Trulia Snapshot Brings Sexy Back to Real Estate

Trulia's new toy, Trulia Snapshot, is the coolest, most gorgeous real estate search toy tool I have ever seen.

You simply have to give it a whirl to know what I mean. If you like pretty, shiny things, go play with the Knoxville listings and come back and let me know what you think.

NAR & DOJ Are Now BFFs

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have finally reached a settlement over the display of Multiple Listing Service (MLS) listings on Virtual Office Websites (VOWs). Whew! That's a lot of acronyms for saying that online only brokerages that don't exist in the brick and mortar world can put MLS listings on their sites.

A lot of people are saying this is the end of real estate as we know it and things are going to seriously start changing in the real estate marketplace.

Um, except that during the 3 years it took NAR and the DOJ to reach this settlement, a lot has already seriously changed in the real estate market, especially when it comes to transparency and online information. From The Real Estate Bloggers:

The opening of the MLS systems to online and virtual real estate companies has long been over. The bigger battle will be the viability of maintaining an expensive MLS in the age of Trulias and Zillows.

Think about it, the lawsuit was to force the brokerages to allow online real estate agents to post their homes. Now we have the major real estate firms signing deals with Zillow to post their listings directly bypassing these online agents.

So essentially the National Association of Realtors has spent their dues not on developing better systems to grow the business of their members, but to fight for the right to have the monopoly on buggy whips.

Ouch.

Hey, NAR? Can I have my last three years worth of dues back now? I have a $60 tank of gas to buy to drive clients around who found a bunch of homes to look at on Trulia last night. Thanks.

Blogging Their Way to a New Home

2 bloggers
+ 1 Friendship
+ 36 house showings
+ 4 Swiss Cake Rolls
__________________
Home Sweet Home

Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

It may be two more days until the weekend, but the wait is over for this week's installment of Foreclosure Watch. This week, on-market and pending listings are down, while closings have more than doubled. Hey, have you guys been out there buying these things without me?

Also, this week: pretty new charts, one of which tracks the list price vs. sales price of the closed foreclosures. Enjoy!

Now for the breakdown -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 5/28/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 160 ▼
Average Asking Price: $131,504 ▲
Median Asking Price: $89,450 ▼
Most Expensive New Listing: $229,900 (4 BR, 2 BA, 2700+ sq ft art & craft style home off of Alcoa Highway)
Least Expensive New Listing: $24,900 (2 BR, 1 BA, 1100+ sq ft, 100+ year old home in East Knoxville)

Notable New Listings:
North: 3 BR, 2 BA, 1500+ sq ft off of Whittle Springs
East: 4 BR, 2 BA, 1800+ sq ft turn of the century home on E. Fifth Ave.
West: 4 BR, 2 1/2 BA, 1800+ sq ft in Gulf Park

Current Pending Sales -92 ▼
Average Asking Price - $84,416 ▼
Median Asking Price - $67,400 ▼

Closed Sales May 21, 2008-May 27, 2008 - 17▲
Average Asking Price - $140,391▲
Average Sales Price - $126,776 ▲
Median Sales Price - $108,900 ▲
Average Days on Market - 63 ▲






*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/28/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

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

If you'd like to receive new foreclosure listings automatically, just send me an email with "Foreclosure List" in the subject line, and I'll do the rest.

Get in with the Knoxville real estate in-crowd - subscribe to All Around KTown today!

Coolest Tool Yet: PolicyMap

OK, I've shared some websites with you before that I thought were pretty cool. And at the time I shared them, they were. But that was before @Admore tipped me off to PolicyMap.

PolicyMap is a brand new monster research tool that you really have to play with to believe. According to the developers:

... [PolicyMap] combines sophisticated technology and the best analytical tools to deliver a new level of accessibility to data. And we mean all kinds of data – more than 4,000 indicators related to demographics, real estate markets, money and income, education, crime and more.

