Knoxville Tennessee Real Estate Blog

Founded in 1786, Knoxville, Tennessee is a city rich in history and colorful citizens that contributed much to Knoxville and the surrounding areas. Many of Knoxville’s early citizens were buried in historic Old Gray Cemetery after their passing.

In what has became an annual event, the Lantern and Carriage Tour at Old Gray Cemetery near downtown offers fascinating vignettes into Knoxville’s past as reenactors portray famous and/or interesting Knoxvillians buried in Old Gray.

Old Gray Cemetery was dedicated in 1852 with the first burial on July 14, 1851. Old Gray is located about 12 blocks north of downtown Knoxville and is intended to be used as a peaceful park in addition to being a burial place.

My lovely wife Charlotte and I visited Old Gray yesterday for the 9th annual Lantern & Carriage Tour.

Here’s a short clip of one of the carriages, listen as the iron horseshoes ‘clip-clop’ along one of the roads that wind through this tree lined sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Below is Eliza Penelope McFaul who was visiting the county fair at Knoxville’s Chilhowee Park September 5, 1904, when a bullet from a shooting gallery struck her in the heart killing her instantly.

Her family, who lived near this cemetery on Baxter Avenue, sued the city for wrongful death. The suit ended up in the Tennessee State Supreme Court which ruled in favor of the McFauls.

They bought a new house with the proceeds. Here’s Ms McFaul relates the story of her ‘death’ (and life)

Eliza Penelope McFaul, Old Gray Cemetery Lantern & Carriage Tour reenactor

Laura Emma Thornburgh, portrayed below by Lois Campbell, was a  Great Smoky Mountain author and early reporter for the Knoxville News Sentinel.

She wrote the book she is holding titled: The Great Smoky Mountains. Ms Thornburgh and his mother lived in Gatlinburg for many years as she researched her book with the early citizens that lived in and around where the Great Smoky Mountain National Park is now located.

She was born February 8, 1885 and died March 28, 1973.

Laura Emma Thornburgh, Great Smoky Mountain author.

Charles Ducloux, portrayed by John Hitt, was a Confederate soldier in the Civil War, he returned to Knoxville a few years after the war was over and passed away on July 1, 1917.

Charles Ducloux, Confederate Soldier from Knoxville.

Colonel David Chapman below was born August 9, 1876, and died July 26, 1944.  Col. Chapman’s father, John Ellis Chapman, started a wholesale drug company in Knoxville and Col. Chapman served as president after his father’s death.

Colonel Chapman was heavily involved in the efforts by the State of Tennessee to acquire land that would later be donated to the federal government to become the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Because his first wife was already buried in Old Grey at the time of his death in 1944, his second wife had him buried at Highland Memorial Cemetery in the Bearden area.

Colonel David Chapman was born August 9, 1876, and died July 26, 1944.

World War II veterans buried in Old Grey were represented by a bugler who blew “Taps” on his bugle every 30 minutes of so. A stirring rendition that brought applause from all at each performance.

the bugler was representative of World War II veterans

Click here for a performance of “Taps” complete with 21 gun salute.

If you have an interest in what Knoxville was like many years ago, a visit to the annual Old Gray Cemetery Lantern & Carriage Tour is like turning a page back in time to revisit living history.

For current Knoxville area homes and history visit KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com

Old Gray Cemetery, Knoxville, TN

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For the week of September 27th the Knox County Registers of Deeds office is reporting 165 closed transactions. That’s a few more than our usual 150 average but still nothing to write home about.

Knoxville, TN weekly closed real estate sales report

• Last week, September 20th, we had 131 closed transactions
• September 13th had a whopping 269 for some still unknown reason
• September 6th reported 156
• And 136 for the week of August 30th

All this goes to show the average number of weekly transactions is around 150. It also shows the lower end homes are still dominating the market.

Here’s the percentages of the market for each category:

• Over 1 million dollars: 0%
• $500,000 to 1 million: 1.82%
• $300,000 to $500,000: 7.27%
• $200,000 to $300,000: 13.91%
• $150,000 to $200,000: 14.55%
• $100,000 to $150,000: 32.73%
• $50,000 to $100,000: 18.79%
• Under $50,000: 10.91%
  

The $100,000 to $150,000 price range was 32.73% of our total market this past week; that’s twice as many as any other two categories combined!

So what does that mean? It means that low end homes, typically bought by 1st time timers with about 35% of that number relying on the $8,000 federal tax credit for some or all of their down payment and closing cost money, are buying the highest numbers of homes.

You would think with lower end homes selling that the former owners of these home would be moving up into a bigger, more expensive home but that doesn’t seem to be happening.

Here’s where we are year to date compared to the past 4 years.

Year to date sales through August compared to the past 4 years.

Please feel free to comment or ask questions.

Also please feel free to visit KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com for lots more current information about the Knoxville, Tennessee real estate market.

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Started in 1992 by local physician Dr. Charlie Barnett, Flu Shot Saturday has become an annual tradition in the Knoxville area for thousands of local residents to get a free flu shot.

While the shots are technically ‘free’, donations to the Knoxville News-Sentinel’s Empty Stocking Fund which provides food and Christmas toys to thousands of Knoxville families who might otherwise have an unhappy holiday are encouraged and most flu shot recipients drop a generous donation into the box.

