Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

It's that time of the week again - Foreclosure Watch time. Looks like you guys have been out snapping these babies up, as pendings and closings are up, and average days on market is way down.

So without further ado, here are the numbers and clicky links you came here for -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 4/30/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 154
Average Asking Price: $132,605
Median Asking Price: $88,950
Most Expensive New Listing: 4 BR, 3 BA, approx 3400 sq ft in Summer Rose in Fountain City
Least Expensive New Listing: 1 BR, 1 BA, approx 700 sq ft in East Knox
New Honorable Mention: 4 BR, 3 1/2 BA, approx 3000 sq ft in Powell

Current Pending Sales -106
Average Asking Price - $94,927
Median Asking Price - $79,900

Closed Sales April 16, 2008-April 22, 2008 - 9
Average Asking Price - $143,611
Average Sales Price - $142,933
Median Sales Price - $82,000
Average Days on Market - 25




*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/30/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.


If you have any questions about any of these properties, feel free to drop me a line.

As always, I'd love to hear your observations on this week's numbers. Any ideas about I could improve Foreclosure Watch are equally welcome. You can leave both in the comments below.

Don't miss a single Foreclosure Watch update - subscribe to All Around K-Town today!

First Friday 411

You really should stop by Instaknox if you haven't already. It's kind of like Knoxville's very own Twitter, and sometimes you can come across cool stuff like local artist's Steve Lareau's website, KnoxvilleFirstFriday.com. From Steve's message on Instaknox:

First Friday info around here has been impossible to find. Web sites for the different galleries sometimes aren’t updated, even the web site for First Friday by the market square district has zero information. Being an artist, it’s frustrating not to be able to find out who even participates, aside from a few places on Market Square...

...Eventually, [the website will] have a place for local artists to be listed, as well as the different galleries that participate.

The website is still in its infancy, but it looks like it could turn into a very valuable tool for those of you who actually get Friday nights off to do fun stuff.

Of Builders and Baristas

While the weekly poll is showing that most of you think I should go work at Starbucks to offset my rising gas costs, I'm thinking out of work East Tennessee builders might have already filled all the vacant positions. Via Property Scope:

The Knoxville research firm [The Market Edge] recently issued its 1Q numbers for residential building permits, and the comparison with the first quarter of 2007 is grim:

Knox County -- down 58 percent
Loudon County -- down 21 percent
Anderson County -- down 63 percent
Blount County -- down 48 percent
Sevier County -- down 40 percent.

Don't eat all the biscotti before I get there, boys.

Neighborhood of the Week: West Hills

We're still in West Knoxville this week looking at a neighborhood that I look at a lot, seeing as how it's located right across Kingston Pike from my office: West Hills.

West Hills is a lovely mid-century community which is bounded by Kingston Pike to the South, Middlebrook Pike to the North, and spreads roughly from just east of Gallaher View to just west of Papermill.

The West Hills Community Association has been alive and kickin' for over 30 years and has a very strong history of neighborhood activism. From The West Hills Community Association's website:

In 1964 a fledgling organization came to an agreement with Morgan Shubert to prevent construction of apartments in West Hills. In June of that year,1964 a founding meeting was held to re-establish an enduring organization. The meeting was attended by 34 families, which agreed to the creation of the new organization, and charged Dr. Richard Briley to draft a letter soliciting members.

The original officers (J.E. Brown, President, Ken Monty, Jamie Kinsey, and Richard Briley, as VP, secretary, and treasurer respectively) immediately opposed plans for a trailer park, south of Kingston Pike, in an area zoned commercial and adjacent to what would become West Town Mall...

...By the end of 1964, 136 families were dues paying members, and issues for action abounded. It was obvious that the high school was inadequate, and the group threw its vigorous support behind a school-bond construction plan for a new Bearden High. Members stepped forward to pitch in on different concerns. B.Ray Thompson chaired a steering committe to establish a schedule of "Aims and Devices:. Lynn Craig met with KUB regarding lights and water, Paul Haas initiated a study to create a park for the new community; Brown and Monty tackled the problems of school sidewalks, traffic, and the fact that bus service from downtown did not extend all the West to West Hills.

Its hard to believe now that, the city mentally did not exist beyond Northshore Drive and Kingston Pike.

Just across from West Town Mall and only moments from I-40, West Hills is very conveniently located for shopping and commuting. Throw in the West Hills YMCA and West Hills Park and you start to understand why this neighborhood is such a desirable place to call home.

