Knoxville Tennessee Real Estate Blog

Sellers will consider lease purchase for this extensively redone home, 5 minutes to downtown Knoxville.

Below is a chart prepared by the National Association of REALTORS ® comparing the new changes to the Homebuyer Tax Credit.

The biggest change is that current Homeowners are now eligible if they sell their current homes and then buy AFTER the date of enactment of this extension which is November 6th, 2009.

Comparison of existing tax credit to extended and expanded version

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com has all of the Knoxville TN area listings to view. Updated daily and NO REGISTRATION required to view home.

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I was interviewed by WATE recently about the present and future state of the Knoxville area housing market.

Here’s a link to that interview and video below.

So far this year Knoxville area sales are oddly resisting their typical seasonal downturn as we approach the colder months and the holiday season.

Usually we see a downturn in sales around July-August when school starts but so far this year that is not happening. I believe a significant portion of those sales are being driven by buyers trying to beat the deadline for the $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers which is set to expire at the end of November this year.

There are several bills in Congress to extend it but whether they will pass or not is is anybody’s guess. Here’s what past years sales have historically looked like compared to this year so far.

Knoxville, TN year to date home sales

As the red line which represents 2009 sales shows, sales are holding up at least 1 month past the points in the past where they have traditionally started dipping down.

The graph below shows the median price for a typical 3 bedroom home in the greater Knoxville area. The median price means “middle” and 50% of sales were above this price and 50% were below.

Knoxville area 3rd quarter median price comparisons

As the chart above shows, we’re selling more lower priced homes this year compared to years past. Hopefully Congress will see the wisdom of continuing the homebuyers tax credit and we can continue to see increases in the numbers of home sales in the Knoxville area.

Now is a great time to buy a house if you’ve been thinking of becoming a homeowner. You may not have enough time to qualify for the tax credit but there is a huge selection of homes for sale in the Knoxville area in all price ranges, interest rates are at historic lows which translates to payments maybe less than you’re paying right now in rent, and motivated sellers are willing to deal to entice you to buy their house over another.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is a great place to start your search.

For Knoxville home sellers that need to sell; don’t dispair or give up. Knoxville area homes are still selling but you need to keep these three critical things in mind to make your home sell.

1. Aggressive pricing. Realize you’re probably not going to net as much for your house now and you could have a year or so ago. Be prepared and willing to offer potential buyers a price concession and/or help with their closing costs. Most lenders will let a seller ‘contribute’ as much a 3% of the purchase price to help your buyer.
2. Showroom condition. Start from the front door and pretend you’re the homebuyer for your house. Would you pay top dollar for it in the present condition? If the answer is no you need to make some changes. Start with a thorough cleaning of things you might not clean on a weekly basis such as ceiling fan blades, ceiling corners, garage, and other areas. Paint any needed area with a neutral paint color
3. Broad based marketing. Over 80% of today’s buyers are looking on the Internet for houses these days. You have to have your house exposed to as many potential buyers as possible and once they find it you need lots of photos to encourage them to visit in person to look and buy. Your selection of an Internet savvy Realtor is more critical now than ever before (maybe a Realtor local news outlets talk to about Knoxville’s housing market) 😉

Please feel free to comment or ask any housing or mortgage questions you may have.

Knoxville, Tennessee real estate

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Image via Wikipedia

Knoxville area homebuyers and sellers both have one thing in common. They all want to make either the house they’re selling or the one they’re buying look as great as possible for as little money as possible.

Knoxville sellers want to ‘spiff’ up their house to appeal to buyers so it will sell faster and for more money.

Knoxville buyers want to upgrade and personalize their new home so they can enjoy living there more.

Here’s 5 tips for both sides:

1. Buy locally. In most cases you will save money by buying things in the greater Knoxville area instead of having them shipped from another location. For big ticket items the savings could amount to several hundred dollars.
2. Use coupons! Knox County School coupons, coupons from places like the Half Off Depot, newspapers, and lots of other sources. I recently bought a Pawley’s Island hammock for way less than half price and I’ve enjoyed it way more than the actual cost. Here’s a great money saving tip for you. I can send you a coupon for Lower’s that is good for 10% off any purchase or purchases up to $10,000! That means you have a potential $1,000 dollar savings; especially great if you’re buying a big ticket item like appliances, a new kitchen, or lawnmower. No cost or obligation, just ask me for one.
3. Shop around Knoxville and compare prices. Often you can find the same thing or a comparable item for much less if you visit a few different stores. Also lots of stores like Lowe’s, Best Buy, and other aggressive retailers will match sales or prices you find at other stores just to get your business. Don’t be afraid to ask.
4. Auctions are a great way to find deals and save money. Don’t want to log into eBay every 2 hours to check your bid? Just sign up for automated notifications on your cell phone and that will keep you updated if someone has outbid you or if you won your item. Auctions are fun too.
5. Credit card rewards. A great but often overlooked source of great items. So far I’ve used a credit card rewards program to get 2 new digital cameras, a Flip video camera, some Bose headphones, and a couple of other things just for using that credit card. I also recommend you pay off balances each month so as not in accrue interest charges.

