Gatlinburg Real Estate Blog

For the second time in just the past 3 days, I have had a seller complain to me about gross inaccuracies in the Zillow.com information and value estimate for their listed property. This is far from a new problem, as Zillow has always been an entirely automated system that doesn't actually have a real estate agent or appraiser's direct input.  Sellers want to know where the erroneous information on the website comes from and with good reason as Zillow has now become by some estimates the number one most popular real estate website. While we do advertise on Zillow (because it is so popular with Buyers) we don't actually submit information regarding our listed properties directly to them. Rather, they get a feed from the Multiple Listing Service and this data is then combined with information from various other sources. The most important additional source of information used on the Zillow website is probably our Sevier County courthouse records. Prior sale data, acreage &...

For the second time in just the past 3 days, I have had a seller complain to me about gross inaccuracies in the Zillow.com information and value estimate for their listed property. This is far from a new problem, as Zillow has always been an entirely automated system that doesn't actually have a real estate agent or appraiser's direct input.  Sellers want to know where the erroneous information on the website comes from and with good reason as Zillow has now become by some estimates the number one most popular real estate website. While we do advertise on Zillow (because it is so popular with Buyers) we don't actually submit information regarding our listed properties directly to them. Rather, they get a feed from the Multiple Listing Service and this data is then combined with information from various other sources. The most important additional source of information used on the Zillow website is probably our Sevier County courthouse records. Prior sale data, acreage ...

Although the last couple of months of 2012 in our Smoky Mountain real estate market have been a bit of a disappointment when compared with the very strong results from late 2011, the full year is in fact sharply above last year. In fact, 2012 has been the best year we have seen here in the Gatlinburg real estate market since 2007, when our Sevier County and surrounding area market was still screaming hot. The members of the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors reported through our MLS that 2012 is already 22% ahead of last year, and the final numbers will no doubt be better when all firms have reported their sales. Of course, there are always pockets of better and worse performance, but here is the summary for December (and therefore for all of 2012): There have been some important winners and losers within individual categories of real estate that I have written about recently . If you want my forecast outlook for Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, Kodak, and Cosby real e...

Although the last couple of months of 2012 in our Smoky Mountain real estate market have been a bit of a disappointment when compared with the very strong results from late 2011, the full year is in fact sharply above last year. In fact, 2012 has been the best year we have seen here in the Gatlinburg real estate market since 2007, when our Sevier County and surrounding area market was still screaming hot. The members of the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors reported through our MLS that 2012 is already 22% ahead of last year, and the final numbers will no doubt be better when all firms have reported their sales. Of course, there are always pockets of better and worse performance, but here is the summary for December (and therefore for all of 2012): There have been some important winners and losers within individual categories of real estate that I have written about recently . If you want my forecast outlook for Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, Kodak, and Cosby rea...

At least in relative terms, our market is improving nicely and in a very consistent manner. Although there are 441 single family residences for sale in the south end of Sevier County (composed of the Gatlinburg, Chalet Village, Pittman Center, and Cobbly Nob areas), we have had 235 sales during the past 12 months within these same markets, which calculates to a little under a 2 year supply or absorption rate. While this is still almost FOUR TIMES what is generally considered to be a normal market supply of 6 months, it is down nicely from the 3 plus years supply that we saw last year. This improvement is not limited to the Gatlinburg and surrounding areas either! In fact, when considering the market supply of single family homes for all of Sevier County, the supply is only 1.60 years. Still much too long but NOWHERE near as depressing as the numbers we have seen during the past several years. Why this improvement in the market? The answer is easy - Sales volumes are increasing (June ...

At least in relative terms, our market is improving nicely and in a very consistent manner. Although there are 441 single family residences for sale in the south end of Sevier County (composed of the Gatlinburg, Chalet Village, Pittman Center, and Cobbly Nob areas), we have had 235 sales during the past 12 months within these same markets, which calculates to a little under a 2 year supply or absorption rate. While this is still almost FOUR TIMES what is generally considered to be a normal market supply of 6 months, it is down nicely from the 3 plus years supply that we saw last year. This improvement is not limited to the Gatlinburg and surrounding areas either! In fact, when considering the market supply of single family homes for all of Sevier County, the supply is only 1.60 years. Still much too long but NOWHERE near as depressing as the numbers we have seen during the past several years. Why this improvement in the market? The answer is easy - Sales volumes are increasing (Jun...

Yes, it's a fact. The number of log and log look (cabin construction) homes currently offered for sale in our Sevier County residential real estate market is equal to nearly 4 years. This calculation is based on the number of transactions during the period 10/1/2008 to 9/30/2009. The pace of sales is slowly improving and homes are being purchased each month so this number will hopefully continue to improve. For non log or log look (residential) properties the market is significantly better with the current supply equal to only 2.27 years. The overall Gatlinburg area real estate market continues to be driven primarily by foreclosures and prices are still very tough on sellers. While this is an improvement over where we were a few months ago a balanced market is considered to be a 6 month supply which we are obviously well above. Although 5 of the 15 properties that we listed this month are already pending sales, these 10 recently listed homes are not yet sold . Some are so u...