Here's West Hills by the numbers-

West Hills*

Current On-Market Listings - 13
Average Asking Price: $226,015
Median Asking Price: $210,000
Most Expensive: $459,900 (5 BR, 3 1/2 BA, approx 6500 sq ft)
Least Expensive: $149,900 (3 BR, 1 1/2 BA, approx 1300 sq ft)

Current Pending Sales -6
Average Asking Price: $181,600
Median Asking Price: $171,200

Closed Sales - Q1 2007 - 9
Average Sales Price - $188,778
Median Sales Price - $189,000
Average Days on Market - 77

Closed Sales - Q1 2008 - 5
Average Sales Price - $187,060
Median Sales Price - $199,900
Average Days on Market - 75

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/28/08 for West Hills proper and does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos or PUDS.

If you want any more information about any of these properties, just give me a shout.

Thanks to Casey Peters for the inspiration for this week's NOTW! Want to aspire to inspire me for next week's neighborhood? Do so in the comments.

Weekly Poll Is Up

In it's favorite place, over there at the top left.

And while the price of gas is getting ridiculously expensive, don't forget that subscribing to All Around K-Town is still absolutely free!

More Cool Homes You Can't Afford

Since the last (and first) installment of Cool Homes You Can't Afford was almost as big of a hit with you guys as Foreclosure Watch, and since I already spent most of the day looking at homes that I can't afford anyway, I thought I would spend my first night off in 27 years looking at more ridiculously expensive but undeniably awesome Knoxville mega-homes.

Let's start with this 5 BR, 6 1/2 BA, approx 9400 sq ft home in Halls with stacked Tennessee stone accents, 4 car garage and more bells and whistles than you can shake a stick at. List price $1,600,00. Halls has it!!

Then there's this 6600 sq ft completely remodeled home in Old Westmoreland in West Knox. The home has 6 BR, 5 full bath and 2 half baths and features just about brand new everything, including a home theater with seating for 7. All this and for only $1,749,000!

Or how about this home on Cherokee Blvd in Sequoyah Hills: 4 BR, 3 1/2 BA, approx 6000 sq ft, and a rawking master bath that includes a sauna AND steam room. Best of all it comes completely furnished so you don't have to max out your Discover card at Rooms To Go. List price $2,995,000.

And lastly there's this 34+ acre horse farm in Powell, featuring mountain views, a 2 story stacked stone fireplace and two horse barns. It's a Powell country Paradise! List price $2,600,00.

Now, I know what you're thinking - these places are awesome, but how would I ever keep them clean? Good help is so hard to find these days! Well, how about this - buy any of them from me and I'll personally come and clean them for you for one month. For reals. Heh.

Knox County Has 4th Highest Property Tax Rates in the State

Over on No Silence Here, Michael Silence links to a list of the top 20 highest property tax rates in Tennessee. Knox county is 4th. Ouch.

Horn Tooting of the Shameless Variety

All Around K-Town got a little bit of KNS love yesterday. Check it out here.

Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

Welcome back, Foreclosure watchers. In this week's edition, the on-market foreclosure listings are at roughly the same level as last week, while pendings are up and closings are down.

Here's the break down -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 4/23/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 161
Average Asking Price: $135,060
Median Asking Price: $88,000
Most Expensive New Listing: 7 BR, 5 BA, approx 7300 sq ft home in Sequoyah Hills
Least Expensive New Listing: 3 BR, 1 BA, approx 1100 sq ft in Bon View in East Knox
Honorable Mention: 4 BR, 2 BA, approx 1400 sq ft in Red Bud Hills in South Knox

Current Pending Sales -100
Average Asking Price - $96,958
Median Asking Price - $79,900

Closed Sales April 16, 2008-April 22, 2008 - 4
Average Asking Price - $102,950
Average Sales Price - $103,000
Median Sales Price - $106,450
Average Days on Market - 77





*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/23/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

Any thoughts on this week's edition? I'd love to hear them below.

Don't miss a single Foreclosure Watch update - subscribe to All Around K-Town today!

Lose Some Pride or Lose Your Home?

It's been a long week and it's only Tuesday. So, let me unwind after a hard day in the housing mines by telling you a little story...

I recently listed a very nice home in a very nice neighborhood. The owners were very nice people. Everything, in fact, was awfully nice and swell until my phone rang early one Friday morning:

Caller: Hi, is this Suzy Trotta?

