Knoxville, TN

Below is a chart prepared by the National Association of REALTORS ® comparing the new changes to the Homebuyer Tax Credit.

The biggest change is that current Homeowners are now eligible if they sell their current homes and then buy AFTER the date of enactment of this extension which is November 6th, 2009.

Because of widespread incidents of fraud, purchasers must now attach documentation proving they actually bought a qualifying home to qualify for the credit.

Additinally the income guidelines have been increased, now a single taxpayer can qualify if they earn up to $125,000 and up to $225,000 for married taxpayers.

The rationale for increasing the income limits and expanding the credit to existing homeowner is that it should encourage more higher priced home purchases. Currently the existing tax credit was driving mostly lower end purchases.

This is the 15th blog in my series "Iraq-The Story Unfolds". Wow, I didn't realize I had posted so many. For those that are not following you can go back through my blogs and see most of the different "untold" stories that I have for my deployment to Iraq. This is a much different side that you won't see on TV. Anyway this post is to talk about the weather again, seems to come up in alot of posts.

So I came back a little more than a month ago. When I got here at the beginning of October the temperatures were still lingering around the 105-115 F range. This was a little better from this summer when it ranged from 120-140 for the highs. This was a bit of relief except the wind was coming in off of the gulf which meant the humidity was also much higher. I will still say that I will take a dry 125-130 over a wet 110. I would go and take a shower, get out, dry off, and instantly be soaked once again. It was very un-pleasant.

So most of the month went by and it has dropped dramatically. Our temperatures this month dropped down to highs in the 90's or below. In fact our high Thursday is only supposed to be 79 degrees. In one month we have had a drop of about 40 degrees. It almost feels like back home. And the wind has changed again from the gulf and is now blowing down from the north so the humidity is gone. I actually think I will need to buy a blanket before I come home.

The other major change is that we finally see rain. It has not been much usually a few sprinkles during the day and a small shower after mid-night. It has been constant for the past week. This is much relief after about four to five months without any percipitation. Only one major problem with the rain. What happens when you our water over a country full of dirt and sand. Yep we now live in one major mud-puddle again. Driving around can be a pain, and now we cannot keep the office clean, but I will take it as opposed to the heat.

Well this is all I really have for this post. The focus now is on our re-deployment. Our replacement unit should be on their way sometime in the near future and my days in this country are starting to get really low. I can finally stop counting weeks and start counting days. And yes Im still singing the song "I'll be home for Christmas". That song has such a nice ring to it.

Thank you all for following

Nicholas S. Bush

(Deployed) REALTOR®

Total Auction and Realty LLC

(O) 637-8777

(C) 243-4574

www.homesaleseasttn.com

Devanshire Subdivision in Knoxville, Tennessee is off of Lovell Road, near Pellissippi Parkway. The subdivision is about 13 years old and is still building new houses. These are what most people would probably consider affordable.

Since June 30, 2009, the average sale price is $116,083 with the average price per square foot at $91.55. The average days on market since June 30, 2006 has been 60 days. The highest priced house to sell was $133,400 and the lowest was $85,000. The sales include one foreclosure. The age of the house ranged from 13 years old to 2 years old.

Conservatively speaking, the lot sizes are around 40X100, but many are larger than that. The HOA fees are around $50 per month that includes lawn service, pool access and trash pick up.

Let me know if you want to see any houses in Devanshire; I easily make an appointment. Cathy Glass, Realty Executives Associates, 865-693-3232

All of us have probably at one time or another watched one of those TV game shows that feature a “Lightning Round” of fast paced questions.

I applied that concept to selling your Knoxville area house with a 90 second “Lightning Round” of tips to make it more appealing to potential buyers and bring a higher price.

Read more great "Lighting Round" home selling tips at Knoxville, Tennesse Real Estate Blog.

Everyone has heard of the millions of homes that have been foreclosed recently...but has anyone told you about the millions of people who have contacted a Realtor® to help them out of their situation?

If you paid too much for your home and you need to move, don't wait any longer to call a Realtor®! You HAVE options! And most of the time they can help you without accepting payment from you! What are the options? Well, each situation is different and each bank that we deal with is different, but here are a few that we have ran across recently...

1. SHORT SALE - This is when the bank agrees to accept an amount lower than what you actually owe on the property. They will even pay Realtors® to help you through this process! The banks do not want to foreclose because it will cost them a whole lot more in the long run. This has credit report ramifications, so be sure you talk with your Realtor® before you get started.

2. Negotiate with the bank to come to an agreement about purchase price in which you have a separate loan after your home is sold. For example, if you owe $200,000 on your home, and you sell it for $180,000, you would have a $20,000 note left on the property that you can pay over time.

This is just scratching the surface, so if you would like more information on the subject, please contact me at tandrews@kw.com or visit my website at YourKnoxvilleAddress.com