Knoxville Tennessee Real Estate Blog

Here’s a marvelous North Hills home that has been extensively updated. Hardwood floors, fireplace, and lots of other great features.

See all the greater Knoxville area listings of homes and condos for sale at Knoxville Home Searcher.com, just click here and you’re there.

My apologies to my regular readers for not posting anything in the past 2 weeks but I’ve been pretty busy listing and selling houses which is a good thing.

The February sales numbers are now available from the Knoxville Area Association of Realtors for the greater Knoxville area and surrounding counties so let’s take a look and see how we did this past month.

February to past Februaries comparison

While this just past February was up 42 homes over 2009 the total volume is still way down compared to the past 7 years or so. According to these numbers we’re basically at around 2001-02 levels.

Here’s the latest Knox County sales figures for the week just past.

From the Knox County Register of Deeds

I count 92 transactions in the chart above. That’s down considerably from the 150 or so we were averaging in 2009 which dovetails with the sales figures above from the Realtor Association.

It appears this February is pretty much like January 2010; down from years past but up over last year a little. Modest good news for the Knoxville area real estate market.

Another way to calculate the current state of a real estate market is by the absorption rate. That means how long will it take to sell the current amount of homes for sale at the current sales rate.

Currently in the Knoxville Area Association of Realtor’s MLS (Multiple Listing Service) there are 4,021 single family homes and condos for sale. Based on the latest February sales figures for Knox County there were 369 closings. That means it would take 13.3 months at the current sales levels to sell all 4,021 listings assuming no new ones came on the market.

Those figures tell me we’re still in a very strong buyer’s market in the greater Knoxville, Tennessee area.

Median sales price is the middle of the price range, half were more, half were less.

If anyone is thinking of buying this year let me remind you the $8,000 federal tax credit expires at the end of April 2010 and most likely WILL NOT be renewed this time. Here’s some FAQ about how it works, please call or email me with any additional questions or to get started buying your own home.

You do have until the end of April to have your selected home under contract and then an additional 60 days beyond that to get it closed. Some active duty military personnel have more time under special circumstances; I can help with that as well.

See all the greater Knoxville area listings of homes and condos for sale at Knoxville Home Searcher.com

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• Knoxville Real Estate Transfers for the week of February 28, 2010 (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)
• What’s the current state of the Knoxville, TN real estate market? (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)
• Knoxville, Tennessee real estate sales over the past 11 years (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)
• Crystal ball gazings for the Knoxville, Tenenssee real estate market. (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)
• Knoxville, TN real estate sales for the week of November 22nd (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)
• Knox County Register of Deeds Real Estate Transfers for the week of January 17th (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)
• Knoxville, Tennessee real estate transfers – week of Feb. 5, 2010 (knoxvilletennesseerealestateblog.com)

Great investment property and/or for UT students. 1 two BR up and 1 One BR down, Reduced to $79,950!

January is rapidly drawing to a close and we now have the 3rd real estate transfer report from the Knox County Register of Deeds available.

I counted 121 transfers for the past week. That’s a bit below the 150 average we had in 2009 but I’m discounting some of that because of the time of year. We’ll see if it picks up or now as we get close to spring and better weather for both sellers and buyers.

Knox County Tennessee real estate sales recorded

To start your home selling year off right here’s some home selling tips from real estate experts:

The Louisville, Kentucky Association of Realtors has a great video with more selling tips.

And WKMB in Kansas City has 9 great tips to help your home sell.

If you have a home you’re thinking of selling in 2010 please give me a call or email and ask for a free copy of my FREE ebook: “450 Ideas to help your home seller faster”. This 50+ page book is chock full of advice that will get your home sold and usually for more money than you would have gotten without doing some of the things suggested.

Visit www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com for more selling tips and to see all the greater Knoxville area listings of homes, condos, and land for sale.

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Wow, we’re experiencing colder than normal weather in Knoxville, TN this week; it’s been below freezing for over a week now.

That’s a bit unusual for this area but it seems the whole United States has been experiencing below normal temperatures over the past few days. It’s supposed to get above freezing today with highs in the 50s toward the end of this week; I’m ready for some warmer (relatively) weather.

It appears from the weather map below that a high pressure system from the Gulf Coast and a low pressure system from Canada and further north are colliding over Knoxville right now. I’m pulling for the high to win.

US weather map

Although the air temperature is cold, the Knoxville real estate market is hot for buyers right now. Lots of homes for sale, motivated sellers, low interest rates, AND an $8,000 tax credit for most buyers.

Visit www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com to pick one out and call me to go take a look at it.

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I counted the property transfers published by the Knox County Register of Deeds for the previous week and found 186 which is a little above the 150 or so average we’ve had for all of 2009 so far.

It seems the extension of the homebuyers tax credit is continuing to drive the lower end of our market (the $200,000 and under price points) and the upper end remains sluggish.

Knox County TN closed transactions

I’ve been reading lots of encouraging news about real estate markets all across the county and how they’re seeing increases in sales. Our market has shown one encouraging sign in the past 2 months in that sales have remained high instead of taking their usual seasonal downturn in the fall and winter months.

Let’s hope that trend continues, in past recessions real estate has been the force that drove the recovery.

Here’s some more statistical data from the National Association of Realtor’s research department.

Tennessee building permits

As you can see from the huge drop off in building permits new construction is still in deep trouble.

What drives local supply and demand

And finally how Knoxville is doing relative to the rest of Tennessee

Comparing Knoxville sales to U.S. sales

Visit www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com to see all of Knoxville’s homes for sale.

Please feel free to comment or ask any real estate related question you may have.