Me: Yes, how can I help you? [I have very good phone manners]

Caller: I'm calling about the foreclosure property you have for sale.

Me: Um, I don't have any foreclosure properties for sale.

Caller: Have you looked in today's News Sentinel? Cuz you do now.

Sure enough, an examination of the KNS foreclosure notices showed that my nice little listing was due to be auctioned off on the courthouse steps in two weeks. I called the number given in the notice, thinking this must surely be some bizarre mix-up. I mean, my sellers were such nice people.

The helpful woman at the law firm told me that yes, indeed, my listing was going to auction and the reason was that the current owners had not paid their mortgage in 7 months.

7 months.

I was completely dumbfounded. My nice little sellers? Those sweet folks whose dining room table I had sat at just a few weeks before? What the fudge?

I decided to call my clients to figure out what was going on.

Me: Hi, Mrs. Seller. Great news. We had two showings this week. And by the way, did you know your home is possibly going into foreclosure?

I waited.

One Mississippi...

Two Mississippi...

Three Mississippi...

Mrs. Seller: Why, yes, we did.

So there it was. They knew. They knew! My next immediate thought was, "Why in the world didn't they tell me?"

I know, I know, the simple answer was because they were embarrassed. But is suffering embarrassment worse than going into foreclosure?

Luckily we wound up being able to do a short sale and everything turned out pretty ok. Instead of going into foreclosure, those folks will now have to pay taxes on the amount of money the bank lost on the short sale and suffer the damage of the missed mortgage payments on their credit report. Still, much better than foreclosure, trust me.

My role in this situation was not to judge. I never really found out what prevented them from paying their mortgage, but that wasn't my business anyway. The fact was that my clients were still really nice people. They were just really nice people who go in over their head financially. Scheisse passiert as the Germans say.

No, my job was to sell that home before auction and I somehow managed to pull it off. Yes, that's the sound of me tooting my own horn. Toot! Toot!

But I'm not just telling you this story to show off my superior home selling skills. There is a actually a moral in this story that I think is very important:

If you are in trouble with your home financing and have missed payments or know that foreclosure is looming in your future, do not keep this information to yourself when listing your home. I know you want to try to sell it and pay the bank off and hope the whole mess just goes away without any of your friends and neighbors ever finding out. And I get that. I really do.

But the fact of the matter is that while real estate agents can certainly help you in this situation, we can only help you if you ask us to. If we know up front what your situation is, we can start working the phone immediately. Calling your loss mitigation coordinator. Calling investors. Calling other agents who know other investors. We can try to help you work with the bank to try and arrange a short sale. And a short sale, while not being the answer to your prayers, will still be much, much better than foreclosure.

So swallow your pride and ask for our help. Losing a little pride is a much better option than losing your home to foreclosure.

Neighborhood of the Week: Forest Heights

This week we're heading back out to West Knoxville to a little neighborhood just off of Sutherland Avenue called Forest Heights. Forest Heights is actually comprised of four individual subdivisions: Forest Hills, Forest Heights, Highland Hills and Highland Hills Addition.

The Forest Heights Neighborhood Homeowner's Association Website gives a brief overview of the history of the area:

The heavily wooded, hilly neighborhood now called Forest Heights has been a stable, attractive, and desirable residential area for over seventy years...

...Although the earliest homes of the area are from the 1920s and 1930s, most of the building is of the post World War II period. The residents of this neighborhood were and are a diverse group of people who have found the location, the natural beauty and the friendliness of their neighbors an enticement to move here, to raise their families, and often to remain and welcome their grown children back as new homeowners in the neighborhood.

As Knoxville grew, especially towards the west, and as the Interstate 40/75 was completed, Forest Heights had to adjust to the new conditions. The quiet neighborhood was bisected by still narrow Forest Heights Drive which had to bear almost constant heavy traffic to and from the Interstate overpass. To preserve the neighborhood the Forest Heights Neighborhood Association was formed in 1973. With dogged and determined courage the FHNHA successfully fought to keep the overpass down when it was demolished to allow the expansion of the Interstate in April 2001.

Forest Heights is a very picturesque area and definitely worth checking out if you like older homes and the convenience of a close-in West location but aren't crazy about Sequoyah Hills.