BlueCross BlueShield insurance of Tennessee partially funds the event along with the Knoxville News Sentinel. Local Rotary clubs also help support the event with traffic direction, getting paperwork filled out, and other tasks

Doctor Barnett and his group enlist the help of fellow Knoxville medical professionals to actually administer the vaccine at 5 Knoxville area high schools.

This morning  Charlotte and I were in line around 9:20 AM on a rainy Saturday morning along with hundreds of others at Farragut High School for a flu shot.

Flu Shot Saturday at Farragut High School, Knoxville, TN

Even though the lines were long they moved at a very good pace and we were in and out in less than 30 minutes. Great organization for such a large event but they’ve been doing it for 18 years now and have it down to a science.

I said hi to Dr. Charlie Barnett inside, he used to my parent’s physician. Charlie said crowds were huge this year and they were probably going to run out of vaccine in about an hour.

Inside Farragut High the lines continued.

The Knoxville News Sentinel was on hand accepting donations for their Empty Stocking Fund, a great community fund that provides food and gifts to needy local folks around Christmas time.

Donations are accepted but flu shots are free for all, no donation required.

My flu shot guy turned out to be the one between the two ladies with his hand raised.

curbside flu shots for those unable to walk inside

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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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Wow, what a difference a week can make. Last week we had the highest number of real estate transfers in Knox County for all of 2009; this week we’re below average with only 131.

Knoxville, Farragut, and Knox County real estate transfers

I have no explanation for why these Knox County numbers jump around so much. Usually closings are higher towards the end of the month because most buyers want to pay less prepaid interest for that month but September 20th and last week as well are in the middle of the month so that can’t be the case.

Whatever the reason, one thing remains true to form. The lower price ranges still dominate the sales figures. This week had 38 sales between $100,000 to $150,000; zero sales over 1 million dollars, and only 5 between $300,000 to $1,000,000. A little, ahem, pat on the back for me, I had one close for $322,500 last week.

I know I’ve said this several times but the clock is still ticking on that $8,000 tax credit 1st time Knoxville area home buyers can get. November 30th is the deadline and even though there is talk of extending it for several more months I think the odds are about 50-50 at best. So if you’re thinking of buying and you aren’t willing to roll the dice on possible losing up to $8,000 to help you get in a home you need to get busy and pick one out soon.

Mortgages these days are taking from 45 to 60 days to process and you would need to have your new home under contract by not later than the middle of October to ensure you will be able to collect that tax credit. Please call or mail me with any questions about how it works.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is the place to go to see all the Knoxville area Realtor listings as well as find great buyer tips, seller tips, and lots of area information including schools, things to do, weather, and much more.

BTW, here’s some great Knoxville, TN houses that all qualify for the $8,000 credit except 1, can you guess which one?

7510 Misty View Lane, $260,000

7412 Harvest Creek Lane, $229,900

1228 Saybrook Lane $189,900

2008 Antietam, $109,000

10021 Bellflower Way, $148,500

9709 Panama Road, $219,900

2700 Magnolia Pointe, $539,900

560 Allen Road, $355,000

In my opinion the seasonal decline in Knoxville area real estate sales has started.

Each year real estate sales typically starts going down towards the holiday season in November/December, usually bottoms in January/February and starts climbing again to a peak in May/June/July.

As the chart below indicates, the August 2009 Knoxville sales figures are lower than July. July is probably going to be the peak sales month for 2009 if history repeats itself.

Monthly real estate sales comparisons

I thought this year might be  different because of the $8,000 tax credit which has been responsible for a significant number of sales this year. This credit expires at the end of November and shows no signs of being extended.

However the actual sales numbers don’t seem to support that theory.

Bottom line for Knoxville, Tennessee area sellers; you need to take a new look at recent sales in your immediate area, what your competition is, and make sure your house is in tip top condition to appeal to a declining number of buyers.

You can find some great home selling tips at www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com as well as see all of Knoxville’s Realtor listings for sale.

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Point Clear, Alabama:

Big doings this week in the Knox County Tennessee real estate market; we had the largest number of closed transactions for the whole year so far, 269!

Closed real estate transactions for the week of September 13th

As usual most of the activity is in the $100,000 to $250,000 or so price ranges.

I wonder if a lot of this sudden upswing is first time buyers getting in before the fast approaching deadline for the $8,000 federal tax credit. This program ends on November 30th and you must have your transaction closed on or before that date to be eligible.

That means if you don’t have the home of your choice under contract by around October 15th your chances of qualifying will start to go down very quickly. The reason is that loans are taking much longer to process this year and it is very common for lenders to come back and require several addition pieces of documentation and verification during your loan process which adds delays.

We’re coming to you today from down in Point Clear, Alabama about 20 miles south of Mobile on Mobile Bay. The annual Tennessee Association of Realtors convention starts Tuesday and we decided to make a week of it.

We rented a great waterfront house about 3 miles from the convention center; here’s what sunrise looked like this morning.

Sunrise over Point Clear, Alabama

Point Clear is more appropriately “Point Cloudy” this morning but we hope it will clear off later today.

We’re driving down to Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama for a visit; the TAR convention doesn’t start until Tuesday.

www.Knoxville HomeCenter.com is the place to see all of Knoxville‘s Realtor listings for sale along with For Sale By Owners, bank owned homes, and foreclosures. Please send me an email or call if you see something of interest; I’m out of town but my buyer’s agents are still back in Knoxville and ready to help you find a new home.