moving to Knoxville_where to buy a farm? (Maryville, Alcoa: real estate, house)

[jb69]

Hey all,
I am moving to Knoxville in the summer with my wife and 4 kids. I have always wanted to live on a large block of land (20-40 a.) and do some small farming- organic herbs and vegetables and chickens. My question is where is to buy land/a ranch house that is not too far from town-safe-and so on.

[Servpro Will]

JB69,

There are some great pieces of land available around Knoxville, in that size range. Exactly which part of Knoxville or surrounding you choose will largely determine what price range, or price per acre you'll be looking at. If you wanna give us a comfort zone on price everyone can better determine which part of Knox metro may be the best fit for you. Basically the outer skirts of Knox and outwards is where you'll start to find your larger tracts of land. We currently live on a 70 acre horse farm in the Hardin Valley area and love it out here. Very quiet and peaceful, though close to interstate access, shopping and dining, etc. Also, is schooling a concern? If so what age children? Everyone will be happy to give their opinions of schooling, locations, and preferences. Best of luck with the chickens. If you read an earlier post, you'll find that you'll have to be outside city limits with your chicks. Though, looking for 20-40 acres will put you outside city most likely anyways.

[piedmont]

What part of town do you need to be close to? And what is your idea of close, in terms of commuting time?

East of Knoxville is more rural and less expensive (but also fairly hilly). If you work near downtown Knox, the commute is not bad at all. Knoxville's sprawl is largely to the west of town, following I-40,although there is also sprawl north and south of town. Larger land tracts in west Knox are more rare these days. (and more $$, based on development potential). There are some pretty country properties around Maryville (which is also close to the Smokies), but prices also tend to be higher here than some other places. Rockford is a less expensive area between Maryville and Knoxville to consider.

Land prices depend a great deal on location (and land quality--in some places it is easy to find 40 acres up a mountain which is not exactly usable land). Of course, a small organic farm + chickens does not necessarily require 40 acres. The different counties and regions of the area also have quite different qualities---spending a week driving around and looking at property will help you get a feel for the land around here.

You can browse Find Homes By Area by county and acreage to get a sense of what is on the market now.

When we moved from our NC farm, we were looking for another rural property. We searched hard over 6 counties before deciding on a place near the border of Roane/Meigs counties. It's pretty country down here, but not exactly close to Knoxville proper.

[arbunk782]

Get jobs and learn the area, then go look for your farm. To do otherwise, is folly. This is a geographically large area.

BTW, you need 15 acres or more to qualify for the reduced farm tax rate, just in case you decide to settle on a smaller parcel.

[Kitties of Domination]

Strawberry Plains

[jb69]

We will need to be within driving distance to UT med center. I would say 30 minutes max drive time. We have our kids in private school (but would rather a great public school) so would like info on schools in the area. I have cheecked out a bunch on my own.

[piedmont]

For the best rural land values, I would look east of Knoxville (Strawberry Plains, Blaine, etc.). I know nothing of the school quality in these areas, however (and would assume nothing).

If your budget allows, you might also check out Blount County, including towards Maryville. Alcoa Highway is a somewhat annoying commute (lots of lights and poor driving), but it is fairly easy access to downtown/UT.

[jb69]

piedmont...who did you use as a real estate professional?

[piedmont]

I have sent you a PM!