So there you go, 5 ways to get some great deal for your new Knoxville area home or the one you’re selling.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com also has lots of great FREE STUFF to help with your buying or selling, pay me a visit there soon and don’t be afraid to ask questions.

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A Happy Easter to all. This Easter Sunday is a bright sunshiny day with clear blue skies overhead although it’s still a bit chilly at 52 degrees outside.

This week’s property transfers from the Knox County Registrar of Deeds office brings the biggest numbers of the year with a total of 187 pieces of real estate finding a new owner.

As has been the trend all this year, most of the activity is in the low to lower middle price ranges, that is from $100,000 to $300,000. 22.8% of last week’s total were in the $100,000 to $150,000 range, 19.57% in the $200-300,000 range, and 14,67% from $150,000 to $200,000. The $50,000 to $100,000 range also had 16.3% of the total transfers.

Knox County Registrar of Deeds Property Transfers

Here’s another graph arranged by total units in each price range.

Total units sold arranged by price points

In all price ranges in Knox County the Knoxville Area Association of Realtor’s (KAAR) MLS currently has 672 listings in “Pending” status which means the seller has accepted an offer but the transaction has not yet closed.

Luckily for anyone still looking for a new home KAAR’s Realtors still have 3,633 active listings to choose from in all areas of Knox County and all price ranges from a staggering $4,375,000 price tag to a much more modest home offered at $9,900.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is a great place to get a look at al the wonderful homes for sale.

First time buyers and those who have not owned a home in the past 3 years can likely qualify for the new, federal tax credit of up to $8,000 or 10% of the purchase price, whichever is less, to help you buy a home now. This credit must be used before December 1st of 2009 or it goes away.

This Fountain City home complete with rocking chair front porch is only $107,900

Additionally many part of Knox County qualify for home loans through the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA provides up to 100% financing to encourage homebuyers in the more rural areas to purchase a home.

This adorable Cape Cod is located in Halls and yours for only $129,900.

Also if you’re in the reserves, national guard, or are a veteran of any military service (Army, Navy, etc.) you probably would qualify for a Veteran’s Administration (VA) loan. You can get 100% financing with these and most motivated home sellers will pay some or all of your closing costs to entice you to buy their house.

Impressive west Knoxville home. Asking price $289,900

Coupled with all this, mortgage interest rates are at their lowest levels in history! That’s right, lower than Mom & Dad paid, lower than Grandpa & Grandma paid, so it’s a rare opportunity to own a home.

Family friendly home with great neighborhood, $289,000.

Give me a call or email with any questions and let’s get going finding you a new home.

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If you have ever had any aspirations to own your own home, NOW is the time. Economic factors have all came together to create the proverbial “perfect storm” in the home buying market.

1. First, the nation’s financial crisis has driven mortgage interest rates to their lowest levels ever; currently you get fixed rates below 5% all over Knoxville.
2. A glut of houses has increased inventories of both new and resale homes providing a huge selection to choose from. Currently just in Knox County there are almost 2,000 homes for sale priced under $200,000
3. The federal government, in an effort to stimulate the economy is providing up to $8,000 as a fully refundable tax credit to encourage you to buy a home.
4. The State of Tennessee‘s “Tennessee Housing Development Authority” (THDA for short) has a no interest loan program to give you up front to use for a down payment, up to 3 1/2% of the purchase price of your new home which coincidentally happens to be the minimum down payment required for FHA (Federal Housing Authority) financing. So you can borrow your 3 1/2 % down payment at 0% interest and repay it from your $8,000 tax credit.
5. Because of the number of houses for sale I’m usually able to negotiate with a seller to pay most or all of your closing costs to get you into a new home with no cash out of your pocket.

This informative local news story tells how the Knoxville area housing market is starting to heat up.

Here’s a few examples of what is on the market today. And like the story above says, they’re starting to move so now would be a great time to get in the home buying game or at least give me a call to find out what you can do.

This beautiful, 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage home in north Knoxville is currently listed at $159,900.

And yes, you can still find houses in west Knoxville for under $200,000. Here’s just a couple

Nice looking one level home in Farragut and on the market with 3 bedrooms and two baths for only $154,900.

This west Knoxville home is 'move in' ready and offers 3 bedrooms and 2 baths for just $154,900.

This charming home, complete with red door, is located in Fountain City and can be yours for only $124,900.

So there you have it; world class interest rates, lots of credits and homes to choose from, time to get moving.

My number is (865) 693-3232, answered 24 hours a day (just not always me. ;-)) and my my email is [email protected]. Let’s get started today and have you in a new home with payments probably less than what you may be paying now for rent.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is where you can see all of the greater Knoxville area’s homes for sale. Pick out a few and lets go look at them soon.

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Number of units recorded week of February 15th

All the Knoxville area Realtors I’ve been talking with during this past week are saying their showing activity is up and lots of traffic coming through Sunday open houses.

I was at a closing for a sale last Thursday on a home built by Saddlebrook Homes and the site agent said they had 8 more closings by the end of February.