Here's Forest Heights by the numbers-

Forest Heights*

Current On-Market Listings - 3
Average Asking Price: $542,933
Median Asking Price: $599,900
Most Expensive: $689,900 (completely renovated 4 BR, 3 1/2 BA, approx 3800 sq ft)
Least Expensive: $339,900 (4 BR, 3 1/2 BA, approx 3000 sq ft)

Current Pending Sales -1
Asking Price - $275,000
Details: 4 BR, 2 BA, approx 1900 sq ft

Closed Sales - Q1 2007 - 4
Average Sales Price - $198,750
Median Sales Price - $182,500
Average Days on Market - 91

Closed Sales - Q1 2008 - 2
Average Sales Price - $191,500
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 110

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/21/08 for Forest Heights, Forest Hills, Highland Hills & Highland Hills Addition, and does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos or PUDS.

If you want any more information about any of these properties, just give me a shout.

Is there a neighborhood you'd like to see here next week? Let me know in the comments.

You Know Things are Tough for Realtors When...

going to Baghdad for a year seems like a nice break from the business.

Weekly Poll is Up

This week's poll is up and once again I'm curious about all you guys who take the time to visit my humble blog. What part of town do you call home - North, South, East, West, Downtown? Hang your hat in a neighboring county or a completely different part of the world? Let me know about it in the comments.

And remember - subscribing to All Around K-Town is the best way to stay in the know on the Knoxville real estate market no matter where you live. Try it, you might like it.

1st Quarter Home Sales Report

Why am I always a day behind on the Home Sales Report? Oh yeah, it's all those pesky clients. (Note to clients - ignore previous sentence - you all are the best!) Josh Flory over at Property Scope has already put in his two cents, but I don't think it will hurt if I put in two more.

Let's start, as always, with the good news:

Average condo sales price is up.

Q1 '07 - $214,700

Q1 '08 - $226,000

Average sales price for homes with 4 or more bedrooms is up.

Q1 '07 - $282,100

Q1 '08 - $292,400

The neutral news:

Median condo sales price is the same
Q1 '07- $189,900
Q1 '08- $189,900

The not so great news:

Average sales price for 3 BR homes is down.
Q1 '07 - $169,500
Q1 '08 - $158,300

Median sales price for 3 BR homes is down.

Q1 '07 - $145,500

Q1 '08 - $144,000

Median sales price for homes with 4 or more bedrooms is down.
Q1 '07 - $238,900
Q1 '08 - $229,900

Total number of single family unit sales is down.

Q1 '07 - 3491

Q1 '08 - 2739

Days on market is up.

Q1 '07 - 93

Q1 '08 - 103

And finally, here's the "What the Fudge" news:

Average listing price for new listings is way down.

Feb '07 - $408,300

Feb '08 - $248,300

So, here, yet again, is my not so scientific analysis:

1. The condo market continues to fare better than single family residential homes.

2. Residential sales are still soft*.

3. Folks must have been selling a lot more of those houses most of us can't afford in Q1 '07.

*No need to freak out. Lower average sales price and lower median sales price do not necessarily mean that your personal home has depreciated.

From Hong Kong to Knoxville: A Reader's Analysis of the March Home Sales Report

Since both March and 1st Quarter stats are now up from the Knoxville Area Association of Realtors, I thought I would do something a little bit different for Homes Sales Report this month. Intrepid reader Mac O. in Hong Kong (yes, that's right I have someone reading this in Hong Kong) sent me his own great breakdown of the March numbers and I think it's worth sharing. Plus that means I only have to crunch the Q1 numbers. Heh.

Some of Mac's interesting observations:

- The number of homes sold in March vs. last year dropped 24.8% in unit terms.

- The amount of homes sold in March dropped 26.2%. This is continued bad news for real estate brokers, as they work on commission.

Yeah, tell me about it, Mac.

- The average selling price dropped 1.9% year-on-year. As input costs would appear to have increased, this means smaller margins for developers.

- The inventory of homes listed above $250,000 now stands at 25.4 months versus 17.4 months of inventory a year ago.

Perhaps most interesting is this observation on FHA loans:

FHA loans skyrocketed from 56 in 2007 to 121 in 2008. That is an increase of over 100%, with 11.5% of all homes financed via FHA loans in the past month. The question becomes whether tightening lending standards are preventing people from buying a home? Or is it that FHA rates are now substantively more attractive than Conventional loans on a historical basis?

