I owe you guys an apology. These past few months, I’ve been so busy selling you homes that you actually can afford, that I’ve totally neglected to blog about all of the cool homes you can’t afford. Lame, right? Well, today is the day I finally get my priorities back in order and get some high dollar Knoxville real estate back on AAKT.

But before we start drooling over luxury homes, let’s take a quick look at some basic Cool Homes You Can’t Afford stats  -

Homes Currently Listed in Knox Co. for $1,000,000+ - 90
Average square footage - 6184
Average bedrooms - 4
Average bathrooms -4 1/2

The most expensive home listing currently on the market in Knoxville is this 12,000+ sq ft, 5 BR, 5 full bah, 4 1/2 BA home that I highlighted in the very first edition of CHYCA way back in April. I guess the $4,375,000 price tag is a little steep for most folks, not to mention the $13,000+ in annual county taxes.

The low man on the CHYCA totem pole is this 4 BR, 4 BA, 4000+ sq ft new construction plantation style home in The Battery in Farragut. According to the listing sheet the private gate is optional. Sweet. Asking price: $1,075,000.

And now for a few of my personal faves -

Let’s start with this 4 BR, 3 full bath, 2 half bath, 4100+ sq ft home with lake and mountain views on 5+ acres on Maloney Rd. Luxury features include slate roof, walnut paneled walls, and curved staircases. Asking price: $1,200,000

Or if you prefer something a little newer, there’s this 5 BR, 4 full bath, 3 half bath, 6500+ sq ft home on Lyons Bend that includes its own saline pool and  stocked fishing pond with dock. Asking price: $2,395,000

If historic homes are more your bad, check out this 4 BR, 3 1/2 BA, 4100+ sq ft classic Mediterranean style lakefront home on Cherokee Blvd in Sequoyah Hills. The home is 78 years old and has been completely renovated with all new baths and gourmet kitchen. Asking price: $1,895,000

Wanna live across the street from Bruce Pearl? Then this 6 BR, 7 1/2 BA, 8000+ sq ft home in Gettysvue would be perfect for you. Features include swimming pool & pool house; elevator; piano room in turret; and wine cellar. Asking price: $1,999,000

Well, that’s all for this edition of Cool Homes You Can’t Afford. If you see anything here that you just have to have for Christmas, you know which of Santa’s little helpers to call. And yeah, I’d even put on an elf hat to make that sale.

Gobble, gobble, Watchers and welcome to the Thanksgiving edition of Foreclosure Watch. Since Thanksgiving is as much about giving thanks as it is about filling your belly with turkey, I’d like to take a moment before I get down to business to thank all of you who stop by each and every week to help me keep an eye on these bank owned properties. Seriously, you guys are the best!

Now let’s talk turkey. This week active listings continue what seems like their ever upward climb, while pendings are slightly down and closings are up by one.

In new listing news, 37918 was the winner this week with 4 new ones. Zips with more than one new lising included 37721, 37849, 37912, 37920 and 37921. 37914 is still the new foreclosure champ with 62 so far since July,  but 37917 is breathing down its neck with 60.

There were 10 closed foreclosure listings last week with 2 each in 37917 and 37931 and 1 each in 37912, 37914, 37918, 37919, 37931, and 37938.

Now for the breakdown -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 11/26/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 189
Average Asking Price: $138,611
Median Asking Price: $99,900
Most Expensive New Listing: $439,900 (5 BR, 3 1/2 BA, 4100+ sq ft in Wellsley Park)
Least Expensive New Listing: $25,000 (3 BR, 1 BA, 1200+ sq ft in South Knox)

Notable New Listings:
North: $153,900 (3 BR, 2 1/2 BA, 2000+ sq ft in Halls)
South: $98,900 (3 BR, 1 1/2 BA, 1100+ sq ft in Lake Forest)
East: $104,500 (3 BR, 2 BA, 1500+ sq ft in Carter)
West: $179,900 (5 BR, 3 BA, 2500+ sq ft in Karns)

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Current Pending Sales -116
Average Asking Price - $93,752
Median Asking Price - $74,900

Closed Sales November 19, 2008-November 25, 2008 - 10
Average Asking Price - $108,880
Average Sales Price - $104,115
Median Sales Price - $96,500
Average Days on Market -75

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 11/26/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

As always, if you need more information on any of these properties, just drop me a line.

If you’d like to receive new foreclosure listings automatically, send me an email with “Foreclosure List” in the subject line, and I’ll do the rest. There’s no spam served at my Thanksgiving table.

