unless you like taking risks or are making in excess of 200k. We're neither of those, so when I hear of decent homes in a decent area being 120-150k, compared to here that sounds insanely cheap.

I realize that the economy is different there and that compared to what homes were going for 10 years ago, the prices are high. But even as a native Tennessean, I can totally see how people from places like CA and NY must think they've died and gone to heaven when they come down there and salivate over homes that they can actually afford to pay for. In TN they can live the life they thought they could never have. I can understand why they would find things here such a welcome contrast compared to the crushing financial stress they had back in their home state(s)

The good news seems to be that speculators and investors got burned enough recently to stay out of the market for awhile. Investors were most responsible for driving up prices in places like Phoenix, Portland, and so on. Take them out of the picture and you get more normalized appreciation.

[goodbyehollywood]

Hello Taxguy -

I'm new to this forum, though I've been reading the posts here for awhile and have found them to be quite helpful. I was in your situation last year. I'm relocating back to Knoxville from LA and it took me a year to find the right house. There are SO many neighborhoods in Knoxville and I just wasn't sure which one was right for me-- and I grew up in Knoxville!

You might want to consider renting for six months or so and give yourself some time to learn the city and see which neighborhoods appeal most to you. I know it isn't optimal from a tax standpoint, but it might help you make a better choice. If I had ended up buying in some of the first neighborhoods I looked at, I would have definitely made the wrong decision! The prices did increase significantly while I was looking, but they seem to have stabilized or even gone down now, at least in my area. I'm pretty sure my house is worth less now than it was at the beginning of the year-- and I haven't even moved in yet! But it is soooo much more affordable than LA! Just a thought...

[MrsMtnsOnTheMind]

hiknapster - how far is Heiskell from Knoxville? Do you have mountain views? What is the elevation there?

[sliverbox]

Heiskell is about 20 minutes from Knoxville. It is a small community located between 2 major freeways: Clinton Hwy and I-75. The area is too hilly to actually see mountains, and besides, you can barely see the mountains from Knoxville anyway due to the haze from the humidity. Heiskell is not really incorporated. There is a fire department and a small store. That's it. it is sort of halfway between being rural and urban due to the easy access to the freeways. Changes are probably due soon... an interchange is being planned to cut right through the valley.

There are several small towns near it: Clinton, Powell, Halls, and Norris. Clinton is a small older town with a real main street and shops.Kind of nice 1930's feel with old houses and old stores that have been slowly restored. Make sure and check out "Hammers dept store", where Moon Pies can sometimes be bought for 5 cents each on Saturdays.

Powell is basically a giant subdivision surrounded in a wreath of urban sprawl: Wal-Marts, Home Depots, etc etc. Halls is ok. Sort of like Powell but you can get to South Knoxville faster.Both are in my opinion equally ugly.I wouldn't want to live there.

Norris is very nice. Out in the country a bit near Norris lake. A little more remote.Smaller pre WWII homes. Close to the Museum of Appalachia.

[hiknapster]

Gee, Sliverbox, why don't you just draw this guy a map?

You forgot the post office. There is also a post office. By the way, the store and post office are up for sale and that highway is going right through there or near it, I believe. That will be the end of Heiskell.