I think the answer to that question might just be that FHA really is the new subprime. It's just about the only way to get anything like 100% financing and it's become the only option for people whose credit scores are lower than 620. I think we're going to see a lot more FHA loans as the year goes on.

Thanks to Mac - I look forward to seeing your April breakdown as well.

Coming next - Q1 Home Sales Report Breakdown

March Homes Sales Report Breakdown is Coming...

Will you be ready?

Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

This is week #2 of Foreclosure Watch and oh what a week it's been. I've been working on ways to present this information so it is easier to digest, but due to the short sale that wouldn't die, I haven't had as much time for charts and graphs as I had hoped. Please bear with me as I get all the bells and whistles up to speed.

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 4/16/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 158
Average Asking Price: $136,935
Median Asking Price: $87,450
Most Expensive New Listing: 5 BR, 4 BA, approx 4600 sq ft home in Choto area
Least Expensive New Listing: 2 BR, 1 BA, approx 780 sq ft home in Mechanicsville
Honorable Mention: 3 BR, 2 BA, approx 1100 sq ft home off of Tazewell Pike

Current Pending Sales -91
Average Asking Price - $91,881
Median Asking Price - $81,900

Closed Sales April 2, 2008-April 8, 2008 - 12
Average Sales Price - $94,942
Median Sales Price - $60,000
Average Days on Market - 61




*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/15/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

Don't miss a single Foreclosure Watch update - subscribe to All Around K-Town today!

Have ideas that you think would make Foreclosure Watch a better experience for everyone? Feel free to leave me some constructive suggestions in the comments below.

Cool Homes You Can't Afford

After a really, really, monumentally, horribly bad day, I thought it might be interesting to cruise around the Knoxville MLS and look at houses I could never, ever afford. Yes, I'm a glutton for punishment. What I found out is that there are exactly 80 homes in the Knoxville MLS listed at $999,000 and up.

The most expensive is a 5 BR, 5 full bath, 4 half bath, 12,000+ sq ft home on a man made lake in Farragut. List price? $4,375,000.

I have to say that the whole concept of 4 half baths completely threw me for a loop. Where are they? Why would you need them? Why when you're talking about a 12,000 sq ft house would it be overkill to go ahead and just make them full baths? These questions are going to keep me up tonight.

Here are a few more of my favorites:

A 5 BR, 5 1/2 BA, 14 acre waterfront home on Topside Road, including a 5 car garage and 4 stone fireplaces. List price: $1,750,000

A 4 BR, 4 BA waterfront home on Kingston Pike, built in 1928. List price $1, 750,000

A 5 BR, 4 1/2 BA Frank Lloyd Wright designed home on over 8 acres off of Duncan Rd in West Knox. List price $2,195,00

Aaahh, I feel better already. And hey, just because I can't afford any of these doesn't mean you can't. And if you can afford them, why don't you call me? That would make my tomorrow a much better day than my today was. Heh, heh, heh.

Neighborhood of the Week: Island Home

We're back in south Knoxville this week in one of my favorite Knoxville neighborhoods, Island Home Park. Island Home began life as a "streetcar suburb" sometime around 1910. In fact, the median that divides the modern day Island Home Boulevard was once where the streetcar tracks ran that served the neighborhood.

The Island Home Park Neighborhood Association Website has a fascinating history of the neighborhood that was excerpted from the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for Island Home Park, written by Ann Bennett of the Knox County Metropolitan Planning Commission. It includes great information about Perez Dickinson, the owner of the original "Island Home" summer cottage that is now part of the Tennessee School for the Deaf, as well as details about the varied architectural styles found in the neighborhood, including, most significantly, the Craftsman and Bungalow styles.

The full history on the IHPNA site is definitely worth checking out when you have the time.

Island Home is a low turnover neighborhood and choice homes often sell by word of mouth before they ever hit the market. With that said, here is Island Home Park by the numbers..

Island Home*

Current On-Market Listings - 2
Average Asking Price: $154,450
Median Asking Price: NA
Average Square Footage: 1537
Most Expensive Listing: $159,900 (2 BR, 1 BA, approx 1600 sq ft)
Least Expensive Listing: $149,900 (3 BR, 1 BA, aprox 1660 sq ft)

Current Pending Sales -0
Average Asking Price - NA
Median Asking Price - NA

Closed Sales - March 2007 - 1
Average Sales Price - $249,900 (4 BR, 2 BA, approx 2550 sq ft)
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 71

Closed Sales - February 2008 - 0
Average Sales Price - NA
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - NA

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/14/08 for Island Home proper, and does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos or PUDS.

