If you are thinking of buying a home or a car, most of us will be using credit. Our credit score can not only effect whether or not we will be approved but also if we get the best terms. A big question I hear is, “will multiple lenders pulling my credit lower my credit score?”. The answer is a conditional no. Watch the video as Jordan Goldberg from Credit Plus explains why. For answers to other real estate related questions contact me, Troy Stavros with Gables & Gates, REALTORS and I’ll be happy to assist in anyway that I can.
Knoxville Real Estate Market Update Through June
It’s always good to see how the Knoxville real estate market is trending when you are thinking about selling or buying a home in Knoxville. Let’s take a look at the interesting trends I’ve found in the Knoxville real estate market, by studying the home sale data through the month of June.
- Compared to the month of June of last year, the luxury price point over $500,000 has seen a 72.2% increase in sales. Year to date the same price point has seen a 37.9% increase in homes sold.
- Homes price between $400,000-$499,999 saw a 35.1% increase since the same month last year and a 18.1% year to date increase in homes sold.
- Coinciding with the sold numbers, homes pending sale are also trending in the luxury sector with a 48.5% increase from June of last year and 50.3% increase year to date for homes over $500,000. Homes pending a sale in the $400,000-$499,999 range have seen a 26.5% increase from last June and 36.4% year to date increase.
- Trends are showing us that stricter lending standards are limiting the sales in the price points under $100,000, with multiple pricing categories under $100K being down quite a bit both year over year and year to date.
- Total inventory is down 12% compared to last June and is also down 5.6% year to date with the thinnest inventory being $140,000 and below.
- Typically one of the best selling price points, $250,000-$299,999 is showing sluggish sales most likely from a lack of inventory. Home sales in this price point are down 2.9% from June last year and 7.9% year to date, with inventory being down 9.5% from last year and 4.8% year to date.
- The reduced inventory levels are putting the law of supply and demand in effect as witnessed by a 13.99% year over year increase in the average sales price and a 5.24% increase in the average sales price year to date. Another factor showing demand is the amount of time it is taking for homes to sell. Average days on the market has decreased 32.87% year over year and 28.57% year to date. Average days on the market in June across all pricing categories was 96 days and the average for 2014 is 105 days.
What does this information mean for you, as someone possibly looking to sell your home in Knoxville or buy a home in Knoxville? As a seller, low inventory levels mean that this is a great time to put your home on the market, as there is less competition. Also the law of supply and demand tells us that less inventory is pushing prices higher. As a buyer, buying a home in a low inventory home market means, you need to be less aggressive with your offers as there is increased competition in the marketplace. Making low offers or hesitating too long in deciding to make an offer will most likely cause you to lose out on desirable homes, as they will be snapped up by competing buyers.
Thinking about selling and wondering how much your Knoxville home might be worth? CLICK HERE for an instant estimate.
For more information or to discuss your personal goals in selling or buying a home in Knoxville, contact me, Troy Stavros with Gables & Gates, REALTORS today.
The Hot Season To Buy Or Sell A Home In Knoxville Is Upon Us!
Whether you are in a warm weather market, cold weather market, or a high tourist seasonal market, you will see the hot time of the year to buy and sell a home ebb and flow throughout the year. There will be times of the year that will slow down and others will take off. Locally, we are about to step into the busiest time of year to buy and sell a home in Knoxville. As evidenced by the graphics below, we typically see a drop in sales volume, sales price, and inventory throughout the winter months. Then once we hit February or March, the trend does an about face and the number of homes sold increases, along with the prices of those homes and the number of homes available.
What does this mean for you?
- If you are looking to sell a home in Knoxville, there is good news and not so good news. The good news is, the odds of selling your home will increase along with the odds of selling it for a higher price. The not so good news is you will have more competition.
- Seller’s takeaway: Get your home on the market as soon as possible, before more competition hits the market alongside of you.
- If you are looking to buy a home in Knoxville, the good news is you should be seeing more options hit the market as inventory increases. The bad news is that you will most likely be looking at higher prices and more competition for homes as well.
- Buyer’s takeaway: Start looking today and when you find the right home don’t mess around. Waiting too long or submitting low offers will invite additional offers in to compete against you.
If you are even considering buying or selling a home in Knoxville in the near future, contact me, Troy Stavros with Gables & Gates, REALTORS, to sit down and plan out your strategy for achieving your Knoxville real estate goals. I look forward to talking with you!