Why take the chance of ever missing out on Foreclosure Watch? Make sure you get all your foreclosure goodness every week by subscribing to All Around K-Town today, either by RSS or email!

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

This week, Neighborhood of the Week revisits one of West Knoxville oldest and finest neighborhoods, Sequoyah Hills.

Located off of Kingston Pike just a few miles west of the University of Tennessee campus, Sequoyah Hills sits in a bend of the Tennessee river and is known around town for its large, tree-lined main boulevard, its gorgeous lake views, its awesome parks, and its very expensive homes.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

Sequoyah Hills proper dates back to around 1920 and the Kingston Pike Sequoyah Hills Association has a pretty thorough history of the development of the area from that time to present.

Like many neighborhoods that are developed over several decades,  Sequoyah Hills is very architecturally diverse. Styles include everything from English Tudor, English Cottage, and American Colonial to fifites and sixties ranchers, contemporary Frank Lloyed Wright inspired homes, and newer traditional homes.

Much like Holston Hills to the east, construction of larger homes came to a halt at the start of the Great Depression and homes built during and after the war tended to be more modest cottage style homes, so home sizes - and prices -  are also quite diverse in the neighborhood.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

Sequoyah Hills is home to the George Berber designed Sequoyah School (now a public K-5 school), the Sequoyah branch of the Knoxville public library, Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church, Blackbird Coffeehouse, Sequoyah Hills Park and the Sequoyah Greenway.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

Sequoyah Hills is easily accessible via Kingston Pike and I-40 and is a 5-10 minute drive to downtown or UT campus.

So if you’re looking for a historic home in a fairly self-contained community on the west side of town and have a good bit of money to spend, Sequoyah Hills might be a good place to hang your hat.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

Here’s Sequoyah Hills by the numbers -

Sequoyah Hills*

Current On-Market Listings - 37
Average Asking Price: $750,673
Median Asking Price: $579,000
Average Square Footage: 3825
Most Expensive Listing: $3,389,000 (6 BR, 4 BA, 3 half bath, 7700+ sq ft on 1.3 acres)
Least Expensive Listing: $248,900 (4 BR, 2 BA, 1700+ sq ft Bruce McCarty home)
Middle of the Road: $558,000 (4 BR, 3 BA, 3300+ sq ft ranch)

Current Pending Sales -2
Average Asking Price - $489,500
Median Asking Price - NA

Closed Sales - 3rd Quarter 2008 - 9
Average Sales Price - $594,722
Median Sales Price - $398,000
Average Days on Market -133

Closed Sales - 3rd Quarter 2007 - 10
Average Sales Price - $388,600
Median Sales Price - $345,000
Average Days on Market -92

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 11/24/08 for Sequoyah Hills proper, and does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos, PUDS or multi-family units.

As always, if you want any more information about any of these properties, or if you’d like to check one of them out in person, just give me a shout.

If you would like to receive a full list of properties for sale in this neighborhood, or if you would like to be notified of new listings, send me an email with either “Current Sequoyah Hills Listings” or “New Sequoyah Hills Listings” in the subject line and I’ll take care of the rest. Spam is not where it’s at.

Have I missed your neighborhood? Let me know about it and you might just see it featured here in the coming weeks.

The weekly poll is freezing cold. Go vote and try to warm it up a little.

This week’s topic is something has to do with your thermostat and where you set it in the winter when you’re at home.  It’s been pretty darn chilly lately, which means we’ve all been turning the heat up. But this winter turning up the heat may cost you a good bit more than it did last year, thanks to KUB’s recent 20%  rate hike on electricity.

So what about you?  Are you putting on a sweater and leaving that dial on 60 or crankin’ it up to 80 and pretending to have Christmas in July? Cast your vote and let me know.

Don’t get left out in the cold. Get the latest news on the Knoxville real estate market all year round- subscribe to All Around KTown in a feed reader or by email today!

photo credit: mulmatsherm

Happy Hump Day, Watchers! This week I’m mixing things up a little bit and putting the Foreclosure Watch chart at the top of the post, because I want you to take a close look at those little blue and red lines on it -

You see, that blue line represents the active foreclosure listings and it’s been on a more or less steady climb since September. The red line is pending listings and it started its own ascent in October.  And that little orange line, the closings, is pretty much holding steady.