They're not kidding about that data, either. PolicyMap provides you with information you find on sites like Zipskinny and Zilpy and then some - everything from residential energy consumption to campaign contributions by geographical area. You can search by state, county, city, or even by congressional and school districts. In addition, PolicyMap has tons more crime statistics for the Knox County area than SpotCrime.

And that's not all. PolicyMap doesn't just give you data, it goes even further by allowing you to create your own layered "heat maps," tables and reports from the data it provides. Now that's cool.

Unfortunately, there is a "but" in all of this: some of the information on the site is for subscribers only, and subscriptions don't come cheap - $2,000 per year for the standard package alone. Ouch.

But even without that extra level of data, PolicyMap is a still an awesome resource that I've only scratched the surface of here. Go check it out for yourself, and then come back here and let me know what cool stuff you find. Happy hunting!

Neighborhood of the Week: Concord Hills

So far, Neighborhood of the Week has been all around K-Town, from the north to the south and the east to the west. But there's one place NOTW hasn't yet stepped foot in: Farragut. This week it's time to remedy that by taking a look at Concord Hills.

Concord Hills is a large, established community located just off of Concord Road in Farragut and is very convenient to I-40 at either Lovell Road or Campbell Station. One of the best features of the neighborhood, besides the great homes, large lots, well manicured lawns, and numerous trees, is the community recreation association. This association includes a newly remodeled pool and tennis courts, as well as community swim and tennis teams. Concord Hills also has a very active homeowners association, and their website lists numerous neighborhood activities that take place in the community throughout the year.

If you're looking to live in a very well-kept, conveniently located, established neighborhood with a strong sense of community in Farragut, Concord Hills might just be right up your alley.

Here's Concord Hills by the numbers -

Concord Hills*

Current On-Market Listings - 15
Average Asking Price: $445,447
Median Asking Price: $424,900
Most Expensive: $874,900 (5 BR, 6 1/2 BA, 7000+ sq ft)
Least Expensive: $274,900 (4 BR, 4 BA, 3700+ sq ft)

Current Pending Sales -2
Average Asking Price: $279,900
Median Asking Price: NA

Closed Sales - Q1 2007 - 2
Average Asking Price - $349,900
Average Sales Price - $342,900
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 87

Closed Sales - Q1 2008 - 1
Average Asking Price - $419,900
Average Sales Price - $415,000
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 97

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/26/08 does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos, PUDS, or multi-family units.

As always, 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? Make a wish for it in the comments, and it might just come true.

Cool Lake Front Homes You Can't Afford

Like most Sundays, I did an open house today. To get to this open house, I had to take Northshore Drive from Ebenezer to Concord Road, which meant I passed lots of people playing and having fun on the water. In a matter of moments my thoughts went from, "Hey! I want to play and have fun on the water, too," to "I just need to buy a place on the water."

Unfortunately my meandering thoughts do not always check in with my bank account.

While, it is occasionally possible to find a Knox County waterfront home for less than 7 figures, that is certainly not the rule. And anyway, if you're going to dream, dream big, right?

So, in honor of Memorial Day, I thought I'd take you on a short tour of cool Lake front homes you can't afford. Enjoy!

First stop is a brand new 4,900+ sq ft home lakefront home in a gated community right off of Westland. This year's Parade Home winner, this home features lake views from nearly every room. List price is $1,939,000 - only $392 a square foot.

Next up is a 7600+ sq foot custom built home with 4 BR, 5 full baths, and 2 half baths. Features include century-old hardwoods, lakeside in-ground gunite pool, and a 4 car garage. List price is $2,700,000 - that's right around $352 per sq ft.

Right around the corner off of Toole's Bend is a 4 BR, 4 BA, 5000+ sq ft basement ranch on 1.5 acres. Features include an infinity pool with new pool house, boat house, and boat dock. List price is $2,400,000. For those of you keeping track at home, that's $472 a sq ft.

