Real Estate Slump in Tennessee? (house, schools, garden)

[Pam& Bill]

TnHilltopper, very well said! Last year we were trying to purchase a home. We got locked in at a price we weren't comfortable with. Well different things happened and we lost our down payment and the house.
With a year behind us and the market so different today, we are sure glad we lost that house last year. It turned out to be a blessing in disquise and we probably would have become just another statistic in the foreclosure arena.
Looking in a market where prices have somewhat adjusted is better then being at a all you can eat buffet!
Pam

[McMar]

I would say it is a good time to buy in Tennessee - a tough time to sell, just like everywhere else. In Chattanooga, decent homes that are $150,000 and lower are still selling. Our median home price is less than that. However, there is a large inventory of homes, and many are sitting on the market for a long time. Certain areas are still appreciating, but most areas have plateaued or have depreciated a bit. We sold a house in North Chattanooga last spring for $210,000 (a 2 BR, 2BA), which we had listed in October. Had we listed the house just 3 months earlier, the market for that neighborhood was still at it's peak, and we probably could have sold in a matter of weeks for $10,000 more. That same house now would probably only bring about $185,000. More expensive homes are much harder to sell, as the market is flooded. There are also several hundred new condos (some still under construction) that will be sitting empty for awhile. Chattanooga experienced a lot of new construction over the past few years, but has experienced a 5% population loss. It is a beautiful area, with lots of fun things to do though. So if you are interested in this area, you could get a lot for the money right now because there are a lot of listings to choose from.

[J&Em]

Gem and TNHillTopper I think it has been the same draw for us as well, we both came from relatively small towns and very down to earth living. Neither of us can put into words what it is about Maryville but we knew we were "home" very quickly. We had that in our current town until fairly recently. We still have lots of friends, and will miss some aspects of the town we now reside in, but it is time for us to leave. We are being surrounded by more and more snobbish people who do less for their community, expect lots to be done for them and are quite proud of their perceived better place to live. Maybe it is that "cadence" you mentioned TNHillTopper, maybe it is that lack of snobbishness or just a feeling of genuine niceness, whatever it is we can't wait to stay permanently!!

[hiknapster]

People are people and they are no different in Tennessee than they are anywhere else.

[Beretta]

Originally Posted by J&Em

Gem and TNHillTopper I think it has been the same draw for us as well, we both came from relatively small towns and very down to earth living. Neither of us can put into words what it is about Maryville but we knew we were "home" very quickly. We had that in our current town until fairly recently. We still have lots of friends, and will miss some aspects of the town we now reside in, but it is time for us to leave. We are being surrounded by more and more snobbish people who do less for their community, expect lots to be done for them and are quite proud of their perceived better place to live. Maybe it is that "cadence" you mentioned TNHillTopper, maybe it is that lack of snobbishness or just a feeling of genuine niceness, whatever it is we can't wait to stay permanently!!

And here I thought you all loved Maryville cause The SmokyMtnGal family is here.

[Beretta]

Originally Posted by goodbyehollywood

Well, I'm not so smart-- I bought in Knoxville at the top of the market. But I sold in CA near the top of that market, so it all evened out. It's really irrelevant, if you're in it for the long haul, and I think most people agree that the time for flipping has come and gone. I would've liked to have waited to buy in Knoxville, but I found a unique property that met my specific and rather unusual needs, and there were multiple offers, so it was buy it or lose it.

I bought a building lot at the "top" of the market here, too. Only it's gone up 50% since then. Which brings me full circle to mbmouse's point that some neighborhoods are still going up, while others just down the road are experiencing a decline. I, personally, still see value in some parts of Knoxville. Others, much less so. But that's JMO.

Ok, I gotta ask. What were the "rather unusual needs" that you had???

[goodbyehollywood]

Well, I needed a place to put the moonshine still, then of course "the girls" needed privacy when the gentleman callers came.

Just joking you. I wanted a small, quaint cottage on a big, private lot in a good neighborhood close to restaurants and shopping, and that's almost impossible to find. I wanted more than half an acre backing up to a treeline, with privacy on three sides, nobody's windows facing any of mine, on a cul-de-sac, in a safe, amenity neighborhood with a walking trail. Oh, and I wanted to be close to the lake, preferably with a lake view, and I wanted all brick and I wanted my neighbors to be nice. And I wanted a fenced-in backyard for my dog, hardwoods throughout and a woodburning fireplace. And I wanted a whirlpool tub, walk-in two-person tiled shower and a library, all under 2,000 SF.

It was the smaller square footage that did my realtor in. Everybody else wants BIG. I wanted small-- the smaller, the better. With amenities. In a nice neighborhood. The nice neighborhoods don't do small.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by goodbyehollywood

Well, I needed a place to put the moonshine still, then of course "the girls" needed privacy when the gentleman callers came.

Just joking you. I wanted a small, quaint cottage on a big, private lot in a good neighborhood close to restaurants and shopping, and that's almost impossible to find. I wanted more than half an acre backing up to a treeline, with privacy on three sides, nobody's windows facing any of mine, on a cul-de-sac, in a safe, amenity neighborhood with a walking trail. Oh, and I wanted to be close to the lake, preferably with a lake view, and I wanted all brick and I wanted my neighbors to be nice. And I wanted a fenced-in backyard for my dog, hardwoods throughout and a woodburning fireplace. And I wanted a whirlpool tub, walk-in two-person tiled shower and a library, all under 2,000 SF.

It was the smaller square footage that did my realtor in. Everybody else wants BIG. I wanted small-- the smaller, the better. With amenities. In a nice neighborhood. The nice neighborhoods don't do small.

Wow. And I thought I was picky.

[goodbyehollywood]

Well, that was just my short list.

All I really cared about was a place to put my books. The realtor suggested a library card.

[creeksitter]

So can you drop us a hint and tell us (generally) where you found these amenities?