Now, the rising active and pending listings I maybe understand. Those rising lines roughly coincide with the Great Economic Meltdown of 2008. I can see some cause and effect there. But here’s what I don’t get:  if pendings are going up, shouldn’t it logically follow that closings should be going up too? Is it possible some of those pending sales are falling apart before they reach the closing table due to financing or inspection or both? Or are they just taking a really long time to close, causing a delay in the upward movement of closed listings? There was a little bit of bump up in closings this week, but we’ll have to keep watching to see if that’s going to be a trend or not.

At any rate, if any of you have any thoughts or observations on any of those little colorful lines, I’d love to hear them in the comments. Now back to the regular stuff -

In new listing news, 37920 had the most with 5 new ones last week. Other zips with more than one new listing included 37914, 37917, 37921, 37922, 37923, 37924, 37931, and 37934.  37914 is still in the lead with 61 new listings since I started keeping track in July, and 37934 joined the double digit club with 10 new listings so far.

There were 9 closed listings: two in 37721 and one each in 37909, 37912, 37914, 37917, 37918, 37920, and 37921. : 37917 has had the most closings since I started keeping tally in September, with a total so far of 12.

Now for the breakdown -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 11/19/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 183
Average Asking Price: $140,591
Median Asking Price: $99,900
Most Expensive New Listing: $498,000 (4 BR, 4 BA, 4200+ sq ft in Brixworth in Farragut)
Least Expensive New Listing: $16,900 (2 BR, 1 BA, 800+ sq ft off of Heiskell Ave)

Notable New Listings:
North: $332,500 (4 BR, 4 BA, 4000+ sq ft on 2.5 acres in Fountain City)
South: $240,000 (3 BR, 2 BA, 2400+ sq ft in Lakemoor Hills)
East: $169,900 (4 BR, 2 1/2 BA, 1600+ sq ft cape cod in Carter)
West: $149,900 (3 BR, 2 1/2 BA, 1600+ sq ft in The Colonies)

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Current Pending Sales -122
Average Asking Price - $97,380
Median Asking Price - $84,450

Closed Sales November 12, 2008-November 18, 2008 - 9
Average Asking Price - $93,078
Average Sales Price - $85,308
Median Sales Price - $39,000
Average Days on Market -93

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 11/19/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

As always, if you need more information on any of these properties, just drop me a line.

If you’d like to receive new foreclosure listings automatically, send me an email with “Foreclosure List” in the subject line, and I’ll do the rest. Spam’s not part of the deal.

Why take the chance of ever missing out on Foreclosure Watch? Make sure you get all your foreclosure goodness every week by subscribing to All Around K-Town today, either by RSS or email!

It’s already the middle of the month again, and you know what that means - Home Sales Report time!

So, remember October 2008? You know, the month we learned this all financial mess was spreading to Europe and beyond? The month that President Bush signed that $700 billion bailout package into law and then the Dow went and had its worst week on record anyway? The month when looking at your 401K was scarier than any Halloween haunted house in town?  Yep, that’s the October I’m talkin’ about.

So how did the Knoxville home market fare through all of October’s financial hullabaloo? Allow me to break it down for you the only way I know how — All Around KTown style. Word.

You know I like to start with the good news first  -

Average sales price for 2 or less BR homes is up.
Oct ‘07 - $82,700
Oct ‘08 - $93,000

Median sales price for 2 or less BR homes is up.
Oct ‘07 - $66,000
Oct ‘08 - $78,000

And that’s it for the good news. But hey, at least there was some this month. Now for the not so good news -

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

This week, Neighborhood of the Week heads back out to Farragut to look at a relatively new subdivision called Inverness.

Located just off of Turkey Creek Road, Inverness is a newer community - about 5 years old - that is still in the process of being built out. There are several newly constructed homes available as well as the occasional resale.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

But Inverness has more going for it than being new and in Farragut. The neighborhood also features a community clubhouse, a pool, acres of undeveloped open space, and walking trails that tie in to the Farragut Greenway system.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

Inverness is easily accessible via I-40, I-140, and Kingston Pike. It’s about 1/2 mile from Anchor Park and only 3 miles to all the shopping you can handle in Turkey Creek.

So if you’re looking for a new or newer home in Farragut that has easy access to a pool, parks, walking trails, and shopping, look no further than Inverness.

© 2008 Robert Stockdale Photography, All Rights Reserved.

