I WISH, would have to be my first response to this question.  Does anyone in the Realtor community see a benefit to these dinosaur ridden companies that are looking for nothing but a handout?  37.5% as a "referral"?!  You have got to be kidding me!  This is truly the fleecing of America!  The first scenario goes like this:  A client of mine who I had been talking to for months about listing their house, calls me last week and says that they are going to use the relocation company that their company offers.  My response, was two things, first that might be good for you, because they will buy you out if you are unable to sell your property.  Found out the answer to that one real quick was a big fat, "NO".  The second positive to this I told her is that they could assist her in finding som... 05/11/2010

Yep, I did it. You wouldn't believe how selfless I can be. I am willing to sacrifice my very body for my customers. A couple of weeks ago, a former client (now friend) who just moved to Chattanooga called me up and said something like, 'Gahhhh, I'm stressed. Where can I get a good massage?' I gave her the names of a couple of places that I'd heard of through the grapevine but I realized that I hadn't ever actually used any of the spas that I was talking about. The proverbial light bulb went off and I decided that trying out (and then of course, blogging about) several of the better known places around town would give me two things: A. a good, direct experience that might be a big help to my clients and B. a good direct massage that is also a tax deduction. I mean, I wouldn't be doing th... 05/02/2010

The Lookouts are in full swing (pun totally intended) these days. Come out and support the home team tonight or tomorrow - both games start at 7.15pm with fireworks after the Friday contest. And check out the view of downtown from the stadium. Originally posted at JuliaOdom.com   04/21/2010

It's no wonder that NAR says that, "90% of all buyers used the internet to search." We have seen this first hand, and especially over the last few months. When people relocate to other states, it's a long distance move. These people usually start by researching the city on the Internet. More times than not, they find one of our 1,100+ relocation websites. If they're serious, they'll request help in a possible home purchase. Due to a very large demand, we need a Buyer's Agent in Chattanooga that is able to assist these prospective home buyers. These families and individuals are wanting assistance from a Realtor, and if you would like to get in contact with them, we need to talk soon. Time is of the essence, and we only need 1 Realtor to be able to contact these people. We NEVER send peop... 04/16/2010

Chattanooga Foreclosures Daily Of the 38 Chattanooga area foreclosure and HUD properties sold 1-01-10 thru 1-31-10 the price change was 6.8%. The average days on market was 78 for these same properties. note: The lower the asking price the higher the percentage price reduction potentially. There are instances where the Sold Price is higher than the ...Asking Price most likely with the buyer negotiating closing cost assistance. 02/23/2010

Rental Property Cash Flow Increased - Providing Transitional Housing Gaining in Popularity. Chattanooga, TN Converting a conventional rental into alternative housing can be fast and simple. We have established a system that keeps conversion costs to a minimum. Most multi-family and many single family residences (SFR’s) can be transformed into a much more profitable venture. The key is to make sure you check with your local zoning authority first. You will want to find out how many un-related individuals are permitted per unit, within your property’s particular zoning district. Why check out at this option? Profit is the answer. $450 a month for a private room, $750 a month for a semi-private room adds up fast. How many bedrooms does your rental have? How many are at least 144 sq. ft. th... 02/16/2010

Income property can have very stable, respectful and reliable tenants. Chattanooga, TN Yes, that’s right! It all depends on product, location and good tenant screening. If you don’t have all three, your vacancy rate will be elevated. Let’s talk about product first. We recommend to our students that they furnish their properties with clean serviceable items, new linens and art work on the walls. What you are creating is an environment that is very agreeable to the tenant, one that not only the tenant will look forward to coming home to, but also one, through pictures on flyers, web sites and word of mouth, will draw new inquires. We are all for building and keeping a pipeline. Lots of furnished rooms for rent are not clean and contain aged, thread bear chairs, sofas, and soiled mattresse... 02/09/2010

