That'll Leave a Mark!

June residential unit sales for the Gatlinburg area real estate market are in and the results aren't really what we were looking for. While June is rarely a barn burner June 2009 residential real estate sales as reported by our Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors are currently showing a total of only 92 homes sold last month by the over 500 members of our board. This total includes condos, cabins, and residences for our Sevier County area as well as parts of some of the adjoining counties such as Jefferson, Cocke, Blount, and Knox. While it is early and more sales will doubtlessly be reported I suspect that the final number won't be much over 100 units sold. If this ends up being true, the small rally we had going the last couple of months is now on hold to say the least. To view my summary of monthly sales in our Gatlinburg real estate market and the surrounding area please click here or to see a slightly different look at the same data.

Wow, What a Rental!!

Some people doubt whether Gatlinburg area log cabins still really rent given the current state of our national economy. While tourism in many areas of the country is definitely down our local visitor count seems to be pretty robust. In fact, some Gatlinburg real estate is doing remarkably well. An excellent example of a superbly performing vacation rental property would be the "Cloud Dancer" log cabin in Cobbly Nob just outside of Gatlinburg.

Cloud Dancer is an extremely attractive Gatlinburg log cabin that was rented by vacationing guests no less than TWENTY NINE DAYS in JUNE! While this is kind of performance cannot be expected every month this spectacular cabin IS on track to rent VERY well this year. If you would like to view this great property online via the rental company's site please click this link. If you like, you can even view the property as it was showcased a couple of years ago on cable TV by clicking here. To see it in person and fully appreciate the fabulous National Park views and craftsman quality construction it offers, please contact us.

We're Batting 444!!

You may have noticed that I haven't posted to this Gatlinburg real estate blog in quite a while and it's because we've been really busy. During the last 20 days I have listed 9 new real estate properties in the Sevier County area. What's really encouraging is that 4 of those 9 new listings are already pending sales. These 4 new pending sales and the 8 other pending sales that we have leads me to believe that July should be an exceptionally good month. After several transactions that should have closed in June being postponed for various reasons I'm looking forward to July possibly being our best month of 2009. Although we've had a couple of months this year when we've had 9 closed transactions I sure would like to hit double digits in July.

Our four newest pending sales are a mix of cabins and residences (2 of each), and include properties in Sevierville, Kodak, Wears Valley and Gatlinburg. They are priced from $165,000 to over $250,000 so there really isn't much of a pattern except for one: They were all aggressively priced and that plus some innovative and effective marketing is what makes the difference. If you'd like us to help you market your Smoky Mountain real estate anywhere in Gatlinburg or the surrounding areas of Sevier County please contact us!

Shame that I have absolutely no athletic ability... If I were a major league baseball player with a batting average of 444 I could play for any team in the league and earn a LOT more money!

The Demise of Simone

A couple of weeks ago I got concrete confirmation that I've been working too hard. Trying to juggle my work, church, and personal responsibilities has always been a challenge but it recently has gotten more than a little out of hand. Of late my wife Karen doesn't like to ride in an automobile with me while I am working because I've recently become a very busy driver. With my blackberry smart phone in one hand, a sheet of paper in the other, and a lot on my mind it doesn't leave much mental bandwith for driving. Because our foreclosure market has recently gotten really hectic the situation has worsened over the last several months to the point where I may need to consider hiring a driver. Sadly, my beloved BMW (named by my wife "Simone") died a tragic and meaningless death earlier this month when I got distracted while driving on a narrow and twisting Sevier County road and hit a large pickup truck head-on near Sevierville. To make matters even worse my former next door neighbor was the innocent party in the accident. Fortunately, both of us escaped with only minor bumps and bruises but both vehicles were without a doubt totalled:

The point of this tale is not so much about Gatlinburg area real estate but just a warning to try not to work so hard that it makes you less than safe behind the wheel. I am going to try and get a little more sleep each night and hopefully my clients will understand if I am a little slower to respond to their phone calls, emails, and text messages. Rest in Peace, Simone...

Houses CAN Pay for Themselves!

We just had a great price reduction on this charming 3 bedroom, 2 bath residence in Sevierville. This starter home, only a few years old, is now priced at $100,000 and it will rent for around $800 per month. With our super low Sevier County real estate taxes (only about $350 total annually!) and affordable insurance rates (less than $500 per year), the total cost of owning this home is very reasonable. With monthly rents of $800 you can net nearly 10% on your investment and that doesn't even allow for any appreciation. Although future appreciation cannot be guaranteed, what else besides real estate do you know that sells for less now than it did 4-5 years ago??