Finally, we come to this 5 BR, 5 BA, 5900+ sq ft lake front home in Sequoyah Hills. Features include marble walled and floored bathrooms in every bedroom, gourmet kitchen with Thermador appliances, boat dock with lift, and jet ski dock with lift. List price is $1,575,000 - that's a water front bargain at only $264 per sq ft.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this little tour. As for me, as much as I love to dream of living on the water, for now I'm going to have to stick with something more in my price range , like a baby pool or a slip and slide in the backyard. Hey, you have to start somewhere, right?

Happy Memorial Day!

Weekly Poll

This week's poll is ready for your voting enjoyment on the top left and this week's topic is the state of the Knoxville housing market.

Nationally, some people say the housing bust is over and others say it's not.

I don't know about other places, but here in K-Town, I've been seeing a ton of activity in the real estate market over the last few months. Granted, it's totally crazy activity (super low-ball offers, deals pieced together MacGyver style with little more than paper clips & chewing gum, financing that would fall over if you breathed hard on it, etc), but after the dead silence that was August - December, 2007, I'll take any activity I can get my hands on.

What do you think? Is the Knoxville market chugging along like the little engine that could or is it seriously derailed?

Another Cool Tool: SpotCrime

Another question we real estate agents aren't allowed to go anywhere near is "is this a safe neighborhood?" Sure, we know, and no, we can't say anything. Lame. That's why I was psyched when I saw a write up on TechCrunch about a website called SpotCrime.

Go to SpotCrime, select your city, and you'll be shown an interactive Google map that will show you at a glance where crimes such as arson, assault and theft have occurred within a time period of your choosing. You can also search specific addresses to check out crime on a neighborhood level.

TechCrunch says that for most areas, SpotCrime gets 90% of its information from police reports, but only if that information is made public. From looking at the Knoxville map, it looks like Knoxville is one of the areas where they are only pulling information from local news stories. While this is better than nothing, I'd love to see a fully functional version for our town.

Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

Yay, more numbers! If the April Home Sales Report wasn't enough to satisfy your need for Knoxville real estate statistics, hopefully this week's episode of Foreclosure Watch will do the trick. This week sees the number of on-market foreclosure listings take a pretty big jump, while median and average closed prices, as well as average days on market, take a plunge.

This week I'm also trying out another new feature - new & notable foreclosure listings by area: north, south, east and west. Let me know what you think.

Now for the breakdown -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 5/21/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 185 ▲
Average Asking Price: $127,839 ▼
Median Asking Price: $89,900 ▲
Most Expensive New Listing: $759,000 (5 BR, 6 1/2 BA, 7800+ sq ft on Cherokee Blvd)
Least Expensive New Listing: $29,900 (2 BR, 1 BA, 800+ sq ft in East Knoxville)

Notable New Listings:
North: 3 BR, 1 1/2 BA, 1400+ sq ft off of Whittle Springs
South: 3 BR, 2 BA, 2000+ sq ft off of Magazine
East: 3 BR, 2 BA, 2000+ sq ft in Holston Hills
West: 3 BR, 2 BA, approx 1500 sq ft with in-ground pool in Farragut

Current Pending Sales -102 ▼
Average Asking Price - $94,428 ▲
Median Asking Price - $76,225 ▲

Closed Sales May 14, 2008-May 20, 2008 - 8▼
Average Asking Price - $73,659 ▼
Average Sales Price - $71,758 ▼
Median Sales Price - $47,000 ▼
Average Days on Market - 46 ▼




*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/20/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

As always, if you have any questions about any of these properties, feel free to drop me a line. If you'd like to receive new foreclosure listings automatically, just send me an email letting me know, and I'll do the rest.

Keep up to date on the Knoxville real estate market and be inadvertently entertained at the same time - subscribe to All Around KTown today!

April Home Sales Report

I tried to get this out on time, I really did. And then Franken-deal rose from the dead and I had to go into my secret laboratory to try to keep it alive long enough to reach the closing table. Add mad scientist to my every growing job description. So, as usual, some other folks have already given you the rundown, but that's no reason not to look at the April Home Sales Report numbers the AAKT way.

Let's start with the good news:

Average condo sales price is up.