Chattanooga, TN Homes for Sale - HomeCounter as of 02.04.10 Total Number of active residential listings = 5588 (down from last week) Number of residential listings under contract = 678 (up from last week) Total Number of active residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings = 448 (up from last week) Total Number of residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings under contract = 169 (up from last week) Joel's Comments - The market extended its tightening trend. Both homes for sale declined while homes under contract grew.  This gives buyers less to choose from. Foreclosures for sale increased.  But this was offset by more going under contract. Chattanooga area statistics, tips, information and resources, or to set up you own custom search of homes for sale please visit theprinciplegroup.net.     02/05/2010

Don’t let your rental property become a charity shelter. Chattanooga, TX I just read a blog by Donna in NM, who has had the most awful experience with a Section 8 tenant. She wrote that she didn’t have Section 8 housing experience and her tenant had 10 years of experience scamming the system. No rent has been collected and now she has a squatter and is uncertain how to correct the problem. More than a few good remedies were written in reply to her questions and I don’t want to rehash her alternatives here. I can not imagine that this is an remote case. Most likely not your exact circumstances, but even so, many real estate investors, who are holding investment property are making costly mistakes. Depressed real estate prices and the profusion of very good deals on distressed properties ... 02/05/2010

First things first, I owe the Hamilton County Department of Education an apology. This afternoon, when I got the come-get-your-kid robo-call, I *totally* rolled my eyes. Yeah, right, whatever! was my thought. They were right, I was wrong. So I thought I'd take this opportunity to slip a little flask of vodka in my pocket (for warmth of course!) and take a walk around the neighborhood for some pictures. I live in the Highland Park/Ridgedale area between Missionary Ridge & downtown Chattanooga so seeing some of the quaint old cottages in the snow is a real treat. OK, so that didn't really happen. What DID happen was I took a picture of the house across the street from me from my toasty warm library (yes, I have a room that I call "the library" - when you live in a hundred year old house y... 01/29/2010

If you are coming from downtown Chattanooga, cresting the hill on MLK going toward Highland Park & Missionary Ridge, this is what you'll see. I will not even pretend that I get up all raring to go and take photos of the scenic city. I have a child who goes to school at Brown Academy right there in front of UTC, otherwise I would totally have snoozed through this bit of loveliness.  That dark blurry bit at the bottom right corner is Park Place, the old school building turned loft/condo. The various units have square footage from 790 all the way up to 2,750 so there's a good choice of space, whatever you may need. And for buyers with kids who may have avoided downtown condos in the past due to a lack of outdoor play areas, Bryant Park - a fenced playground - is right next door. It's a pre... 01/27/2010

Pocket doors, clawfoot tubs & transom lights, OH MY! Crye Leike is scheduled to auction the former home of Lula Adeline Rackley at 862 Oak St. Chattanooga, TN 37403 (smack dab in the middle of the Fort Wood historic district) on February 11, 2010 at 5pm. For its age and lack of updating, the house is in surprisingly good shape. With the exception of some flooring that has buckled in the living room (parlor? salon? Sunday go-to-meetin' room?) the wood floors are lovely, if worn, and not at all wonky like most old houses. I'm not saying you could play a fair game of marbles on these floors, but they're not bad at all. Lula enjoyed three large rooms downstairs, all with their own pocket doors, a full (albeit small) bathroom and a kitchen that is large and remarkable for its lack of cabinet... 01/26/2010

Chattanooga, TN Homes for Sale - HomeCounter as of 01.25.10 Total Number of active residential listings = 5609 (up from last week) Number of residential listings under contract = 625 (up from last week) Total Number of active residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings = 413 (up from last week) Total Number of residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings under contract = 162 (up from last week) Joel's Comments - The Chattanooga market continued to pick up steam last week.  Both homes for sale and homes under contract shot up. The market foreclosures for sale and those under contract mirrored the general market, with both increasing. Chattanooga area statistics, tips, information and resources, or to set up you own custom search of homes for sale please visit theprinciplegroup.net.     01/25/2010