If you want any more information about any of these properties, just give me a shout.

Any neighborhood you're dying to see featured here next week? Let me know in the comments.

Color Me Impressed

Nashville now has its very own line of Sherwin Williams paint colors. From The Tennessean:

Sherwin-Williams, which brought us the historic colors of Charleston with the Carolina Low Country Collection, has developed a Nashville palette, and some of the colors are inspired by the city's favorite foods and attractions.

The interior and exterior of The Parthenon inspired three colors: a burnt-red Freize, a reddish-orange Evening Temple and a gorgeous blue known as Coffered Ceiling. Cathedral Masonry, a soft dusty gold, pays homage to the bricks of the Cathedral of the Incarnation on West End Avenue. And Woof brown was conceived over café-au-lait at the Hillsboro Village coffeehouse Fido.

Other Nashville inspired colors include Flapjacks (after the Pancake Pantry) and Vandy (gold, of course). Street names and parts of town also got their own colors.

So, other than Big Orange, what colors would you recommend for a possible Knoxville line?

And what colors would Cumberland Ave, Broadway, Chapman Highway or Kingston Pike be? How about Island Home, Sequoyah Hills, Holston Hills or all of Farragut?

Let your imagination run wild in the comments, people.

Weekly Poll

This week's poll is up in its usual spot on the top left. All Around K-Town is still in it's cyber-infancy, but it's growing & changing every day. I'd love to know what you'd like to see more of in the future. Did I miss something you're dying for? Let me know if the comments section below.

Looking a Gift House in the Mouth

Sometimes getting something for "free" doesn't mean it won't cost you anything. Remember Oprah's car giveaway fiasco? Apparently HGTV's Dream Home giveaway has a few pitfalls as well. According to the Chicago Tribune:

The winners of the annual "HGTV Dream Home" giveaway loved the house but plan to sell it. Each year, the cable network builds a glorious getaway home and furnishes it to the hilt, and then gives it away in a random drawing from among hundreds of thousands of entries. Almost every year, the winner has said: "Gee, it's great, but I can't afford it," and puts it on the market.

This year is no different, according to Florida media reports, which say that the Iowa couple who won the $2.2 million, three-story beach house in the Florida Keys will be putting it up for sale because the prize also comes with a $700,000 bill from the IRS, plus $20,000 in annual property taxes.

Oops, ouch, & yikes. There really is no free lunch, is there?

Smart Neighborhood Navigation

Don Jacobs over at Navigating SmartFix40 has this to say about using neighborhood cut-throughs as a way to navigate around I-40:

...I hesitate to encourage drivers to use neighborhood roads as cut-throughs. Those cut-throughs will work for awhile, but Knoxville Police Chief Sterling Owen IV and his traffic services coordinator Lt. Eve Thomas have assured me they will be deploying officers to complaining neighborhoods to discourage speeding through communities. If you have children, you can appreciate the concerns of those residents.

Living in a cut-through neighborhood myself, I wholeheartedly concur.

Wow, Thanks, And Keep It Comin'!

Wow - traffic is way, way up on All Around K-Town! Thanks to everyone who's stopping by, commenting and sending me emails. And welcome to all of you new subscribers. You're the best!

If you haven't subscribed to AAKT yet, you can do it here.

And why not follow me on Twitter while you're at it? It's fun and free!

Straight from the Cashville

Josh Flory over at Property Scope noted an article from The Tennessean about the Nashville housing market in his daily briefing today. The article says that although Nashville home sales are down, purchase prices are up:

Despite the rising inventory and falling sales, the median price of a single-family home increased 3 percent to $178,388, the fourth time in the last six months that the average home price has risen. The median price of a condo also climbed 5 percent to $160,573.

I'll be interested in to see what the Knoxville Home Sale Report numbers for March say when they come out next week.

Quote of the Day

From Mayor Bill Haslam in an interview in the Knoxville Voice:

My pet peeve about Knoxville is that we tend to think of ourselves directionally too much. Like, ‘I’m from West Knox or North or South or East.’ I think that’s held us back as a city in some really unhealthy ways.

Hat tip to Katie over at Knoxville Talks for this one.