If you would like to learn more about this exceptionally well priced starter or rental investment property please contact us. Click Here to View this Listing

Fraud in Cosby, TN!

Fraud is one of those words that you don't just toss out there without cause. It is highly charged and accusatory but that is simply the way I feel. We recently picked up our 5th foreclosure property listing on the same small street in the Cosby community, about 15 miles east of Gatlinburg. Amet Way will go down in infamy as an example of the greed and excess that was so evident over the past several years. The 12 log-look homes on Amet Way sold for an average price of well over half a million dollars but at least 6 of these homes are now owned by the lenders and more are sure to follow.

While the Maranatha development entrance is very attractive the homes themselves are not very expensively built. They do however have one very remarkable feature. Every single home on this street has a large indoor in ground pool. Sadly, these large homes don't have any permanent arrangement for handling sewage. The story I've heard is almost unbelievable but it is the only tale I have to tell. Supposedly, the developer was going to put in a central septic system to service the entire development as a part of phase 2 of the community. In the meanwhile, the 12 homes in phase one must have their septic tanks emptied regularly because there are no field lines or any other method of handling these homes' waste water and sewage. How this was approved by the Cocke County administrators totally baffles me. Furthermore, the homes really should probably never have appraised for the values that they were sold for. I have been told that there are already lawsuits in process and more are threatened so this will likely be tied up in courts for the foreseeable future.

The moral of the story? As a buyer, make certain that everything you are promised is backed up in writing and that "must have" features are not relegated to a subsequent phase of construction that might never be completed. A lot of people have a lot of egg on their faces and this saga is far from over. If you want to avoid making a very costly mistake consider hireing one of our team members as a Buyer's Agent. We will work on your behalf and it won't cost you anything. For more about Buyer Agency, please refer to our website by clicking here. If you would like to view one of these very special homes please click here.

Strange Subdivision Quirks

In viewing any listing, it is very important to get a feel for the area around the subject property, more often than not this is the subdivision that a home is contained within. In evaluating a recent property for a potential client, I noticed something more than a little odd. This particular upscale subdivision in the Kodak community (at the north end of Sevier County about 20 miles north of Gatlinburg) is nice enough but they are REALLY into decorating their mailbox columns. I guess that this subdivision was built during the heyday of Sevier County real estate development (2005)and maybe money was looser than it is today but these mini-statues mounted on top of the brick mailbox supports really were interesting. Here is what I witnessed:


They started out pretty typical:


And then became just a little whimsical:

But these were followed by some really unique "statuettes". Of course, bear decor is pretty typical in our community and I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that bears were very popular:

And the roots of our Smoky Mountain community are certainly agrarian so it should be no surprise that farm animals were quite popular in this small subdivision: But my personal "favorites" would have to be those of the canine persuasion:

Come to think about it, I may just have to have our wonderful dog Jake immortalized in bronze. On second thought, nah... If you are looking for a wonderful home here in the Gatlinburg area, we can find it, with or without yard statues...

Doctor, It Hurts Here...

If there is one category of our Gatlinburg area real estate market that is currently feeling the most extreme pain it is definitely in the class of lot and land sales. With foreclosures still driving our market most builders are currently huddled in a fetal position or have already left the community for greener pastures elsewhere. Where those better prospects are I don't know but I do know that most of our Sevier County builders are parked with unsold inventory that they have more invested in than the current market will pay. Many spec homes sit idly waiting for a better market and some builders have chosen to rent their unsold homes out to at least earn some income from their investment. Builders are generally the best buyers of lots and in view of the current real estate environment the idea of starting another spec (cabin, chalet, or even primary residence) home is a very unattractive concept indeed.

Last week I was asked to sell a residential lot in the Sevierville area by a local bank that has foreclosed on the property. I explained to the asset manager of the institution that our lot/land market has been very slow and to have any chance of a prompt sale (which banks always want) the property would have to be priced very aggressively. After I viewed the property I started to update my numbers on lot sales and found to my dismay that our Tennessee Smoky Mountain real estate market currently has over a 12 and a half year supply of lots based on the dismal pace of sales over the past year. While I am certain that lot sales will eventually pick up it won't happen until our unsold inventory of spec homes is reduced, either sold by the builder or unfortunately by the bank that financed the construction.

If however you would like a small rural lot exactly two doors down from Dolly Parton's Sevier County farm home please contact us. Priced at just $15,000 you might never have the opportunity to buy Smoky Mountain real estate for less! For more details about this very affordable property almost next door to Sevier County's most famous resident please click here.