OK, so that could be some sort of metaphorical title referring to the Chattanooga real estate market....but it's not. I'm talking about actual blue skies, the kind you see when it's neither freezing cold nor raining. You know, the sort of thing we haven't seen yet in 2010. And so, I give you (drum roll please!)..... BLUE SKIES (peeking from behind dark clouds) Photo taken at Lee Highway and Shallowford Rd. 01/25/2010

Even though it's cold outside, baby, it's warm inside the carousel at Coolidge Park in North Chattanooga. One dollar per person per ride and it even accepts credit cards. Interested in the history of the grand old lady? Click here. Check out this link to see current operating hours for the carousel. Want a home where you can walk to the park? Click here for currently available homes within just a half mile. 01/24/2010

{{You're gonna have to hang in there with me, this one definitely gets filed under 'boring but important'}} Today, HUD announced new rules for FHA mortgages that will go into effect in the near future ("summer" whatever that may mean). Those who don't eat, breathe, and live real estate finance like I do may not know this, but FHA has become the go-to loan for most borrowers, especially first-timers and lower income, but really for everyone who doesn't have 20% to put down. Here are the proposed changes: Anyone with a credit score under 580 is required to put down 10% Hey HUD, maybe we should call you Captain Obvious! In practice, most banks aren't lending to anyone with a score of less than 620 these days anyway so this one won't have much of an impact. The up front mortgage insurance i... 01/20/2010

Chattanooga, TN Homes for Sale - HomeCounter as of 01.18.10 Total Number of active residential listings = 5516 (up from last week) Number of residential listings under contract = 561 (up from last week) Total Number of active residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings = 403 (down from last week) Total Number of residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings under contract = 131 (down from last week) Joel's Comments - A lot of sellers got of the bench last week as the Chattanooga market of homes for sale got bigger. This was offset somewhat by homes under contract increasing as well. The number of foreclosures for sale dropped like a rock, shrinking by almost three dozen. Foreclosures under contract decreased, though. For more Chattanooga area statistics, tips, information and resources, o... 01/18/2010

Chattanooga, TN Homes for Sale - HomeCounter as of 01.11.10 Total Number of active residential listings = 5442 (up from last week) Number of residential listings under contract = 528 (up from last week) Total Number of active residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings = 440 (down from last week) Total Number of residential Foreclosures, HUD, REO listings under contract = 139 (up from last week) Joel's Comments - The Chattanooga market of homes for sale got a bit tighter since last week. There were a handful of additional active homes, while homes under contract increased by more than two dozen. The story was similar for foreclosures for sale.  Active foreclosures declined a little, as foreclosures under contract shot up. For more Chattanooga area statistics, tips, information and resou... 01/11/2010

These stats cover all of Hamilton County - makes it a lot easier to draw conclusions when you've got a more data to work with. Care to see how it looked last month? Click here. And, yes, I'm still a big ol' real estate geek... All Chattanooga/Hamilton County Residential Real Estate Sales through the Chattanooga MLS All active listings as of 1/5/10: 2,467 Pending or contingent listings (under contract) as of 1/5/10: 295 Residential listings closed (sold) during December 2009: 262 Number of months to sell current actives at December's sales pace: 9.4 Under $100,000 Active, residential listings: 558 Pending or contingent listings: 87 Residential listings closed during December 2009: 78 Number of months to sell current actives at December's sales pace: 7.2 $100,000-200,000 Active, residenti... 01/05/2010

Another brand spanking new report, this one for my St. Elmo neighbors. All St. Elmo Real Estate Sales through the Chattanooga MLS All active listings as of 1/5/09: 23 Pending or contingent listings (under contract) as of 1/5/09: 1 Residential listings closed (sold) during December 2009: 2 Number of months to sell current actives at December's sales pace: a respectable 11.5 And because everybody is a nosy neighbor, here's what actually sold in December: DOM= Days on Market Notice anything there? Not much sold (although it's a fairly small area without a great deal on the market) but what did sell, went awfully fast. I'm not saying that everything in St. Elmo goes that quickly but that just goes to show you that if you price it right it will go, and quickly. Want to know more about this c... 01/05/2010