Here’s what you can buy in Knoxville today in the various price ranges.

In the Northshore Drive/Choto area this lakefront beauty can be yours for $2,300,000 or so.

Beautiful lakefront home in knoxville tn, $2,300,000. Brokered by Realty Executives Associates, 531-2020

Elegant 6,000 square feet, 6 bedroom, 4 bath home near West Town Mall in west Knoxville. $699,900, brokered by Realty Executives Associates, 588-3232

All brick beauty with glowing hardood flooring and over 3,000 square feet. Priced to sell at $388,500. Brokered by Realty Executives Associates, 693-3232

Reduced $20,000, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and all on one level. $209,900. Brokered by Realty Executives Associates, 593-3232.

Oops, this one just sold in north Knoxville. listed for $129,900, 3 bedroom, 2 baths, 2 car garage. Brokered by Realty Executives Associates, 688-3232

Delightful rancher with big, level yard is just $99,900. Brokered by Realty Executives Associates 693-3232

401K take a hit lately? Real estate remains a solid investment. $49,900 and rented for $625 a month. Brokered by Realty Executives Associates, 693-3232

President Obama is signing the new stiumulus bill into law today. Part of that bill includes a new, $8,000 tax credit for new homebuyers this year that meet the guidelines.

The guidelines are pretty simple:

1. Maximum credit amount is increased to $8,000 or 10% of the purchase price; whichever is less.
2. This is a cool part. Homebuyers who don’t intend to buy a home until the end of 2009 can legally alter their withholding to save up money for a downpayment. But if they don’t buy they have to repay the tax underwithheld
3. An eligible property is any single family residence; including condos, co-ops,  or townhouses that will be used as your principal residence. Investment or second home properties do not qualify.
4. The new law allows taxpayers/homebuyers to treat qualified 2009 home purchases as a 2008 purchase so you can claim the credit on the return you file in 2009.
5. It’s refundable unlike the former ‘credit’. That means you can reduce or eliminate your income tax liability up to the $8,000 limit for the year of purchase. Any unused amount can be refunded to you in cash in the year following your qualifying home purchase.
6. An individual with adjusted gross income of not more than $75,000 or $150,000 on a joint return are eligible.
7. Although it’s called the “First Time Homebuyer” tax credit, as long as you have not owned a home in the past 3 years that was your principal residence you probably qualify.
8. Homebuyers who use state revenue bond financing, in Tennessee that would be the Tennessee Housing Development Authority (THDA) qualify under the new, $8,000 credit; they did not under the $7,500 program.
9. The $8,000 is a true credit and does not have to be repaid.
10. If you sell the house you buy and claim credit for during the 3 years following the purchase all of the credit is subject to recapture (you have to pay it back).
11. This program begins January 1, 2009 and ends December 31, 2009.
12. Any revisions are effective as of January 1, 2009.

There you have it; a true $8,000 credit if you buy a new home during 2009. There’s a huge selection of homes out there and most buyers are willing to deal (a lot) so let’s get started finding you one.

KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is the place to begin.

I’ve always been a big fan of statistics and like graphs and charts to display them in an easy to understand format.

Each of my listings gets a virtual tour from www. VisualTour.com and one of the cool things about Visual Tour is that they syndicate your listings out to other websites so you can give your sellers more exposure than normal.

They also keep a running total of how many views each tour gets on the various websites.

12724 Comblain Road, Knoxville, TN 37934

This is the Visual tour page view summary for one of my listings.

KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is my personal website where each listing is a “Featured Home”. The graph above shows 12724 Comblain has had it’s Visual Tour viewed 212 times from there.

Realtor.com is in the darker blue and it has recorded 19 visits from that link.

kaarmls.com is the Knoxville Area Association of Realtors public website; 34 views from there which includes the link from the listing brief on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

FrontDoor.com is House & Garden TV’s entry into the online real estate world; we scored 18 visits from their website.

The 62 “other” visits came from Google Base, Homes.com, The Real Estate Book, Yahoo Real Estate, Zillow.com, HomeSeekers.com, Trulia, HomePages.com, Prudential Properties VOW, and Vast.com.

Realtor.com, the official website of the National Association of Realtors offers some pretty good stats on your listings displayed there too.

page views from Realtor.com

These are the weekly numbers for one of my listings on Realtor.com. This shows that listing has been viewed over 1600 times in the past 3 and a half months.

I also take the monthly, quarterly, and yearly MLS data and make graphs with it and also information from the Knox County Register of Deeds Office and a statistical service that sends me market data.

Knox County Register of Deeds real estate transfers for a week.

This graph represent the numbers of real estate transfers in the various price ranges for 1 week.

total number of homes sold by Knoxville Area Association of Realtors members over the past 9 years.

This is the average days on market or time to sell for the Knoxville Area

Interesting that even though sales are down somewhat the average days on market has not changed significantly over the past 9 years.

This is the yearly number of building permits issued in Knox County, Tennessee

Number of building permits issued in Knox County since 2004

45% drop in 2008 compared to 2007 which demonstrates new home sales are way down in Knox County.

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