Knoxville Tennessee Real Estate Blog

Beginning January 1st of 2009 the current 2 out of 5 tax rule will change.

Currently if you’ve lived in your Knoxville or Farragut, Tennessee home as your principal residence for any 2, doesn’t have to be consecutive years, just cumulative, of the previous 5 years you can exclude up to $500,000 of gain if married filing jointly and $250,000 if single.

The new rule is that if you used the property first as something other than a principal residence (such as a vacation home or investment), that you must pro-rate the gain so that some is taxable and some is tax free.

If you have a Knox County property that has experienced a gain in value, talk to your CPA before January 2009. There are actions you can take now to preserve the full tax free gain exclusion.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is a great place to look for a new home and get valuable buying & selling tips.

This past Saturday, September 27th, was my church’s annual community carnival where we invite all the local folks to come by our church for an exciting and free afternoon of family fun.

This year I believe was our biggest event ever. Everything is FREE! We had a giant blow up slide, moon walk, pony rides, a cake walk, bingo, games, door prizes, and the Knox County Sheriff’s Department joined in by landing one of their helicopters in the back yard along with the bomb squads robot. We served 600 hot dogs,  and countless numbers of soft drinks, roasted peanuts, popcorn and cotton candy along with other treats.

I’m co-chairman of our kitchen committee so I was pretty busy all afternoon fixing hot dogs but the times I went out for a break and to see what was going on outside it looked like a pretty huge crowd. I’m not too good at estimating crowd sizes but I would guess there were well over a thousand people in attendance.

This is the Knox County Sheriff’s Department bomb squad robot who investigates suspicious packages and suspected bomb threats. Thank goodness he doesn’t get much use. Good to know he’s available when needed though.

These are the lines for cotton candy, soft drinks, and popcorn; they stayed very busy all afternoon.

Our church does this free annual event as part of our community outreach ministry.

Any newcomers to the Knoxville/Powell area are invited to visit with us for worship services and we would love to talk with you about becoming a member and joining our church family.

You’ll find Beaver Creek a warm, friendly church whose mission is to:

• Glorify God in word and deed
• Witness near and far to God’s love in Jesus Christ
• Lead others to faith in Jesus Christ and discipleship in the church
• Help one another grow in faith and experience Christian fellowship
• Support one another in the stages of life
• Cooperate with others in common concerns

God bless.

Before examining the latest Knoxville area real estate sales data I want to touch briefly on some misconceptions potential buyers may have about the local market.

There is an overload of negative economic news floating around out there and a lot of it is tied directly to the housing market.

Unfortunately the media tends to focus on markets that have been hit the hardest because their numbers make the most attention grabbing headlines.

But simply because the southern California and Florida real estate markets are in the dumps doesn’t mean the same is true in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Buyers need to look at their own personal situations which is much more relevant to them than whatever they’re reading or hearing from the news.

If buyers live in an area like Knoxville with good economic vitality, buying a home now, or trading up, is no more risky now than it was five years ago.

Consider the median Knoxville sales price graph above. Median price is simply the middle price meaning half the sales were above the median or middle price, and half were below.

Here’s the hard numbers back to 2005.

In August of 2008 our median sales price for a 3 bedroom home in Knoxville was $149,000 and the average sales price was $167,400.  Total single family units closed was 1,140.

August 2007 the median 3 bedroom home in Knoxville sold for $158,000 (remember, 1/2 above, 1/2 below) and average sales price was $176,600. Total units sold was 1,727

In 2006 the median was $149,000 with an average price of $167,000. Total units was 1,798.

Back in 2005, Knoxville’s median price was $137,000 for a typical 3 bedroom home, the average was $153,700 and total units sold was 1,873.

Media types looking for bad news to report could calculate from these figures that August 2008 sales versus August 2007 have dropped 33.8% which they have.

But as the average sales price per square foot above shows, Knoxville prices have continued their slow, steady climb which is one of the factors that makes buying a Knoxville area home a good investment. And, unlike stocks and bonds, it’s an investment you can live in with your family.