April '07 - $161,000

April '08 - $164.3

Median condo sales price is up
April '07- $139,900
April '08- $142,900

Now for the not so great, but not so totally unexpected news:

Average sales price for 2 or less BR homes is down.
April '07 - $104,000
April '08 - $90,900

Median sales price for 2 or less BR homes is down.

April '07 - $82,000

April '08 - $79,200

Average sales price for 3 BR homes is down.
April '07 - $168,300
April '08 - $163,600

Median sales price for 3 BR homes is down.

April '07 - $152,000

April '08 - $149,000

Average sales price for 4+ BR homes is down.

April '07 - $327,000

April '08 - $283,700

Median sales price for homes with 4 or more bedrooms is down.
April '07 - $274,400
April '08 - $240,000

Total number of single family unit sales is down.

April '07 - 1416

April '08 - 1144

Total number of condo unit sales is down.

April '07 - 157

April '08 - 147

Days on market is up.

April '07 - 85

April '08 - 100

And here's the "FHA may not be the new sub-prime, but it sure is curiously popular" news:

Number of FHA loans is way, way up.
April '07- 47
April '08- 162

Finally, here's my totally unscientific analysis:

1. The Knoxville condo market would probably survive a nuclear attack and still manage to show decent appreciation.

2. Residential sales are still soft*.

3. The upper price bracket homes are taking the hardest hit.

4. As conventional loan qualifications continue to tighten up, more and more buyers are going FHA.

5. Knoxville buyers are getting some totally sweet deals this spring.

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

Knoxville, Actually

Knoxify, the site concerned with all things great about Knoxville, has put together a little list of blogs and sites they think "exemplify who the real Knoxville is." My humble blog made the cut, and I didn't even have to pay them anything for it. Yet. Thanks guys!

Check out the other guys who made the list and while you're there check out the rest of Knoxify - it's worth your time.

Quote of the Day

"For be it ever so humble, there really is no place like home, even if it does come with a balloon payment mortgage"

- Dr. Austan Goolsbee, in an editorial last year in The New York Times

Neighborhood of the Week: Lake Forest

This week we're going down South across the Henley Street bridge to a lovely little neighborhood called Lake Forest.

Lake Forest is a pretty well-kept secret as far as established Knoxville neighborhoods go and chances are you've driven right by it on your way down Chapman Highway and didn't even know it. Located just northeast of Chapman Highway, the neighborhood is bounded by May Apple to the north, Red Bud Road the the west, and Lindy Road to the east. In other words, if you've passed Kay's Ice Cream, you've gone too far.

Much of Lake Forest is included in the Chapman Highway Dogwood Trail (see map below). Add reasonable home prices, convenience to downtown and campus, and picture perfect views to that selling point, and you see why Lake Forest a very desirable place to call home.

Online information regarding the history of this neighborhood is scarce, so I would appreciate anything anybody can add in the comments. Thanks!



[original map from dogwoodarts.com]

Here's Lake Forest by the numbers -

Lake Forest*

Current On-Market Listings - 7
Average Asking Price: $142,871
Median Asking Price: $134,900
Most Expensive: $204,000 (4 BR, 2 BA, approx 2200 sq ft basement ranch)
Least Expensive: $107,900 (4 BR, 1 1/2 BA, 1400+ sq ft foreclosure)

Current Pending Sales -3
Average Asking Price: $141,600
Median Asking Price: $129,900

Closed Sales - Q1 2007 - 0
Average Asking Price - NA
Average Sales Price - NA
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - NA

Closed Sales - Q1 2008 - 1
Average Asking Price - $144,900
Average Sales Price - $144,704
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 171

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/19/08 does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos, PUDS, or multi-family units.

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

Know of a neighborhood you think is especially NOTW worthy? Don't keep it to yourself - let me know about it in the comments.

Weekly Poll

This week's poll is up (on the left side up at the top), and it involves a topic very near and dear to my heart: open houses. This article says they're on the way out, but I'm not so sure. Open houses have been around for a long time for some pretty substantial reasons: buyers like to go to them, sellers like for agents to hold them, agents like to get prospects from them, and sometimes someone even buys the house because of them. What do you think?