A Tale of Two Conversations

Funny how a person's perspective changes everything. I recently spoke with a potential buyer about their opinion of the near-term prospects for our Gatlinburg real estate market. He was very pessimistic, pointing to recent poor auction results of foreclosed property and the abysmal state of our national economy. On both points he was quite accurate and there really was no intelligent argument that I could offer. Then he went on to say that real estate prices were destined to fall another 50% from their already depressed levels and that they would wait for the drop before buying anything.


Not long after this conversation I spoke with a potential seller about our Gatlinburg real estate market and the prospects for selling his Gatlinburg vacation home. Not surprisingly, he had several really good arguments for Tennessee real estate becoming more valuable in the short term future. His reasons were as follows:

• Tennessee is one of only 5 states that has no income tax.


• The cost of living in the Gatlinburg area is very affordable.


• People will continue to flee economically disadvantaged areas like Michigan and other rust-belt states and will come to the stronger economies of the southern states.

All of this is beyond argument as well so with perfectly accurate facts two astute real estate investors have reached diametrically opposing conclusions.

The key is that people will always assume what will benefit them the most. Potential property owners who don't yet own Gatlinburg area real estate propose that prices will drop sharply from their current levels and that the real bargains haven't been seen yet. Investors who already own Sevier County real estate will be more optimistic and are likely to argue that the worst is over and that prices will soon begin to rise. In reality it will never be possible to spot the bottom until prices are on the way back up and the low point has already been missed.

I myself believe that we have likely pretty much seen the worst already and that most, if not all of the price drop in Gatlinburg area real estate has already occurred. The economic shenanigans of Washington will eventually produce very significant if not massive inflation which will naturally cause hard assets (such as real estate) to appreciate nicely. In that event, all real estate values nationally should increase including those here in East Tennessee. Of course, I do personally own a lot of Sevier County real estate which might tend to color my opinion somewhat...

It's Nice to Be On Top!

In my analysis today of our Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge/Sevierville real estate market sales for the month of May I came across a very pleasant fact:

For the first 5 months of 2009, yours truly is NUMBER ONE in total unit sales among all of the 500+ agents in our Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors. Really, I'm not kidding - Here is the link to the year to date ranking based on the total number of units sold:

Year-to-Date Agent Ranking

The number one position in the report is claimed by "All other agents combined" which is just a little confusing. If any real estate agent who is not a member of our local board (say from Knoxville or some other surrounding community) makes a sale here those are all lumped together in this "catch all" category. You will also note that two of our team's three buyer specialists on our Schoenfield Team were also in the top 50 of all area agents. This is important because many (if not most) other Gatlinburg area real estate teams report all of their sales under the team leader's name while we choose to report our sales individually giving credit where credit is due. If you combine my sales with those of the rest of our team we are even more clearly leading the pack. The market leading performance we have enjoyed is actually a testimony to the hard working members of our team, both licensed and the folks in the office who do most of the heavy lifting for us. As is true on a football team, the really tough work is done in the trenches by people who don't get much credit or glory even though they often work the hardest. To all of our team members, thanks for your hard work! For market leading performance when buying or selling Gatlinburg area real estate, please contact us!

May Sales Are In

With the usual warning that not all transactions have yet been reported the preliminary numbers for May 2009 Gatlinburg area real estate sales are now in. You can view my latest update to the table by clicking here.

Although May's total represents the best performance so far this year it is only better than previous months by a rather slim margin so we aren't breaking out the champagne just yet. Still, "better" is better than worse and I believe that you should NEVER challenge "worse". Challenging worse is when someone says something like "Well, it can't get any worse than this" which usually leads to much pain as "worse" frequently wins.

The brightest spot in my analysis of our Smoky Mountain real estate is that buyers are surfacing and new construction has pretty much halted. Both of these had to occur before volume could improve or home prices go up. With the historically low mortgage rates currently available to buyers with good credit and a reasonable down payment and prices very attractive compared to the levels seen a few years ago it is no wonder that our market is showing small signs of improvement.

We are still facing the downward pressure of real estate foreclosures and this will likely continue for the near future. Still, great values are available and now is certainly the best opportunity to purchase Gatlinburg area real estate that I have seen in my nearly 15 years in this market. For more information about any property here, please contact us!

Too Busy to Post, Again!!