What Will A 1% Difference In Your Mortgage Rate Save You?
If you are in the process of buying a home in Knoxville or at least thinking about it, financing is also on your mind. Unless you are planning to pay cash, you’re going to want to find the best deal and the lowest mortgage rate. Knoxville mortgage rates can vary from lender to lender and also vary widely according to the type of mortgage and the length of the term.
“Although the difference in monthly payment between a 4.5 percent interest rate and a 5.5 percent interest is not as dramatic, your savings in interest paid over the life of the loan is significant,” said Erin Lantz, director of Zillow Mortgage Marketplace. “Mortgage rates will likely rise to 5 percent by the end of 2014 due to an improving economy and policy changes by the Federal Reserve. By buying a house while interest rates are still incredibly low, you could end up saving more than $52,000 over the course of 30 years.”
What Are The Steps To Buying A Home in Knoxville?
What are the steps to buying a home in Knoxville? While the process may be a bit intimidating, if you follow these steps it can be a fun and super rewarding experience. Once you start skipping steps, you will find the process gets more difficult. Here are the 12 steps to buying a home in Knoxville:
- Step 1: Sit down with a real estate agent to discuss and analyze your wants and needs. This very important step can set the tone for the success of your home search.
- Step 2: You and your Knoxville real estate agent establish a working relationship with each other. You are officially a team!
- Step 3: You speak with a lender and get pre-approved for financing. This important step will help guide you so you make sure you are looking at homes you can afford. The other option if you have the ability, is to pay cash.
- Step 4: This is where the fun begins! This is when you and your dedicated buyer specialist venture out in search of your next home.
- Step 5: You’ve found that special place you want to call your Knoxville home.
- Step 6: You sit down with your Knoxville real estate agent to write up an offer, you write a check for your escrow deposit, and your agent gets the offer presented to the seller. Negotiations begin.
- Step 7: The seller accepts your offer. Hurray! At this time you begin the home inspection process and work on removing any contingencies in your offer.
- Step 8: You complete your full mortgage application. This includes the lender pulling your full credit report, ordering an appraisal on the home you are buying, and verifying your employment and finances.
- Step 9: Your loan goes into underwriting. This is where the final decision is made on whether you get loan approval. Underwriting can approve your loan, reject your loan, or give you additional conditions to meet in order to approve the loan.
- Step 10: Your loan has been approved and the file is sent to the Title Company or Closing Attorney to complete a Title Examination on the home your purchasing as well as setup your insurance and in some states complete a survey.
- Step 11: All of the documentation is pulled together for closing day.
- Step 12. It’s closing day! You meet to bring your down payment money, sign all of the loan documents, and get the keys to your new home. Let moving day begin!
To discuss buying a home in Knoxville or to get any answers about any of these steps, contact me, Troy Stavros, with Gables & Gates, REALTORS at 865-999-0925 or by clicking here.
Fannie Mae Offering 3.5% in Closing Costs To Buyers
UPDATE: Fannie Mae has announced that they are extending the program from their initial deadline. Now, initial offers must be submitted by the deadline of April 30, 2014, to be eligible for the incentive. Sales must close on or before June 30, 2014.
On Thursday, Fannie Mae announced that they will begin offering qualified buyers an incentive of 3.5% of the final sales price to assist them in paying closing costs. The incentive can be used on Fannie Mae owned properties (foreclosures). To be eligible for the incentive, buyers must submit their initial offers between February 14th and March 31st, and the home must go to closing on or before May 31st, 2014.
Jay Ryan, Vice President of REO Sales at Fannie Mae stated, “This incentive will provide more opportunities for families to find a property to call home. Our goal is to sell as many HomePath properties as possible to owner-occupants who will stabilize neighborhoods and help the housing recovery.”
Along with this new incentive, Fannie Mae has extended the “First Look” period from 15 to 20 days. The First Look period gives buyers planning to live in the home, the first chance at buying it, by excluding investors within the first 20 days on the market. Fannie Mae’s HomePath also offers buyers a low down payment mortgage option on properties that are owned by Fannie Mae.
Contact me, Troy Stavros with Gables & Gates, REALTORS, today to discuss finding a home that would fit the above criteria or to discuss your real estate goals in general. I am here to serve you, just give me a call!
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