After you vote, you may still feel the need to click on things. Subscribing to this site or following me on Twitter are both good ways to satisfy that craving.

Neighborhood Rental Information

I have a new website obsession and it's called Zilpy. Zilpy is like a hybrid of Zip Skinny and Zillow, but specifically geared toward renters and investors. According to their website:

Zilpy is a free online rental market facts and analysis service dedicated to help you make better rental and investment decisions.

We do exactly what you would do if you had to do the analysis yourself – collect data from all available sources (newspaper classifieds, online classifieds, apartment rentals, etc.) and filter the data based on your criteria (proximity, property type, crime rate, population, income, etc). We do all this heavy lifting for you so that you can concentrate on your real goal: find the right rental property.

Zilpy also answers to the following questions:

• - Where are the cheapest 2 bedroom Condos or Townhouses?
• - How much rent can I get at this specific address?
• - What is the rental trend in a specific area, can I see heat maps?
• - What is the demographic structure (population, age, income) of a specific rental area?

Enter a potential rental address in Zilpy and you'll get a Google map showing other nearby rental properties, complete with their current rents and amenities.; comparable rental properties in the area; and a suggested potential rent for the subject property. You'll also get other information for the area, such as average renter occupancy, vacancy rates and monthly rent affordability. In addition, Zilpy will pull census information for the area, a la Zip Skinny.

While it's not perfect, Zilpy seems like a good tool for both renters and potential landlords. It's also a good way to see how many rentals are in an area you're thinking about moving to.

Out of curiosity, I entered my home address in Kingston Park and was told that I could rent it for $1,425 - anybody looking for a place to live?

Link Round-Up: Deep Thoughts Edition

Are HELOCS the new sub-prime? Calculated Risk

Are FHA loans with payment assistance programs the new sub-prime? MSNBC

Are conventional loans the new sub-prime? WSJ

Am I totally obsessed with what may or may not be the new sub-prime?

Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

Another week, another installment of Foreclosure Watch. This week brings a new feature - handy arrows out to the right of the stats, indicating if the numbers are up or down from last week. I am also going to be experimenting with some different kinds of charts in the coming weeks, and I highly encourage your (constructive) feedback.

I have had some requests for more area specific foreclosure stats. For those of you wanting very specific info - a particular subdivision or neighborhood - send me an email letting me know what you're looking for and I can send it to you on an individual basis. Broader areas, such as North, South, West, and East Knoxville, will be getting their own special installments and/ or charts. I'm still working out how best to do this, and again, any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Remember: I was a liberal arts major.

But enough jibber jabber, let's look at some bank-owned properties, shall we?

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 5/14/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 147 ▼
Average Asking Price: $128,950 ▲
Median Asking Price: $87,900 ▼
Most Expensive New Listing: $ 469,900 (5 BR, 4 1/2 BA, 5900+ sq ft in Powell)
Least Expensive New Listing: $20,000 (2 BR, 1 BA 750+ sq ft in North Knoxville)
New Honorable Mention: $90,000 (3 BR, 2 BA, 1100+ sq ft in Fountain City)

Current Pending Sales -104 ▲
Average Asking Price - $91, 149 ▼
Median Asking Price - $74,900 ▬

Closed Sales May 7, 2008-May 13, 2008 - 9▼
Average Asking Price - $118,432 ▲
Average Sales Price - $114,232 ▲
Median Sales Price - $105,000 ▲
Average Days on Market - 55 ▬




*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/08/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

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

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

Quote of the Day

"There's no doubt that due to the mortgage crisis, everything has tightened up ... A year ago, if you could fog a mirror, you could get a loan."

- Mandy Wachtler, president of the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors in an article in The Tennessean

Hat tip to Josh Flory for the article.

Knoxville Robbed, Size Apparently Matters

Knoxville was robbed. Well, metaphorically robbed, and by our old friend Forbes.com, no less. Remember them? The guys who used to put us on all their lists, calling us the best this and most wonderful that?

