Interesting conversation concerning Fairfield Glade (Memphis, Knoxville: for sale, rent, house)

[Tek_Freek]

A wrong phone number. A conversation. A change of plans.

We are no longer clearing our lot this fall. It is likely we will never move to Fairfield Glade.

I was looking for information. We were given a plat of our street when we bought. You know the one that shows lot size and angles of the lot lines, center of road, etc. I wanted a larger version for our trip down this fall. The sheet had been faxed and the only clue that lead anywhere was a name on the sheet header. Two phone numbers led nowhere so I Googled the name and found the womans number. I called her only to discover she wasn't the person, which was interesting because she had an unusual name.

She asked about why I wanted the information and offered her house was for sale. During the conversation we discovered they built the same month we bought our lot - in 2006. I asked why they were moving so soon. This led to a one hour conversation with a delightful woman. As my wife has often said I have never met a stranger, even on the phone.

Comments she made and questions she asked (not at all in a nasty fashion, very matter-of-fact):

Are you used to driving five minutes to a Target? Lowes? Home Depot? Doctor? Hospital? How many different grocery stores are available to you? How long does it take you to drive to a large shopping mall, Office Depot, etc. Do you golf? Do you play Bridge? Are you a volunteer? Are you active in a church? Are you okay with driving a two lane road for 6 miles to get to the interstate? When you are 80 years old and need to go to Knoxville or Nashville and can't drive how will you get there? Business hours say 7:30 to 4:30? If business is slow they might close at 3:00. If they're not in the mood they might decide not to open Monday.

30 miles to a good doctor, 60 to a good hospital, 100 to a very good hospital. Stores, well Cookeville and Knoxville.

The high end restaurant in Crossville is a Ruby Tuesdays. Good, fresh seafood? Knoxville.

I've read these arguments before and discounted them. Mainly because the majority of the posters seemed to have an ulterior motive or I had noticed other threads with similar comments about any town but the one they live in.

Well, talking to someone who has lived there for two years and stated matter-of-factly the problems and disappointments they have seen brought everything into focus. All those niggling doubts came to the front.

Depending on what we find this fall we will decide to either spend a year renting so we can get a feel for what things will be like there, or drop the idea entirely.

Her house? 2 years old, 2800 square feet $468k asking. 2 viewings, no offers since January. Not surprising in this economic climate, but still...

If you're in the market DM me and I'll get the two of you together.

I may be placing a classified this winter for a nice lot there.

She invited us to visit and have some wine and hors d'oeuvres when we go down and we're taking her up on it. We will be taking a case of Aunt Jemima Corn meal with us as a gift. Yet another thing she can't get there. She loves her corn bread and can't find anything in the stores that makes any worth serving.

[Tinman313]

That's the same people I encountered in Crossville & Fair Field Glade. Stright to the point... frank and not snotty. Just pleasant and letting you know the facts, I to will rent for the first year also.....

[Tek_Freek]

Hey Tinman313 I got this when I tried to reply:

Tinman313 has chosen not to receive private messages or may not be allowed to receive private messages. Therefore you may not send your message to him/her.

If you are trying to send this message to multiple recipients, remove Tinman313 from the recipient list and send the message again.

You might want to check it out.

Our schedule for perhaps spending a year to check it out is 3-5 years down the road, but I appreciate the info.

[Tinman313]

Originally Posted by Tek_Freek

Hey Tinman313 I got this when I tried to reply:

Tinman313 has chosen not to receive private messages or may not be allowed to receive private messages. Therefore you may not send your message to him/her.

If you are trying to send this message to multiple recipients, remove Tinman313 from the recipient list and send the message again.

You might want to check it out.

Our schedule for perhaps spending a year to check it out is 3-5 years down the road, but I appreciate the info.

let me check what's going on........

[jguillot]

Sorry to hear that you are having second thoughts about moving to Fairfield Glade. I hope your visit this fall will provide you with a positive outlook and you will not have to abandon your plans to move to Tennessee. Keep in mind that many people will have different opinions about life on the Cumberland Plateau. You may not mind driving for 15 to 30 minutes to find the goods and services that you need, but other people such as the lady you spoke with may dislike this. I will be retired when I move to Tennessee, so I don't think I will mind having to drive a few extra miles for the goods and services that I need. I believe the benefits of living in Tennessee will far outweigh the drawbacks. Enjoy your trip this fall.

[Tek_Freek]

Tinman313, it seems to be okay. I have no idea what was going on.

jguillot, We aren't giving up on TN. We are planning on doing a search closer to Knoxville....

[Tinman313]

Fair Field Glade

[mbmouse]

I can feel the disappointment in your posts Tek-Freek, so sorry about that. But you are smart to think of those things such as travel time to hospitals and such before you build and settle in, that and other things are important.
Glad you met a new friend in TN though.

[Kachina1]

Hi Tek Freek! Did the woman say where she would like to relocate once her home sells? Closer to an urban area I would guess? What areas are you considering as an alternative to FG?

[JoeCartpath]

Those issues are exactly the things my wife and I are weighing when considering a move from Memphis.

For all of it's problems (high property tax, dysfunctional local government, etc.), we really like our modest home here, we love the neighborhood and enjoy the convenience of the location. We're within 2-3 miles of probably 30 or more restaurants, including a wonderful local one within walking distance. We're within 5-10 minutes of Lowe's (2 of 'em), Home Depot, Costco, Sam's Club, WalMart (2 of 'em), Target (2 of 'em) and a large regional shopping mall - and all the stores located near it. We live practically right around the corner from two major grocery chains (not to mention the grocery departments at Walmart, Target, Sams & Costco - and the Aldi store). We have the comfort of knowing we have immediate access to one of the better medical centers in the country (4 major hospitals plus LeBonheur Children's Hospital, St. Jude and any number of clinics).

We've spent time in Cookeville to get a feel for how we like it there - and to try to decide if we'll be content in that area. We pretty much ruled out Crossville right away simply because Cookeville offers more of the things we're used to - but, even if we lived in Cookeville, we'd have to travel to Nashville or Knoxville to find a lot of things that are practically right in our neighborhood now. Would the slower, quieter life there make up for those inconveniences? We haven't yet decided.

We also spent time in Murfreesboro to try to get a feel for that area. The advantage is that it's larger, has more of the amenities we're used to, and is much closer to Nashville for the rest. Of course, those are also disadvantages if you're looking for a slower, quieter lifestyle.

We don't have to decide yet...we've still got a few years before retirement...but we're trying to make sure that, if we do move to another city, we know exactly what we're getting into so we only have to move once.