Best lakes to live on with 30 minute or less commute to bigger city? (Knoxville: fit in, for sale)
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We are originally from West Virginia. We have family in Georgia and NC and want to be closer to them but still in terrain/climate like West Virginia.
My husband and I are relocating in about 6-10 months. We want to live on a lake. We prefer a gated or similar community. We want to be near a bigger city for work commute. My husband works in Higher Education and I may or may not work, but I do not want to drive 30 mph down a twisty road for 45 minutes and across a creek to get a loaf of bread and milk.
We have been looking at houses for 6 months on the internet.
We are looking into Realtors as we speak-however, we just can't narrow our search down to a specific area. We'll find a house we like, but then realise it's 45 minutes just to get to the interstate. Or we find another house we like only to find it's in the middle of dilapidated hunting cabins.
We aren't highbrow. We aren't DIYers either. We don't hunt or fish. We work and then we enjoy spending time together after dinner watching a movie. We currently have a cat and will want to get a dog or two after we settle in, and eventually get a pontoon boat to cruise the lake on and enjoy kids and eventually grandkids with. We don't need book clubs or wine tasting parties or even art galleries.
We keep to ourselves and we'd like a quiet neighborhood to live in without someone practicing "Smoke on the water" on the guitar and amp every weekend or target practice before deer season
We see houses here and there, then we come to these forums and we read awful things about the area where we find a house we love. Or we find a house we love and can't find ANY information on an area.
We are even willing to live off of the lake but close by. We really want an inground pool, but if we can be on the lake with no pool, then that's okay too---IF the lake is clean of course!
So we are here asking you great people your opinions based upon the information we have given you.
Thanks so much for your time, we really appreciate it
We are originally from West Virginia. We have family in Georgia and NC and want to be closer to them but still in terrain/climate like West Virginia.
My husband and I are relocating in about 6-10 months. We want to live on a lake. We prefer a gated or similar community. We want to be near a bigger city for work commute. My husband works in Higher Education and I may or may not work, but I do not want to drive 30 mph down a twisty road for 45 minutes and across a creek to get a loaf of bread and milk.
We have been looking at houses for 6 months on the internet.
We are looking into Realtors as we speak-however, we just can't narrow our search down to a specific area. We'll find a house we like, but then realise it's 45 minutes just to get to the interstate. Or we find another house we like only to find it's in the middle of dilapidated hunting cabins.
We aren't highbrow. We aren't DIYers either. We don't hunt or fish. We work and then we enjoy spending time together after dinner watching a movie. We currently have a cat and will want to get a dog or two after we settle in, and eventually get a pontoon boat to cruise the lake on and enjoy kids and eventually grandkids with. We don't need book clubs or wine tasting parties or even art galleries.
We keep to ourselves and we'd like a quiet neighborhood to live in without someone practicing "Smoke on the water" on the guitar and amp every weekend or target practice before deer season
We see houses here and there, then we come to these forums and we read awful things about the area where we find a house we love. Or we find a house we love and can't find ANY information on an area.
We are even willing to live off of the lake but close by. We really want an inground pool, but if we can be on the lake with no pool, then that's okay too---IF the lake is clean of course!
So we are here asking you great people your opinions based upon the information we have given you.
Thanks so much for your time, we really appreciate it
There are a good number of lakes around here, so that shouldn't be a problem. There are 3 major Tennessee cities that would fit into the criteria, Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga. Now to narrow it down to the city that you want. My expertise is the Nashville area, so I'll start there. People in Knoxville and Chattanooga can be more specific about their area.
Nashville has 2 lakes within close proximity, Old Hickory Lake and J. Percy Priest Lake. If you actually want to live on the lake, not just near the lake, Old Hickory is going to be your best bet. The topography in Nashville will likely be the least similar to West Virginia. There are beautiful rolling hills here, but also a good number of flat lands. Elevation generally ranges from about 400-1,500 feet in the metro area. There are many institutions of higher learning in the Nashville area.
-Hendersonville, on Old Hickory Lake, is going to offer you the most options as far as lakefront properties. It's a town of 50,000, so it may not be as 'quiet' as you would like, and I'm not sure if they have gated communities to offer...but it is a nice place to live and situated less than 30 minutes from Nashville.
-Gallatin is right up the road from Hendersonville, and has fewer lake options, but there are some newer lakefront developments that you might want to check out.
-Mt. Juliet/Green Hill and the Cedar Creek area of Wilson county is also worth noting. It lies on the other side of the lake from Hendersonville, and is much less developed and quieter, at least when it comes to lakeside development.
Percy Priest Lake has less lakefront development due to more park space along the shoreline. Your best bet is not going to be having lake property here, but you could be close to it. The cities to consider are Nashville (close to the Antioch area), La Vergne, and Smyrna.
If you are seriously thinking of a place to raise kids, I believe your best bet will be Hendersonville.
Now on to the others...
Knoxville is going to be somewhat more similar to the topography of West Virginia. It is situated in a large valley (elevations from 800-1,500+ ft) between the Cumberland Mountains (elevations 3,000+) and the Smoky Mountains (elevations 5-6,000+). You would be about an hour from either one, depending on what area you choose to live. The main institution of higher learning in Knoxville is obviously the University of Tennessee. There are several other schools in the area, though, notably Maryville College.