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By now most have probably heard that Congress passed an extention of the $8,000 tax credit for people who buy a home and have not owned one in the past 3 years. Most call it the “first time buyers’ credit even if that is not entirely accurage.

Here’s a list of the relevant changes in the extension that were not all present in the original one.

• Extends the deadlines for purchasing and closing on a home.
• Creates a credit for existing homeowners who buy a new principal residence.
• Raises the income limits for those claiming the credit.

Here’s a few common questions people have had:

Question: If I’ve already purchased a home in 2009 can I apply for the credit now or do I have to wait until I file my 2009 tax return?

Answer: You have two choices; you can either file an amended return for 2008 or just wait until 2009 and claim it then.

Question: I’m in the process of buying right now but have not closed on the purchase. Can I get that credit now so I can use it for a down payment?

Answer: Nope, sorry, you have to actually own the home (have closed) before you can qualify for the credit. However if you live in the state of Tennessee we have a solution for that problem. Our state mortgage funding agency, the Tennessee Housing Development Authority (THDA) will make you a second mortgage of up to $8,000 that you have to qualify for in addition to your new first mortgage which can give you the cash you need to use for a down payment now. You can buy your house, collect the $8,000 tax credit, and then payoff the second mortgage from THDA. I suspect other states have similar programs.

Question: Will I ever have to pay back any of the $8,000?

Answer: Not in most circumstances, there is one exception however. If the home you buy and claim the tax credit on stops being your principal residence anytime within 36 months (3 years) of the date of purchase you would then be required to repay whatever portion of the credit you had collected.

Question: I noticed the extension provides that existing homeowners can also claim a tax credit if they buy a replacement home anytime after November 6th, 2009. I’ve tried to sell mine and can’t so we rented it. Could I still qualify for the $6,500 credit?

Answer: Yes you can. Existing homeowners do not actually have to sell their current home in order to qualify for their credit. The only requirements are that the house you buy be your new principal residence and that your former residence had been your principal residence for any 5 of the past 8 years.

Please call or email with any more homebuying questions.

Browse all of the homes for sale in the greater Knoxville area at www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com

Tennessee is a state with lots of scenic beauty and lots of outdoor recreational activities. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has created an awesome lake and river system for boaters, fishermen, and all sort of water sports. East Tennessee, the part I live in, is home to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park with over 900 miles of hiking trails, campgrounds, and beautiful mountain scenery.

Another little known and used part of Tennessee outdoors is the huge amount of state park, scenic areas, and protected natural areas dotted all over.

I visited one I had never been to today; Stinging Fork Falls Natural Area near Spring City which is about 50 miles south of Knoxville.

Parking area at Stinging Fork Falls near Knoxville, Tennessee

This state natural area is located on top of the Cumberland Plateau system which covers parts of 5 states, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, and northern Alabama & Georgia.

According to the website above Stinging Fork Falls is a 783-acre natural area. It is named for the 30-foot waterfall located within the Stinging Fork gorge. The creek flows over the fan shaped falls, then quickly slips through chutes, and tumbles over cascades below the falls.

topo map of stinging fork fall natural area near Knoxville, TN

It’s only about a mile to Stinging Fork Falls but to get to actually see them you have to climb down inside a 160 feet gorge because the dense brush and trees hides the creek that feeds the falls. But it’s worth the walk, that’s one of the more picturesque waterfalls I’ve seen.

The falls spills into a large, deep pool. I’m betting some skinny dipping has gone on here; this place is pretty isolated and hard to get to.

Unfortunately once you climb down a 160 foot gorge the only way back is UP. It’s pretty steep coming and going but the state has provided a pretty good trail with some steps at the steeper parts but I would still only recommend it to those is pretty good physical condition. I was breathing pretty hard when I came over the top.

Stinging Fork Creek cascades over rock formations.

This is a great place to visit if you want to get away from crowds and most everything else. We were there about 2 hours and did not see a single other person; just the sounds of birds, the wind, and the rushing water.

If you love year round out door activities as much as I do, then maybe you need to come visit us in East Tennessee. We have plenty to do for all interests and all seasons.

You might even like it enough to want to move here permenently. Check our areas housing out here: www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com

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It’s the week before Thanksgiving, lets see if the Knoxville area real estate market has any real estate thanks to give.

The Knox County Register of Deeds reports 117 closed transactions in the past week. That about 30 less than average. However the Knoxville Area Association of Realtor’s October sales figures show a 14.5% in October 2009 versus October 2008, go figure.

Here’s the past week’s stats broken down by price points.

Knox County Real Estate transactions recorded

The lower price points are still dominant, there are just less of them.

The chart below tracks the past 5 years sales volume through October 2009, the latest available data.

Knoxville area real estate sales

So far this year sales are bucking the seasonal downturn and remaining steady. This is almost certainly driven, at least in part, by the $8,000 tax credit for new homebuyers. Now that it’s been extended to sellers who then buy, it will be interesting to see if it drives more sales in the upper price points.

Below is a comparison of Knoxville area sales for the 3rd quarters (July, August, Sept.) broken down by bedrooms; 2 or fewer, 3, and 4 or more.

11 year comparison of average sales prices by bedroom size

For buyers financing remains a high hurdle. Lenders are demanding more documentation than ever before in addition to squeaky clean credit. Credit markets are in a very volatile state right now; some lenders have even raised their credit score requirements after approving loans based on the former good scores.

However, don’t let any negative talk discourage you from buying if now is the right time for you to buy. There are mortgage loans available at very attractive interest rates and sellers are more flexible than they were last year.

www.KnoxvilleHomeCenter.com is the place to look at all of the Knoxville area real estate listings for sale.

Please feel free to ask any real estate questions you have or call me to go see some homes for sale.

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