After writing only 4 posts to this Gatlinburg real estate blog during the entire month of April I made a commitment to doing better this month. Although I did get several articles written during the first week of May it seems that I haven't created anything in the last week. The reason for my inability to write is that I have been blessed with 14 transactions during the past 30 days and there simply aren't enough hours in the day. While there are several people out there to whom I have promised work to that is still undone sales ARE how we feed our family. Here is the year to date sales ranking based on the Great Smoky Mountains Association of Realtors MLS database for the period January 1, 2009 to May 13, 2009. This report is compiled by totalling all sales in all categories of real estate (homes, commercial, land, etc.) here in the Smoky Mountains. If you view the link above you will see that our company, RE/MAX All Pro, Realtors, Inc., is again Number One in total sales volume among all of the firms in our board. It is because of the hard work and commitment to excellence by the hardworking agents, assistants, and employees of our firm that we have enjoyed the success shown on the sales ranking report.

If you would like the same professionals to work to assist you in the purchase or sale of Smoky Mountain real estate please contact me.

April's Sales Surpass March's for the First Time Since 2005

Oddly enough, April is usually a bit of a downer in our Gatlinburg area real estate market. We normally have a few LESS sales in April than we do in March but in 2009 that trend has been reversed. While the difference is scant, we are now ahead of March's residential sales total of 102 units with our revised total of 103. Looking at the chart below you can see that we haven't had that sort of result since 2005 which was a record breaking year and the high water market for our Smoky Mountain real estate market. Now if we could just post numbers above the same months totals for last year!!

Building an Ocean Liner in the Mountains?

Although it HAS rained a lot in the Gatlinburg area recently I didn't think it was reason for much concern but then I saw that progress on Pigeon Forge's newest attraction, the $25 million Titanic Museum, is really coming along. While this huge ship wouldn't make a good ark and won't ever even float the project is extremely impressive. Here is the photo I took this morning of the site as I drove by: Construction is progressing (when it doesn't rain) and the Pigeon Forge Titanic Museum is slated to open during the spring of next year. Although the christening of the ship may be delayed if it continues to rain the project will eventually look something like this artist's rendition:This is exactly the sort of major attraction that will complement our rapidly growing area so well. While we probably have more than enough music theatres this will add a full day's activity for vacationers. Another day's vacation equals more lodging nights, more restaurant meals, and more sales tax revenue for the county all of which is very good news. It is my understanding that several Sevier County located chain-type businesses are the best or near the best performing in their entire systems. With 11-12 million visitors annually and a great track record the Titanic may just be the first of several big-time venues coming to the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge, Sevierville area and all of this simply benefits real estate owners here. More jobs, more visitors, and more revenue is just what we are looking for as a community. For many more photos of the Titanic Museum in Pigeon Forge project and much more information please refer to their excellent pre-opening information site.

My Wife's Dream Home

It was that time of year again last weekend when my lovely wife Karen is switching out her winter wardrobe in favor of her summer clothes. For the rest of this post to make any sense at all you have to understand that my bride has more clothes than the law should allow. Always in fashion, Karen has an outfit for every possible occasion and more likely than not more than one. Twice a year a multi-day "intra house" move occurs where clothes are shuttled up from the basement replacing the items that have spent the previous season in her multiple closets. Most people have "His and Hers" closets, we have "Hers and Hers" at our home - You get the idea.

When the seasonal change happens, it's best for me to just try and stay out of the way other than offering an occasional "Would you like me to take this box up/down for you?". It is a huge undertaking and if you haven't actually seen the immense size of my spouse's wardrobe you just wouldn't believe it. I truly think that we could retire by now if not for my wife's clothing addiction.

Now, finally, to the point of this meandering post. My wife's dream home would be a ridiculously large closet adjoining an impossibly large master bedroom with a truly minute kitchen. When someone asks me what my wife likes most to make my answer is always "Reservations". While some people are very domestic and love to cook, for Karen it is a fairly rare occurrence. The joke where a wife can't remember the name of the kitchen calls it "The room where those catering people work" may have been made up by someone who was married to a person a lot like my wonderful wife.

For another person, a true cook's kitchen with a Viking stove, a Sub-Zero refrigerator and a large island with a completely filled and massive pot and pan rack above would be perfect. For still another, maybe a professional grade home gym or a massive home theatre would be just the ticket.

What would my dream home look like? Possibly a 6 car garage would be the focal point of my fantasy home's design. My point is that all of us are as individual as can be and no one design or floor plan fits all or even many of us. With the number of homes for sale right now at great prices, now is the time to get what you want. Builder's are anxious, developers are in a financial coma, and a lot of Realtors are pretty hungry too. If however you aren't in one of these professions you may be able to purchase a home now for 25% less than it would have cost a couple of years ago. If you are considering a log vacation home, the price reductions are even more striking, with some foreclosure properties selling for only around half of what they were selling for 3 years ago.

If you would like our help in finding the perfect home for your lifestyle, please contact us. With prices at multi-year lows and mortgage rates at all-time lows there may never be a better time to buy your dream home!