Introducing Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

It's no secret that there's a little bit of trouble in the housing market. As positive as I feel about the Knoxville housing market, I also know that sticking my head in the sand is not going to make the foreclosures and short sales I'm dealing with go away. Heck, I don't even think I knew what a short sale was last year, and I'm almost positive I never used the phrase, "I guess the bank is just going to have to eat it" on a daily basis then either.

Since I believe knowledge is power and forewarned is forearmed, I've decided to educate myself and bring you along for the ride. As a totally non-scientific experiment, I'llbe doing a weekly tally of the on-market, pending, and closed foreclosures in Knox County as listed in the Knoxville MLS. And while these stats will not include pre-foreclosures or short sales, I think it will be interesting to see how the numbers change in the coming weeks.

So, without further ado, I give you the very first Knoxville Foreclosure Watch.

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 4/9/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 162
Average Asking Price: $134,453
Median Asking Price: $84,500
Most Expensive Listing: $799,900 (5BR, 4 1/2 BA, approx 5000 sq ft in River Club)
Least Expensive Listing: $14,900 (2 BR, 1 BA, approx 675 sq ft in Powell)

Current Pending Sales -86
Average Asking Price - $94,259
Median Asking Price - $80,900

Closed Sales April 2, 2007-April 8, 2007 - 4
Average Sales Price - $61,743
Median Sales Price - $61,200
Average Days on Market - 109

Closed Sales April 2, 2008-April 8, 2008 - 3
Average Sales Price - $94,200
Median Sales Price - $64,900
Average Days on Market - 49

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/09/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

Stay tuned for more updates...

A House (and Senate) Divided

Even as I've busted my behind the past week to do a short sale for a family who is about to lose their home to foreclosure, my feelings about how best to fix this mortgage mess are very mixed. Apparently the House and Senate Democrats are divided as well.

Among several other things, the House wants to provide first-time homebuyers a 10% credit towards the purchase of a home.

The Senate, as a part of it's larger plan, wants to offer a $7,000 tax credit to people who buy forclosures or homes in danger of going into foreclosure.

Am I missing something? As much as I'd like to make more sales and more commission by selling to all of those firsts-time buyers and investors, I fail to see how either one of these ideas helps people who are already in trouble. Sure, helping first time homebuyers is great, but didn't we get ourselves into this mess by allowing people with absolutely no money to buy homes? And maybe I'm dense on the Senate plan as well, but since when do investors need any sort of incentive to buy a foreclosure or pre-foreclosure property at roughly 80% of it's normal market value?

But what the heck do I know? I'm just the bozo out working until 9:00pm every night to keep you from losing your dang house.

Neighborhood of the Week: North Hills

So far in NOTW, we've looked at Hills in the south, east, and west of Knoxville. That leaves North Knoxville's North Hills. North Hills is a historic community bordered by Cecil Avenue to the south, Whittle Springs Road to the west, Washington Pike to the north and Prosser Road to the east. According to the North Hills Area Association:

North Hills is one of the post World War I and pre-World War II subdivisions that sprouted in Knoxville. Brothers George, Hugh and Carl Fielden started developing North Hills in the spring of 1927. By 1928, forty-three homes had been built with some of Knoxville's most prominent families living in the area. Covering 185 acres, it was one of the largest subdivisions in Knoxville for its time. It was an upscale neighborhood that had its own private bus service to downtown Knoxville.

In addition, many famous Knoxvillians once called North Hills home, including Cas Walker and Patricia Neal.

North Hills*

Current On-Market Listings - 9
Average Asking Price: $150,733
Median Asking Price: $119,900
Average Square Footage: 1539
Most Expensive Listing: $279,900 (3 BR, 3 BA, approx 2600 sq ft)
Least Expensive Listing: $98,900 (2 BR, 1 BA, approx 1000 sq ft)

Current Pending Sales -3
Average Asking Price - $154,233
Median Asking Price - $142,900

Closed Sales - February 2007 - 2
Average Sales Price - $87,000
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 48

Closed Sales - February 2008 - 3
Average Sales Price - $139,967
Median Sales Price - $153,000
Average Days on Market - 128

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 4/07/08 for North Hills proper, and does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos or PUDS. I took February closings, as there were none for March '07 or '08.

If you want any more information about any of these properties, just give me a shout.

Does anybody know any other interesting historical background on North Hills?

This Week's Poll is Up

As usual, it's to your left over there.

This week's question is in honor of my super fun week spent trying to work a foreclosure sale and a suprise short sale (as in, "Suprise! We haven't paid our mortgage in months!).