Well, Forbes has a new list and although they think that both Nashville and Memphis are among America's best cities for outdoor living, Knoxville didn't even make the cut.

The reason? Well, it's actually only because we're not one of the country's 40 largest cities, which were the only cities Forbes looked at when compiling the list. Apparently, size does matter.

So basically, East Tennessee's natural beauty, the plethora of outdoor activities available here, and the great Smoky Mountains themselves don't mean a thing because we're not "large" like Memphis or Nashville. Phooey. We may not be as big as those guys, but we're sure a lot prettier. Have you ever passed a spring in Memphis? I rest my case.

If you feel like Knoxville was robbed of its spot on this Forbes list due to city size discrimination, why not send a friendly email to the article's author, Rebecca Ruiz , and let her know? And come back here and let me know if you do. Heh.

Neighborhood of the Week: Gettysvue

So far Neighborhood of the Week has only focused on older, historic Knoxville neighborhoods, but it's time to see how the other half lives. This week, I'm going to do a 180 and look at a community of newer, bigger, and more expensive, homes: Gettysvue. I think it would be fair to say that Gettysvue is more than a residential community - it's a lifestyle.

A country club community, Gettysvue includes an 18 hole golf course; polo facilities; two swimming pools and it's own swim team; tennis courts complete with tennis pro; a clubhouse with fitness center and restaurant; various children's camps; and numerous social events throughout the year.

A lot or home purchase in Gettysvue gets you an automatic social country club membership, but golf memberships, though varied, are extra. You can learn more about country club amenities and memberships at the Gettysvue Country Club website.

And while there are condos in Gettysvue, I'm only going to be looking at the houses, and then only on the Polo and Golf side, not the Racquet Club side. With that said, here's Gettysvue by the numbers-


Gettysvue*

Current On-Market Listings - 16
Average Asking Price: $1,346,225
Median Asking Price: $1,294,500
Most Expensive: $2,295,000 (5 BR, 6 1/2 BA, 10,000+ sq ft custom built home with 8 fireplaces)
Least Expensive: $748,500 (4 BR, 4 BA, approx 3700 sq ft, overlooking 11th green)

Current Pending Sales -1
Average Asking Price: $987,500
Median Asking Price: NA

Closed Sales - Q1 2007 - 3
Average Asking Price - $1,004,933
Average Sales Price - $947,700
Median Sales Price - $890,000
Average Days on Market - 142

Closed Sales - Q1 2008 - 3
Average Asking Price - $1,015,667
Average Sales Price - $930,333
Median Sales Price - $1,055,000
Average Days on Market - 150

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/12/08 does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos, PUDS, or multi-family units.

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

Think your neck of the woods is Neighborhood of the Week material? Let me know and you might just see it here next week.

What's Your Neighborhood's Walk Score?

Is your neighborhood walkable? I don't mean taking an afternoon stroll walkable, I mean being able to walk to the grocery store and to restaurants walkable. If you're curious how a neighborhood ranks on the walkability scale, check out Walk Score.

The setup is simple: you enter your address and Walk Score will rate the walkability of your location on a scale of 1-100. Here's the breakdown:

• 90 - 100 = Walkers' Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car.
• 70 - 90 = Very Walkable: It's possible to get by without owning a car.
• 50 - 70 = Some Walkable Locations: Some stores and amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car.
• 25 - 50 = Not Walkable: Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
• 0 - 25 = Driving Only: Virtually no neighborhood destinations within walking range. You can walk from your house to your car!

My home address scored a miserable 14, making it a driving only area. My work address, however, right next to West Town Mall, got a much higher 75.

Unfortunately, one thing Walk Score does not take into account is how pedestrian friendly an area is. For example, in order to walk to some of the businesses that are very close to my office, I would have to cross very busy and very non-pedestrian friendly streets such as Kingston Pike and Montvue - not something I relish doing.