Yes, it's a fact. The number of log and log look (cabin construction) homes currently offered for sale in our Sevier County residential real estate market is equal to nearly 4 years. This calculation is based on the number of transactions during the period 10/1/2008 to 9/30/2009. The pace of sales is slowly improving and homes are being purchased each month so this number will hopefully continue to improve. For non log or log look (residential) properties the market is significantly better with the current supply equal to only 2.27 years. The overall Gatlinburg area real estate market continues to be driven primarily by foreclosures and prices are still very tough on sellers. While this is an improvement over where we were a few months ago a balanced market is considered to be a 6 month supply which we are obviously well above. Although 5 of the 15 properties that we listed this month are already pending sales, these 10 recently listed homes are not yet sold . Some are so u...

Although the month of February ended on schedule (as it usually does) a larger number of sales than normal were posted after the end of the month. This leads to a pleasant revision of the residential unit sales figures for Gatlinburg area real estate in February. As of tonight, the total number of February home sales for our area as reported by the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors is 64. Because there will likely be just a few more stragglers reporting in it may be that we will NOT set a new low in recent year's sales during a single month. November 2008's multi-year low value of 67 home sales may eventually be matched by February's similarly depressed value. While the revised upward number doesn't sound so good it is significantly better than the original value of 52 which was really sickening even when allowing for some additional sales which we knew would eventually be reported. After a review of all of the past 14 month's sales figures several minor...

Although the month of February ended on schedule (as it usually does) a larger number of sales than normal were posted after the end of the month. This leads to a pleasant revision of the residential unit sales figures for Gatlinburg area real estate in February. As of tonight, the total number of February home sales for our area as reported by the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors is 64. Because there will likely be just a few more stragglers reporting in it may be that we will NOT set a new low in recent year's sales during a single month. November 2008's multi-year low value of 67 home sales may eventually be matched by February's similarly depressed value. While the revised upward number doesn't sound so good it is significantly better than the original value of 52 which was really sickening even when allowing for some additional sales which we knew would eventually be reported. After a review of all of the past 14 month's sales figures several minor...

With February '09 now in the books, at least preliminarily so, November's record low 65 residential Gatlinburg area residential real estate sales count looks as if it will be eclipsed by an even sadder number. Although all sales won't be reported for several days the count, as of this morning the total number of residential sales made by all of the members of the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors during February was only 52. My estimate is that the final number when all sales are tallied will likely be around 60 or so. I know of at least one sale that I made that hasn't been entered into the system by the listing agent so I can say with certainty that we will have at least 53 total sales. I'm not certain what the latest count of agents in our board is but the number last time I heard was about 500. When only 60 sales are posted by the nearly 500 Smoky Mountain real estate agents in our board a LOT of agents went without a sale. In fact, since a few of us ...

With February '09 now in the books, at least preliminarily so, November's record low 65 residential Gatlinburg area residential real estate sales count looks as if it will be eclipsed by an even sadder number. Although all sales won't be reported for several days the count, as of this morning the total number of residential sales made by all of the members of the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors during February was only 52. My estimate is that the final number when all sales are tallied will likely be around 60 or so. I know of at least one sale that I made that hasn't been entered into the system by the listing agent so I can say with certainty that we will have at least 53 total sales. I'm not certain what the latest count of agents in our board is but the number last time I heard was about 500. When only 60 sales are posted by the nearly 500 Smoky Mountain real estate agents in our board a LOT of agents went without a sale. In fact, since a few of us ...

Bargain Cabin Prices! As the news has blared for the past several days, most of our nation's real estate markets are in an absolute turmoil. It makes a lot of sense then that any buyer of Gatlinburg real estate should be very careful to NOT overpay. If a buyer is prudent, he or she can find exceptionally attractive values now. In fact, with prices not seen in several years, it is an incredibly good time to consider Smoky Mountain real estate investments that are real bargains. The following chart shows just how much cabin prices have fallen on average from their unrealistic peak reached in 2007. We analyzed sales from 2007 until now for log and log-look cabins with between 2000 and 3000 square feet of finished space. Each year the number of sales has dropped and prices have also retreated dramatically. Here is the summary chart: While 2009's values are only for the first two months of the year the decline in log and log look home sale prices is staggering. While it is a misera...

Bargain Cabin Prices! As the news has blared for the past several days, most of our nation's real estate markets are in an absolute turmoil. It makes a lot of sense then that any buyer of Gatlinburg real estate should be very careful to NOT overpay. If a buyer is prudent, he or she can find exceptionally attractive values now. In fact, with prices not seen in several years, it is an incredibly good time to consider Smoky Mountain real estate investments that are real bargains. The following chart shows just how much cabin prices have fallen on average from their unrealistic peak reached in 2007. We analyzed sales from 2007 until now for log and log-look cabins with between 2000 and 3000 square feet of finished space. Each year the number of sales has dropped and prices have also retreated dramatically. Here is the summary chart: While 2009's values are only for the first two months of the year the decline in log and log look home sale prices is staggering. While it is a misera...

