Today's real estate market has changed and the media does a wonderful job of telling us how awful it is.  However, if you remove states like Nevada, California, and Florida, the current market is really not that bad.  In fact overall, we are experiencing the 3rd best real estate market in history.  In Knoxville, TN and surrounding areas, the market is strong and healthy.  The market currently has a large inventory with 13,373 houses and condos active on the market.  So what exactly does this mean to you?  Well if you are thinking about buying a house in the Knoxville or surrounding area, this is great news.  Interest rates are still low and you have higher inventory, means that you have a large selection of houses to choose from.  Additionally, because Knoxville has experienced a nice h... 09/14/2008

Fall oficially begins September 22nd in east Tennessee and there's always a lineup of great outdoor activities to get you outside to enjoy the cool air and colorful leaves. The Obed Wild & Scenic River is pretty much the same way now as it was in the late 1700s when the first white settlers walked along the banks. Great scenery, kayyaking, tubing, fishing, and hiking. 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... 09/07/2008

Here's a collection of truly hard to understand traffic signs. I'm sure some of them make perfect sense to area residents but if happen to just be passing through.................watch it.   For instance, does the sign below mean you can't make a left turn unless there are no planes in sight? Only very small planes are landing? Photo credit flickr "Aviation" is actually Aviation Street and if a very light amount of cars are on it; you're cleared for a left turn. Roger that tower, turning left now.   This sign below gives instructions on how to make a "Michigan Left" turn..........say what? What the heck is that all about? Photo credit: flickr It seems to me that going straight ahead here and then making your left turn onto the northbound street would be much simpler than the convolution... 09/05/2008

and This week Shoney's of Knoxville, Inc, in conjunction with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children will be hosting a FREE Photo ID event at several metro-Knoxville area locations. This is a great opportunity to collect vital information such as a color photo, fingerprints, height, weight, date of birth, and a medical profile collected together for easy parental access in the event you child is ever reported missing! If you would like more information, you can contact: Annie LaLonde Shoney’s of Knoxville, Inc. Marketing and Advertising Director 9720 Parkside Drive Knoxville, TN 37922 865-690-6331 Office 865-740-5652 Direct 865-690-6334 Fax annie@shoneysknox.com This event has three days scheduled in August! There will also be appearances by the Knoxville Police Departm... 08/20/2008

Home Sales Report Beginning 04/01/2008, Ending 06/30/2008 Single-Family Unit Sales by Price Bedrooms Other Statistics Price 2- 3 4+ Condos Sold Residential Active Condos Active Totals 439 1,966 714 403 20,165 2,855 Average Price (in thousands $) 88.7 170.1 291.8 165.0 255.2 218.0 Median Price (in thousands $) 78.5 149.0 250.0 144.5 189.9 185.0 Sum Price (in thousands $) 38,927.0 334,483.0 208,337.6 66,479.7 5,146,899.6 622,515.7 $0 - $19,999 25 9 2 0 64 0 $20,000 - $29,999 34 19 5 1 121 0 $30,000 - $39,999 35 42 4 1 264 2 $40,000 - $49,999 22 32 2 2 306 6 $50,000 - $59,999 43 37 4 1 372 10 $60,000 - $69,999 38 53 6 7 507 22 $70,000 - $79,999 26 76 8 14 615 36 $80,000 - $89,999 48 88 5 4 659 79 $90,000 - $99,999 35 78 14 25 655 87 $100,000 - $119,999 36 195 18 74 1,239 254 $120,000 - $13... 08/16/2008

In May of 2007 as an NAR Director I was pleased to be able to vote in support of NAR forming a national, federal credit union for us. I'm happy to report that the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) which oversees federally chartered credit unions, has given approval to file a charter. The Realtor Federal Credit Union is projected to be up and running by the end of 2008. You can read all about it at www.Realtor.org 08/15/2008

Home Sales Report Beginning 07/01/2008, Ending 07/31/2008 Single-Family Unit Sales by Price Bedrooms Other Statistics Price 2- 3 4+ Condos Sold Residential Active Condos Active Totals 166 628 278 127 15,138 2,248 Average Price (in thousands $) 146.1 162.4 307.7 178.2 275.0 221.4 Median Price (in thousands $) 74.5 146.2 262.5 160.0 194.9 189.9 Sum Price (in thousands $) 24,246.9 102,015.6 85,550.6 22,635.7 4,163,005.4 497,643.3 $0 - $19,999 11 2 0 0 34 0 $20,000 - $29,999 10 16 1 0 68 0 $30,000 - $39,999 13 9 0 0 174 0 $40,000 - $49,999 9 13 2 0 196 2 $50,000 - $59,999 15 10 3 2 275 9 $60,000 - $69,999 17 15 0 2 344 8 $70,000 - $79,999 16 18 1 1 448 34 $80,000 - $89,999 7 29 3 4 455 59 $90,000 - $99,999 10 32 5 4 524 52 $100,000 - $119,999 17 57 5 17 890 185 $120,000 - $139,999 13 85 9 1... 08/15/2008