But all walking aside, Walk Score is also simply a nifty way to scope out nearby shopping, parks and restaurants when moving to a new area.

So check out Walk Score - enter your own address and then come back and let me know how walkable your neighborhood is in the comments. Walk on!

Weekly Poll + Super Special Bonus Question

This week's poll is up for you to enjoy at the top left of the page.

And as an extra special bonus this week, I'm asking you guys to answer another, more open-ended, question:

If you could live anywhere in Knoxville, where would it be? A part of town? A specific house? A certain neighborhood? Maybe just a really nice street? Tell me all about where and why in the comments.

And don't forget that while subscribing to All Around K-Town is both fun and free, following me on Twitter is equally cheap and enjoyable.

(Really) Tiny Homes

No, seriously, they're tiny. Like 100 sq ft tiny. And sure, they're environmentally friendly, but I got so claustrophobic watching the video, I had to turn it off. Now I'm getting light headed just thinking about watching it. So go ahead, you try to watch it. I dare you.




A lot of these are portable, so they'll build them and send them out to your little corner of the woods. Just don't invite me over, k? K.

Knoxville Foreclosure Watch

Welcome back, fellow Foreclosure Watchers and thanks for your patience with yesterday's technical difficulties. We're a day late, but not short on foreclosures. Although listings are roughly the same and pendings are down, closings are way up. Oh, and average DOM is way up too. Let's get to the numbers:

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 5/08/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 157
Average Asking Price: $128,732
Median Asking Price: $89,900
Most Expensive New Listing: 4 BR, 2 BA, approx 2400 sq ft in Seven Springs off of Middlebrook
Least Expensive New Listing: 2 BR, 1 BA, approx 1200 sq ft in Mechanicsville
New Honorable Mention: 3 BR, 3 BA on 1.6 acres with 4 car garage in Fountain City

Current Pending Sales -95
Average Asking Price - $94,927
Median Asking Price - $74,900

Closed Sales April 29, 2008-May 6, 2008 - 17
Average Asking Price - $106,929
Average Sales Price - $102,897
Median Sales Price - $97,000
Average Days on Market - 55




*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/08/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

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

I've had some great suggestions on ways to improve Foreclosure Watch - look for some new features and additional FW posts in the very near future! Have your own suggestions? Let me know in the comments.

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

Yes, We Have No Foreclosure Watch Today

Due to technical difficulties on KAARMLS (Knoxville Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service), I will not be able to gather stats for Foreclosure Watch this evening. Tune in tomorrow, and remember, good things come to those who wait.

A Hidden Home You Can't Afford

Did you know there was a 1929 mediteranean style villa on 6+ acres, complete with guest cottage and gated entry less than a mile from West Town Mall? Well don't feel bad, because neither did I and I live right up the road from it.

For those of you who are interested, it's just gone on the market, and can be yours for the low, low price of $975,000. Me thinks that price has more to do with development potential than the 1 1/2 total bathrooms in the place, but take a look and decide for yourself.

If anybody knows any history behind this place, I'd love to hear about it.

Seeing the Light - Solar Power

Ken Baker was good enough to ask me my opinion of solar powered homes and was also nice enough to post my thoughts over on his blog, Ken's Business Musings. The short version of my answer is that solar powered homes are still scarce in this part of the world and buyers aren't exactly clamoring for them...yet.

Check out Ken's article and then come back and let me know what you think. Would you be more attracted to a home with solar power vs. one with all conventional energy systems? Do you think installing solar panels on your current home would be a good investment both in general and also for resale? Any other thoughts or info on solar powered homes? Tell me all about it in the comments.

Neighborhood of the Week: Fourth & Gill

This week we're going just north of downtown to historic Fourth & Gill, a neighborhood steeped in history and rich in architecture. From the Fourth & Gill neighborhood website:

Historic Fourth & Gill is an excellent example of the neighborhoods that flourished in Knoxville during the last quarter of the 19th Century...