For most buyers personally, if you have a job and fairly good credit, buying a new home or trading up to a larger one is no more risky right now than it was five years or so ago.

Interest rates are once again below 6% for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage, there is a very plentiful supply of homes for sale, and all my buyers so far this year have been very, very happy with their new home purchase.

Give me a call at (865) 693-3232 or email [email protected] and let’s talk about how you can own your own Knoxville area home.

Visit my website at www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com to view all the Knoxville area homes for sale.

Here’s my latest listing; a beautiful, next to new, 3 or 4 bedroom home in the Gibbs area of east Knox County.

Enjoy the down-home values of this delightful 3 or 4 bedroom, 2+ bath, two story in fine condition enhanced by mountain view. Lovely details in this welcoming residence include hardwood flooring, a rocking chair front porch, and a cozy fireplace. A very comfortable lifestyle and next to new!

Relax in front of your cozy fireplace while winter winds whistle outside.

Large, eat in kitchen with center island and pantry. Glowing hardwood flooring through the main level.

This beautiful home is priced $5,000 below a 2007 appraisal and is move in ready for you and your family for $199,700.

See more beautiful Knoxville area homes at www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com

It’s almost fall in east Tennessee (official start date, September 22nd) but the fall feeling is already in the air; cool mornings, leaves starting to show color, and of course football has already started.

Fall in east Tennessee is always cool with lots of fun things to do. Looking most any direction in the great Knoxville area will bring you to some colorful scenery. This photo below is the Obed Scenic River in the Catoosa Wildlife Management Area near Knoxville. A great tubing spot.

Up north of Knoxville at Norris Dam State Park you can take a color cruise on Norris Lake from October 18th through the 30th. 4 one hour trips a day with a ranger who narrates. We’ve been before and it’s a great trip to 6 bucks a person.

Next Saturday, September 13th, there’s a free wildflower hike at the University of Tennessee Arboretum between Knoxville and Oak Ridge (901 S. Illinois Avenue, Highway 62). Naturalist Kris Light will lead and narrate.

For the more adventurous, the local Sierra Club chapter will sponsor an overnight hike over in the Cataloochee Valley section of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It starts at the Palmer Creek Trailhead and along the Balsam Mountain Trail to the Laurel Gap Trail Shelter. Return the next day along the Mount Sterling Ridge, Pretty Hollow, and the Palmer Creek Trails.

 

 Mouse Creek Falls in the Cataloochee Valley section of GSMNP

The Smoky Mountain Hiking Club will coordinate these hikes:

• September 20th, Mt. Leconte via Rainbow Falls and Bull Head Trails
• September 24th, Laurel Snow Pocket Wilderness
• September 27th, Mouse Creek Falls (pictured above) and Brakeshoe Springs (easy hike)
• September 28th, Rowans Creek

October 18-19 is Fall Colors Weekend at Fall Creek Falls State park featuring bike tours, guided tours of the park, and slide shows.  For the adventerous October 25th is Wild Foods Day and filed trips will identify and show you how to prepare wild meats and breads.

Right here in Knoxville, Ijams Nature Center in south Knoxville is always a cool place to visit and take the entire family. Some of their fall activities include:

• Organic gardening basics at 7:00 pm, September 16th.
• Nature program for pre-schoolers at 10:00 am September 18th & 20th.
• Fish program for pre-schoolers 10:00 am September 25th & 27th, along with several other pre-schooler programs.
• And of course Ijams has great walking trails to just enjoy the wildlife and scenery

River Sports Outfitters will sponsor some greenway bike rides on Tuesdays and Thurdays. Free and open to all levels of riders (the local greenways are all pretty level). Bring your own bike or rentals are available for 10 bucks.

That’s only a sampling of the many fun and educational things to do this fall in the greater Knoxville, Tennessee area. Fall is a great time of year to be in east Tennessee whether you live here or just come for a visit.

Visit www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com to see some great Knoxville area homes for sale just in case you’re in the market. 😉