Knoxville has several lakes around it. The main one, Fort Loudoun Lake (the Tennessee River) runs right through town, and most locations on the north shore of the lake are easily accessible to Knoxville. Besides Knoxville itself, Farragut is a nice smaller suburb located west of Knoxville. It is somewhat of an affluent area, and numerous people enjoy lake activities there.
Melton Hill Lake on the Clinch River runs between Knox and Anderson counties. There is some development along the Oak Ridge area, but not much, considering that a huge portion of the city is Department of Energy territory, and off limits to both development and recreation.
Norris Lake is an absolutely beautiful lake farther up the Clinch River (mainly Campbell and Union counties) and has an amazing 809 miles of shoreline. It is farther away from Knoxville than your other options, and a commute could easily approach 45 minutes to an hour. However, it is a quieter, less developed area (for the most part).
The Little Tennessee River is dammed near Lenoir City and is actually connected to Fort Loudoun Lake. Tellico Lake has a reputation for being a very clean lake, and has several golfing communities along the shore. That would probably be a more "exclusive" area to live in, but like Norris Lake, it can be quite a commute into the city.
Chattanooga has two sizable lakes, one to the east of town (Nickajack) and one in town that runs to the northwest (Chickamauga). I have little experience with lake life in Chattanooga, but both seem nice, but it seems there is considerably more development on Chickamauga.
Chattanooga as a city is smaller than Knoxville and the topography is somewhat different. While Knoxville has some big hills and ridges, Chattanooga has some very sharp and steep landforms right in town. Lookout Mountain and Signal Mountain provide breathtaking views of the city as well as much of the surrounding area, and Missionary Ridge runs right through town.
Hubby says he would be okay with an hour commute to work as long as we are in a home we love.
I looked on Trulia and could only find new construction homes in the Old Hickory Lake area, and they were only showing an artist rendering of the homes which was disappointing.
Hubby says he would be okay with an hour commute to work as long as we are in a home we love.
I looked on Trulia and could only find new construction homes in the Old Hickory Lake area, and they were only showing an artist rendering of the homes which was disappointing.
I'll try the other areas you suggested.
Thank You!
I really depends on what you are looking for. Hendersonville and Farragut/West Knoxville would provide nice properties, good schools, and easy access to both shopping and entertainment activities. They are not "crowded" places, but there is extensive development in both, so you wouldn't be "out in the country" by any stretch. You wouldn't have to travel far from either to get to that kind of area, but generally speaking, the lake areas are developed. Just to be clear, Hendersonville is a Nashville suburb, Farragut is a Knoxville suburb. Two completely different cities, but similar options.
If you want something a little less crowded, you could try my suggestion on the other side of Old Hickory Lake in Wilson county...however, with Nashville's explosive growth rate, the area could quickly change and become built up after you move in.
If you are looking for a quiet, nearly rural setting, you will have to travel farther from the cities.
One *other* consideration (just throwing it out there) would be Center Hill Lake in the Putnam/DeKalb/Smith county area. You would be more than an hour from Nashville, and even farther from Knoxville and Chattanooga. The largest town in the region is Cookeville, which is probably 20-30 minutes from the lake. It is the county seat of Putnam county, and has a population of around 30,000 (the county has more than 70,000). There aren't as many entertainment options, but there is a decent sized public university in Cookeville (Tennessee Technological University) with more than 10,000 students.
The Center Hill Lake area is fairly rural, although I do know there are lake homes there. It would be much more quiet than most of the other areas, although it is somewhat more isolated from "the big city" (even more so than parts of Norris and Tellico). However, the location would put you relatively between Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga, with fairly easy travel to all 3 (Nashville & Knoxville via I-40, and Chattanooga via TN 111, which parts of are 4 lanes with a high speed limit).
Crossville has a fair number of small lakes (much, much smaller than any I listed) with golfing communities...but I think the area is more popular with retirees than anyone else...it's only about an hour by interstate from Knoxville, though.
We'll find a house we like, but then realise it's 45 minutes just to get to the interstate. Or we find another house we like only to find it's in the middle of dilapidated hunting cabins.
We aren't highbrow. We aren't DIYers either.
We keep to ourselves and we'd like a quiet neighborhood to live in without someone practicing "Smoke on the water" on the guitar and amp every weekend or target practice before deer season
What is your budget? It can sometimes be difficult to be that "away" from neighbors but be near the interstate or stores, not to mention that you sometimes have to buy up the land around you to insure solitude. Since you seem to be finding homes that are out in the middle of nowhere I was wondering what is your maximum budget criteria.
And the other consideration, of course, is where you will eventually find employment. Sometimes it is easier to start with that because you can often find the perfect place but no employment and have to move to "Plan B."
This might not be the most complete list -- but to give you an idea, a lot of the lakes that are close to the city are pretty expensive if you actually live on the lake.
I'm guessing that you are not interested in building your own house -- otherwise there are a number of properties for sale.
Take a quick look through and see if anything catches your eye, though.
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