Knoxville as a city is heavily influenced by it proximity to the Great Smokey Mountains with its rich Appalachian culture. Knoxville, because it is home to the University of Tennessee, is also heavily influenced by the diverse intellectual and artistic curiosity that characterizes any major university. The convergence of these influences have given rise to a number of distinctively diverse hot spots around town. One of the most distinctive of these is the World Grotto! World Grotto is located at 16 Market Square in Knoxville (click HERE for a map). They are open: Tueday thru Wednesday 5:00 PM until 1:00 AM, Thursday thru Friday 5:00 PM until 3:00 AM, Saturday 8:00 PM thru 3:00 AM, and Sunday varies. This unique Knoxville hot spot is characterized by an art gallery and marketplace on the... 08/13/2008

Okay, we all know that the economy isn't doing so well right now.  The bad blairs from our televisions every minute--great ratings for them!  But is all the news accurate and is it keeping buyers from buying and sellers from selling?  I say yes.  The media has created a fear--I think an unrealistic fear.  Yes, in response to a failing economy, it may be a good idea to invest more conservatively and wait to sell a home so you don't take a bath on any equity you may have.  Wallets are tightening across the country, but, banks still have money to loan home buyers!  The economy does two things--it gets stronger or it gets weaker.  Time here is the variable.  And timing is the key.  Remember, each market is different-from state to state, city to city.  Do your homework by using a Realtor who... 08/12/2008

Intrepid members of the Dick Biddle Hiking Club have set a new tree packing record by getting 3 members into "Old Ben" a giant, hollow Poplar growing along the "Boogerman Trail" in the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park 08/12/2008

Hello all, I'm not going to share much about Real Estate http://marykidwellhomes.com/ right now but about fun with your family.  Some days I'm going nuts trying to work from home with kids around (and sometimes neighbors) all day, trying to schedule showings, give feedback, talk to clients, post ads, etc.  Other days, I relish in the fact that I have the flexibility to sometimes just take most of a day and do fun things with my kids. I just wanted to share that I went biking on the 3rd Creek Greenway trail with my kids (8 and 10) and we had a blast.  It is a fairly easy trail with a few hills and goes for 4.5 miles.  However, we only biked from Tyson Park to the Forest Hills neighborhood (about 6 miles there and back) and stopped for lunch at Long's Drug's.  Katie and Patrick love to ge... 08/05/2008

Thursday, August 7th, is an election day in Knox County and Knoxville, Tennessee. There are actually several elections combined into one. We electing county officers, city officers, and there's a federal primary election for Congressmen and Senators as well as some local charter issue, and a statewide judicial retention vote. Early voting closed last week with a record 21, 211 ballots cast. This Thursday I'm volunteering to work at the polls during the election; I've been assigned as a machine operator at Bearden High School so if you vote there I may be the guy that directs you to a voting machine to cast your ballot. Here's some tips to make your trip to the polls go smoother: Make sure you have your voter registration card. It makes the process of looking you up go much faster and sm... 08/05/2008

It's almost time for back to school purchases in Tennessee. To make things more bearable for parents, the state of Tennessee holds an annual sales tax holiday for school supplies and clothing. The sales tax holiday starts one minute after midnight Friday, August 1, and runs through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, August 3. Here's what qualifies: Most any clothing item priced under $100. No jewelry or sporting goods. You can use the layaway if you make final payment during the sales tax holiday period or put something that qualifies into layaway during that period and pay for it later. Schools supplies like binders, backpacks, pens, pencils, art supplies, etc. are included but referance books (do they still sell encyclopedias?) and computer peripherials like printers and CDs are NOT included. Compute... 07/29/2008

"Consumers tell us if they don't see multiple photos on a listing, they doubt the credibility of the Realtor." Lorna Borenstein, president of Move Inc. Those are very strong words. Do you have lots of photos on your listings? Even the ugly ones? Do you think potential buyers won't see the property once they get there? Consumers want to see lots of people when they look at your listings and it's in our best interests (not to mention our sellers) to deliver them. Lots of companies like Move, Zillow, Trulia, and others, study consumer viewing habits on their websites and they've found that listings without photos only get about 25% of the 'click throughs' to other information about that listing. So to get your listings really looked at by potential buyers (and sellers, yeah, they look at l... 07/28/2008