Here’s Inverness by the numbers -

Inverness*

Current On-Market Listings - 6
Average Asking Price: $326,250
Median Asking Price: $326,400
Average Square Footage: 2335
Most Expensive Listing: $382,900 (3 BR, 2 1/2 BA, 2600+ sq ft new construction)
Least Expensive Listing: $279,900 (3 BR, 2 1/2 BA, 2000+ sq ft resale)
Middle of the Road: $324,900 (3 BR, 2 BA, 2100+ sq ft new construction)

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

Closed Sales - 3rd Quarter 2008 - 4
Average Sales Price - $353,234
Median Sales Price - $353,216
Average Days on Market -73

Closed Sales - 3rd Quarter 2007 - 10
Average Sales Price - $344,108
Median Sales Price - $342,717
Average Days on Market -75

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 11/17/08 for Island Home proper, and does not include adjacent subdivisions, condos, PUDS or multi-family units.

As always, if you want any more information about any of these properties, or if you’d like to check one of them out in person, just give me a shout.

If you would like to receive a full list of properties for sale in this neighborhood, or if you would like to be notified of new listings, send me an email with either “Current Inverness Listings” or “New Inverness Listings” in the subject line and I’ll take care of the rest. Spam is just plain tacky.

Know a great neighborhood you think has NOTW potential? Let me know about it and you might just see it featured here in the coming weeks.

The weekly poll is ready and waiting for your vote. And you know it doesn’t like to be kept waiting.

This week’s topic is mortgage modification programs, several of which were announced this week. Citigoup’s program aims to not only halt 16,000 foreclosures that are currently in progress, but also looks to help homeowners who are in danger of defaulting but have not yet done so. Meanwhile, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac unveiled a plan that they say will help hundreds of thousands of homeowners who are currently past due on their mortgage payments by enabling them to receive more affordable loans.

So what do you think? Are these programs a good idea, not enough, or too little too late? Cast your vote and let me know.

You don’t need a fancy bailout plan to get the latest news on the Knoxville real estate market  - just subscribe to All Around KTown in a feed reader or by email today!

photo credit: respres

It’s that time again, Watchers. This week on Foreclosure Watch, active listings are up a good bit, while both pendings and closings are down. And not only were closings down this week, the average closed price was way down, thanks to all closings coming from homes listed under $100,000. Hmmmm.

In new listing news, 37918 & 37921 tied for the most new listings with 5 each. Other zips with more than one new listing included 37914, 37915, 37917, 37922, and 37931.  37931, incidentally, joined the double digit club with a total of 11 new listings since I started keeping count in July. 37914 maintains its first place position with 59 total new listings since mid-July.

There were only four closed listings: two in 37917 and one each in 37912 and 37918. : 37917 has had the most closings since I started keeping tally in September, with a total so far of 11.

Now for the breakdown -

Knox County Foreclosure Property Statistics as of 11/12/08 *

Current On-Market Listings - 186
Average Asking Price: $138,565
Median Asking Price: $99,646
Most Expensive New Listing: $332,500 (4 BR, 4 BA, 4000+ sq ft on 2.5 acres in Gibbs)
Least Expensive New Listing: $24,900 (4 BR, 2 BA, 1400+ sq ft on Cecil in North Knox)

Notable New Listings:
North: $59,900 (3 BR, 1 BA, 1100+ sq ft cottage on Lawson)
South: No new south listings!
East: $39,900 (2 BR, 1 1/2 BA, 1100+ sq ft cottage off of Rutledge Pike)
West: $270,000 (3 BR, 3 BA, 2700+ sq ft home in Bayou Bend)

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Current Pending Sales -110
Average Asking Price - $90,871
Median Asking Price - $76,400

Closed Sales November 05, 2008-November 11, 2008 - 4
Average Asking Price - $45,975
Average Sales Price - $42,500
Median Sales Price - $40,500
Average Days on Market -70

*Data taken from KAARMLS on 11/12/08 for Knox County single family residential properties only, and does not include condos or PUDS.

As always, if you need more information on any of these properties, just drop me a line.

If you’d like to receive new foreclosure listings automatically, send me an email with “Foreclosure List” in the subject line, and I’ll do the rest. Spam is a four letter word.

Why take the chance of ever missing out on Foreclosure Watch? Make sure you get all your foreclosure goodness every week by subscribing to All Around K-Town today, either by RSS or email!

One of my clients, Patrick Beeson, has written a great post on his personal blog about his experience looking for a home - his first - in Knoxville.  It’s a great read for anyone looking to buy a home in K-Town. Check it out!