Quote of the Day

From Bill Lublin at agentgenius:

...everyone who has a monthly housing expense is paying someone’s mortgage, so it may as well be their own. Unless they are my tenants - in that case they should continue to rent and pay off my mortgages.

Link Round-Up: Creative Home Marketing Edition

How do you make your house stand out from the crowd when your market is flooded with properties?

1. Have an essay contest. [KNS]
2. Sell raffle tickets. [cbsnews]
3. Don't just sell your house. Sell your life. [Chicago Tribune]
4. Make your purchase price to die for. [Post-Gazette]

Question of the Week: What is a Short Sale?

Q: What is a short sale?

A: A short sale occurs when a seller does not have adequate funds to pay off their loan and the lender agrees to accept a lower amount, usually in order for both sides to avoid foreclosure.

In a normal sale, the seller must come up with the full loan balance in order to pay off the bank. In a typical short sale, the seller is allowed to sell the property for less than the outstanding loan amount, with the lender agreeing to accept the loss.

Banks will sometimes agree to a short sale when it will be cheaper and faster than going through the foreclosure process. However, not all lenders will even consider short sales, and even if they do, it is not a simple process.

In order for a lender to consider a short sale, the seller must provide proof of economic hardship to their lender, usually in the form of a written hardship letter as well as an exhaustive financial report detailing all earnings and spendings. According to Realestatejournal.com:

you must prove that you really can't pay your loans -- and that the reason is new, not something that you concealed from your lenders when you originally applied for the loan.

In addition, the seller must also provide the lender with an estimate of how much the sale will cost the lender. This is usually done by providing an estimated HUD-1, which tallies sales price, loan balance, accrued interest, closing costs - including agent commission if applicable, and unpaid property taxes.

If you have more than one mortgage, loan, or lien on your property, odds are you will have to go through this process for each lender or institution you owe.

While the essence of a short sale is that the lenders allows the seller to "come up short" when paying off their loan balance, not all lenders are so forgiving - and the government definitely isn't. According to Realestatejournal.com:

Some hard-nosed lenders may insist that you pay the difference between what the buyer pays for the house and what you owe on the mortgage. Others may forgive that portion of the debt -- but unfortunately, Uncle Sam won't. "Forgiven" debt is considered taxable income.

A short sale is not an easy way to get right side up in your upside down home. There are risks and downfalls. It will go on your credit report, although it will not be as devastating as a foreclosure would be. There is a lot of negotiating and hard work involved, and as the bank is often willing to pay a real estate agent's commission, having an agent help you through the process is a good idea.

Below are some more resources with information on short sales -keep in mind that short sale procedures vary from lender to lender and region to region, so make sure to check with a real estate professional in your area if you have any questions.

The New Exit Strategy: A Short Sale [Business Week]
After the Short Sale: Taxing What Isn't There [REALTOR.org]
Short Sales Set Sail Again [Realty Times]
Short Sales in Real Estate [About.com]

Link Round-Up: Signs Your Housing Market May Be in Trouble Edition

What are some signs your housing market may be in trouble?

1. Your pipes are worth more than your home. [msnbc.com]

2. Your bank is paying you not to trash your house when you move out. [Realestatejournal.com]

3. In your city, "Buying in bulk" refers to more than shopping at Sam's Club. [The Real Estate Bloggers]

The Cost of Driving

I drive a lot, and so the cost of gas is a subject that's very near and dear to my heart. So, when I just saw a report on CNN about the average American's annual cost of driving, my ears perked up. Here's how they broke it down on screen:

Average Annual Cost of Driving

12,000 miles

600 gallons of gas

$,1968

I put a lot more miles than that on my car every year, but let's conservatively say I do 25,000 miles annually. Gas currently costs $3.15 at the Breadbox up the street from my house and I get roughly 22 miles per gallon in the old Volvo. Keeping in mind that my only real math skill is calculating what 6% of anything is, that would mean my breakdown looks something like this:

Average Cost of Knoxville Realtor Driving Old Volvo

25,000 miles

1136 gallons of gas

$3,578

And unlike these guys out at Watt Rd, going on strike isn't going to do me any good.

If your car doesn't tell you how many mpg you get, you can use this nifty miles per gallon calculator to determine what your monthly or yearly gas costs are.

After you're done, come back and let me know what your gas cost breakdown looks like.