Closing the Book on 2008 Now that we are nearly half way through January 2009 it is time to look back at the near final numbers for Gatlinburg area real estate sales by all Realtor firms in 2008. Analyzing the data, December, while not a barn burner by any means, was actually the least down when compared to the previous year's same month home sales. Sadly, December 2009's -23% when compared to December 2008 performance was the least down of the year. Overall, 2008's total tally of residential sales of 1408 was 37% below the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors lackluster performance in 2007. December 2008 was actually sharply up from the record breaking miserable count in November 2008 of only 65 units. What does all of this mean? While sales are still below recent year's performance levels buyers are starting to come out of hiding and interest rates are at historic lows. If you have been considering purchasing a Sevier County residence or second home (or any ot...

Closing the Book on 2008 Now that we are nearly half way through January 2009 it is time to look back at the near final numbers for Gatlinburg area real estate sales by all Realtor firms in 2008. Analyzing the data, December, while not a barn burner by any means, was actually the least down when compared to the previous year's same month home sales. Sadly, December 2009's -23% when compared to December 2008 performance was the least down of the year. Overall, 2008's total tally of residential sales of 1408 was 37% below the Great Smoky Mountain Association of Realtors lackluster performance in 2007. December 2008 was actually sharply up from the record breaking miserable count in November 2008 of only 65 units. What does all of this mean? While sales are still below recent year's performance levels buyers are starting to come out of hiding and interest rates are at historic lows. If you have been considering purchasing a Sevier County residence or second home (or any ot...

Look for the Hook Behind the Bait! On an idyllic afternoon a young rainbow brook trout glides effortlessly through the crystal clear river in Gatlinburg when in the periphery of its vision the fish spots something on the surface of the water. The spot dances, hypnotically, moving somewhat independently of the water's flow and the trout's instincts take over. With amazing speed and barely making a ripple the fish darts toward the target, deftly takes it down in his mouth, and heads back toward the safer depths below. Before he can even get what he thought surely was a tasty fly swallowed it becomes clear that something is terribly wrong as he feels the hook set in his jaw. The line (which he NEVER saw until now) goes taut and he is pulled by something he still can't see back toward the surface. Even in the small brain of this beautiful fish the alarms are now screaming as a fight to the death has begun. As the now thoroughly hooked fish struggles to get off the hook the barb...

Look for the Hook Behind the Bait! On an idyllic afternoon a young rainbow brook trout glides effortlessly through the crystal clear river in Gatlinburg when in the periphery of its vision the fish spots something on the surface of the water. The spot dances, hypnotically, moving somewhat independently of the water's flow and the trout's instincts take over. With amazing speed and barely making a ripple the fish darts toward the target, deftly takes it down in his mouth, and heads back toward the safer depths below. Before he can even get what he thought surely was a tasty fly swallowed it becomes clear that something is terribly wrong as he feels the hook set in his jaw. The line (which he NEVER saw until now) goes taut and he is pulled by something he still can't see back toward the surface. Even in the small brain of this beautiful fish the alarms are now screaming as a fight to the death has begun. As the now thoroughly hooked fish struggles to get off the hook the barb...

Goodbye 2008, Hello 2009! While many, if not most agents are glad to see 2008 end it wasn't that bad a year for us . With 52 closed sales totaling over $10 million in volume in 2008 I did manage to feed the family and pay the bills (though I have had better years). Sadly, many Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge/Sevierville area real estate agents were forced to leave the business in 2008 and I strongly suspect that more will exit in 2009 as our market continues to be challenging. On a somewhat happier note the preliminary numbers are in for December 2008 sales and for the first time since May there was a significant month-to-month increase in overall units sold by the members of the Great Smoky Mountains Association of Realtors. The 500 or so area agents combined for a total of 84 residential unit sales in December. While still sharply below the other 10 months of this year the results were superior to November's heartbreaking 65 total home sales. Also, there will likely be a few more ...

Goodbye 2008, Hello 2009! While many, if not most agents are glad to see 2008 end it wasn't that bad a year for us . With 52 closed sales totaling over $10 million in volume in 2008 I did manage to feed the family and pay the bills (though I have had better years). Sadly, many Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge/Sevierville area real estate agents were forced to leave the business in 2008 and I strongly suspect that more will exit in 2009 as our market continues to be challenging. On a somewhat happier note the preliminary numbers are in for December 2008 sales and for the first time since May there was a significant month-to-month increase in overall units sold by the members of the Great Smoky Mountains Association of Realtors. The 500 or so area agents combined for a total of 84 residential unit sales in December. While still sharply below the other 10 months of this year the results were superior to November's heartbreaking 65 total home sales. Also, there will likely be a few more ...