House styles in Tennessee...preference for resale? (Central: sex offender, selling a home) - (TN) - City-Data Forum

hoosier07 · 03-12-2007, 07:28 PM

Hi folks....you guys are so experienced with the TN area that I have to post this question. I'm relocating due to a job transfer and hope I can leave in East TN for a long time...believe me....I'm tired of moving.

Lately, companies are being purchased, downsizing, etc and you never know when you may have to sell a home, therefore, I try to balance what I like in a home and what the market also prefer.

Is there a type of home that "sells" better? For example, are ranches popular? It appears that septic vs. sewer is not a problem in the country areas of TN, so it appears I should not be concerned about it. In East TN, I see a lot of homes with the full front porch and 1 1/2 stories as they're called. Are those the best homes for resale, considering of course the house is in great shape?

I'm leaning towards the ranch style with a basement that has a two car garage. No garage in the main level. Lot size would be small, less than an acre in a subdivision.

mbmouse · 03-12-2007, 07:44 PM

What most folks seem to be looking for, from what I see, is land, at least 1 acre so they are not "on top" of their neighbors. This seems to be at the top of the priority list for most. Other than that, what you have described seems very typical. Then again, one thing I personally prefer about East TN is that all the houses aren't alike. There are many, many different styles and sizes.

SPLIT · 03-13-2007, 07:56 AM

H: You seem to be on the right track here. We went OPEN HOUSE tour past 2 weeks. Yes a basement seems to make sense now a days. Back porches ,maybe with a mtn view, are also a hot item, when screened in, also called a Sleeping / napping porch. Newer stuff will have cleaver trends / ideas. Lots of stone / brick work on the front houses here. Different colors make everything seem custom look. Somehow I noticed price groups lately. There is a $135K, then $178K, then $239K, $289, Then $349. IMO.

alleycat · 03-13-2007, 08:13 AM

I'll just add a few comments about things that might be seen as negatives on reselling a home.

A small kitchen. Not enough closet space. Not enough bathrooms.

Propane heat (some people like it; many, including myself, don't).

The old split-level type of house (it was never very popular here anyway).

Homes that are situated at an elevation lower than the street or road level; a few feet lower is okay, but if the roofline of the house is at street level, you will have a harder time selling the house. On the other hand, having to drive straight up an extremely steep hillside isn't popular either.

Really odd colored brick. Sorry, you might like yellow brick but it won't sell as well.

A wet or damp lot.

A house that is too close to a busy road.

A ranch style house is fine; you might want to avoid some of the "long" ranch styles they bulit in the sixties (25' wide and 90' long).

A basement is popular here. Just be sure it's dry.

People like porches (whether they sit on them or not). Ditto, decks.

Traditional styles are most popular in the area I live (Colonial, Georgian, etc.)

Fireplaces are popular; gas or wood.

Central heat and air is much better than a furance and window air conditioner unit.

Anyway, those are just some things off the top of my pointy head. The preferences will vary from area to area; for example, in some locations, log homes and rustic houses are popular.

akm4 · 03-13-2007, 08:22 AM

Saw a great house last weekend, but the basement smelled of mold and they had a recent radon test that came in barely under 4, still they told their agent they refused to remediate. Hello? Who in their right mind would live in that house without fixing it?

Totally agree with the kitchen observation. School zoning is huge too, as is sex offender mapping. You can find where known offenders work and live online. A great house isn't great at any price if Creepy McFreaky lives next door.

alleycat · 03-13-2007, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by akm4

A great house isn't great at any price if Creepy McFreaky lives next door.

You've been talking to my neighbors, haven't you?

;-)

sliverbox · 03-13-2007, 08:38 AM

Honestly, it seems like most of the homes built in East TN in the last 30 years or more are nothing short of hideous. We're talking giant brick homes from the 70's with fake aluminum "antebellum" pillars out front. Either that or row upon row of ugly little rancher homes with fake shutters.

The newer homes seem to top the cake though. GIGANTIC, generic looking, and clad in vanilla plastic siding that barely covers the fiberboard and styrofoam walls. How anyone in their right mind finds these homes at all attractive is a mystery to me, yet when you see them pull out in their Lincoln Navigator it makes you wonder if they have much of any taste anyway.

I personally prefer smaller, older homes in neighborhoods with sidewalks and neat yards. There's plenty of these around, and since most people seem to want a Mcmansion, they tend to be cheaper for now anyway. I believe this style of housing is coming back into popularity, so I wouldn't be surprised if they start going up in value.

alleycat · 03-13-2007, 08:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sliverbox

The newer homes seem to top the cake though. GIGANTIC, generic looking, and clad in vanilla plastic siding that barely covers the fiberboard and styrofoam walls. How anyone in their right mind finds these homes at all attractive is a mystery to me, yet when you see them pull out in their Lincoln Navigator it makes you wonder if they have much of any taste anyway.

They built quite a few of those in Nashville too; although they do seem to build most of them with brick exteriors here (not that it helps much). Most of them seem to have a massive garage door in front as their main architectural feature. "Why, them people must have a car!"

Milo Bloom · 03-13-2007, 09:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by akm4

Saw a great house last weekend, but the basement smelled of mold and they had a recent radon test that came in barely under 4, still they told their agent they refused to remediate. Hello? Who in their right mind would live in that house without fixing it?

"Barely under 4" is high to you?

The only remediation that house needs is a little better ventilation and a french drain/drylok installation.

I have been told by people in the business that 4-8 is a normal range for most of East TN. There are areas around Nashville that can spike into the twenties in wintertime!

I personally have never seen a radon test that came out zero, no matter where the test was performed; not just TN. Lowest I've ever seen a test done was 2.5 or so.

Really, a 4 is not that bad. I would worry a lot more about the mold than the radon.

Dd714 · 03-14-2007, 08:56 AM

You have to look at the trend of who is moving to E. Tn - older, retired, people wanting a smaller town experience....

So this is my gut instinct - One level ranches so older people don't have to climb stairs, larger lots, 3 bedrooms at least, larger kitchens and living rooms (open floor plans).
The 1 and 1/2 floors, with a garage in the basement, seems popular. Also wood stoves in the basement seem popular.
I don't see a market for very large expensive houses at all. Keep it simple.