Congress has passed H.R. 3221, the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 and President Bush is expected to sign it soon. One of the immediate provisions is a $7,500 TAX CREDIT for homebuyers that have not owned a home that was their principal residence in the past 3 years. To qualify, buyers must actually close on the sale of the home on or after April 9, 2008 and before July 1, 2009. And, unlike some tax credits, this $7,500 must be repaid at the rate of $500 per month over the next 15 years so it's actually more of an interest free loan than an actual credit. Both new and resale houses and condos qualify as long as the homebuyers use it for their principal residence and they have not owned a house in the past 3 years. The National Association of Home Builders have some great FAQs ... 07/28/2008

For the week of July 25th the Knox County Register of Deed's office is reporting 229 recently closed real estate transactions. The breakdown goes as follows: More than $1,000,000           2 closed sales $500,000 to $1,000,000       11 $300,000 to $500,000          13 $200,000 to $300,000          42 $150,000 to $200,000          44 $100,000 to $150,000          47 $50,000   to $100,000          36 Under $50,000                     34 Total closed transactions      229 This Fountain City charmer sold for $170,500. 7 acres, pool, tennis court, and 13,900 square feet of living area, sale price $600,000 This beautiful, brand new two story closed at $251,000 for some builder paid closing costs. I also found this great sign from one of our local Realtors It is still very much a buyer's marke... 07/28/2008

I posted this blog on the Real Tour Vison blogs today.  I enjoy my association with Real Tour Vision, I've found it very helpful and I want to share it with others, this not only helps RTV, but also by sharing this will obviously help me. I hope, when you read this, maybe you can share an experience you've had with Real Tour Vision or one of our dealers.  I'm wanting both good and bad experiences, if any, it can only help make us better This has been said, but in some fashion, and a whole bunch of times. Sometimes somehow someone doesn’t get the message and have to do with out.  Like many of the dealers’ web sites, my web site (http://www.knoxtours.net) receives all of our blogs,  I want my customers, sometimes as scarce as they are, to read them.  To understand who is backing us up, wh... 07/25/2008

I got a flyer last week from our Knoxville TVA Employees Credit Union (TVA stands for Tennessee Valley Authority, the guys that run the dams and power plants around here) headlined "100% Financing Available" so naturally it caught my eye. Reading on it said it was a 2 year ARM, adjusted 1% every two years with a cap of 8% over the starting rate. Years 1 and 2 have a 4.875% rate Years 2 and 3 goes up to 5.875% Years 5 and 6 goes up to 6.865% It also has a maximum cap of 8% over the starting rate so the most it could ever be in this scenario is 12.875% To be a credit union member all you have to do is open a savings account and reside in one the counties they have a branch in; The greater Knoxville area and Knox County certainly qualifies. You can open a savings account for as little as $... 07/24/2008

First up is the annual "Shakespeare on the Square"on the downtown Market Square Mall. All performances are free but donations are accepted. The first play is "Love's Labors Lost on July 17, 19, 25, 27, & 31st at 7:00 pm nightly. This is a funny play about the King of Navarre and his 3 most loyal friends who vow to shut themselves away from the world for 3 years to study. However the Princess of France and 3 of her most beautiful ladies in waiting take their own vow to interrupt the King's studies. No bets on who wins. Next is the "Merchant of Venice" July 18, 20, 24, 26; August 1, 2, 7, 9, 15, 17 and also at 7:00 pm nightly. Merchant is one of Shakespeare's most famous plays and is about green racism, and the abuse of power (could be about politics). The courtroom scene where the lender... 07/24/2008

I've always been big on taking good care of the people who help me pay my bills. I can tell you stories about virtual tour company owners who were too busy not paying attention to the important people.  Taking care of my clients, to me, has always been an investment in my business, its payed off a few times, not always big but another customer who might mention Knoxtours.net someplace productive for me.  I've gotten a couple referrals here in Knoxville and even a few down in the Sevierville, TN area (Pigeon Forge) the biggest tourist area in the South East! I really enjoy going to the log cabins (rental properties). Shooting my pictures and my virtual tours, the places and scenery are always so awesome!  I'm feeling that pretty soon, that when all this trouble with the real estate housi... 07/22/2008