The Fourth and Gill area evolved into a tree lined streetcar suburb, made up of a series of separate subdivisions. These subdivisions were designed in a grid pattern with either narrow lots for greater density, or larger tracts more befitting the desires of the city's middle and upper classes. As the subdivision streets met each other, sometimes at odd angles, they formed an almost medieval street pattern. Although the size of the houses was fairly consistent within each area, the lot shapes often were not.

The architectural styles present in the Fourth and Gill Historic Overlay District are a good representation of the residential architecture popular in America between the 1880's and the 1940's...The Fourth and Gill Historic Overlay District features over 280 residential structures, including single family houses, duplexes, and apartment buildings. The district also contains one school and three churches. The houses are primarily of frame construction, with large porches and complex rooflines. Most of the masonry veneer and load bearing construction occurred in the 20th Century. Although a number of different styles exist in the Fourth and Gill Historic Overlay District, the majority are Queen Anne and Craftsmen styles.

Many of the houses were designed by some of Knoxville's most notable architects, including George F. Barber and Joseph Bauman...Historically the area was made up of a varied group of people. Professionals and laborers, families and transients, blacks and whites all lived in close proximity to one another. The neighborhood was home to merchants, mayors and a governor, Robert L. Taylor.

Knoxville annexed the City of North Knoxville in 1897, around the time the automobile was invented. With the decline of the American economy, and Knoxville’s economy, in the late 1920'sd and 1930’s, many of the larger single family residences were converted to duplexes to supplement the income of the property's owners. The real decline of the neighborhood began in force after World War II, when returning soldiers and their families sought new lifestyles in the brand new auto-oriented suburbs. More single family residences were converted into multiple units or small apartments, in part to meet the demands of the growing student body of the University of Tennessee.

Within the last two decades the neighborhood has begun to reclaim much of its former glory. The district's name reflects this effort, being derived from the location of a converted house that serves as the neighborhood center. Owners who could foresee the positive social value of cooperative inner city living have attractively restored many distressed properties to comfortable, modern standards. The Historic Fourth and Gill Neighborhood has a proud past and an equally illustrious future.

Fourth & Gill is just a hop, skip and a jump from downtown and the UT campus and is (normally) easily accessible by I-40 or Broadway. For veggies and organic foodies, the Three Rivers Market is located just across the way on Broadway.

Here's Fourth & Gill by the numbers-

Historic Fourth & Gill*

Current On-Market Listings - 2
Average Asking Price: $262,400
Median Asking Price: NA
Most Expensive: $279,900 (4 BR, 3 1/2 BA, approx 2700 sq ft, 80% renovated)
Least Expensive: $244,900 (3 BR, 2 BA, approx 2100 sq ft renovated Victorian)

Current Pending Sales -1
Average Asking Price: $299,900
Median Asking Price: NA

Closed Sales - Q1 2007 - 5
Average Sales Price - $176,180
Median Sales Price - $155,000
Average Days on Market - 38

Closed Sales - Q1 2008 - 2
Average Sales Price - $220,625
Median Sales Price - NA
Average Days on Market - 39

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 5/05/08 does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos, PUDS, or multi-family units.

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

Think your neighborhood should be a AAKT Neighborhood of the Week? Tell me all about it in the comments.

This Week's Poll

The new weekly poll is available for your voting pleasure. Look for it in the upper left hand corner.

And please don't leave without subscribing. That's just not nice.

Weekend Link Round-Up: Comparative Edition

Foreclosure = bad.
Not being able to find a place to rent after = worse. - The Wall Street Journal

The world's first billion dollar home = wow.
Said home kinda of looking like it's built out of Legos = eh. - Forbes

Real estate agent losing $27,000 in commission=bad.
Agent waiting 3 years to exact $17,000 worth of revenge = totally psycho. - agentgenius

Quote of the Day

"Immediately it's like getting cut...It's sharp and drastic and it's very painful, but in the big picture, it's like surgery. In the long run, you're better off."

- Dale Akins, president of Knoxville research firm The Market Edge, talking about data his company recently released showing a massive drop in Knox County residential building permits in Q1.

Read the full article here.