The real estate situation and the subprime crisis that drove the nation and subsequently the entire world into an economic depression have been the talk of every town for almost a year now. Hundreds of thousands of people were rendered homeless because they lost their jobs and could not keep up with mortgage payments while others had to give up their homes because they were unable to continue meeting the high interest rates. Homes were foreclosed and many more remained empty as a real estate crisis, the likes of which have never been seen before, swept the country
Knoxville, Tennessee, was one of the areas that was not as affected as much as say Florida or California, but it did feel the aftereffects of the rumble and had its share of foreclosures and houses that did not sell because of strict lending policies and unaffordable asking rates. But, in a turnaround of events, things seem to be looking up for this city on the east coast, as these indicators seem to point out:
- The National Association of Realtors has reported that the pending sales index is rising again.
- The year 2009 is seeing the rise in prices of single-family homes to those higher than the national average, according to numbers and statistics from the National Association of Realtors
- More people are taking advantage of the $8000 tax credit for first-time homeowners. The Tennessee Association of Realtors has reported that over 50 percent of home sales in the first quarter of 2009 were because of first-time home buyers. The number of calls related to real estate purchases and information had gone up – the numbers have doubled to show increasing interest in owning houses
- More and more people are starting to visit open houses and look for options, signs that show they are serious about buying homes. Builders are now offering more for the same price, more facilities, more quality, and more value added services for the consumer so that they can get more bang for their buck.
- The signs that the real estate market is looking up in Knoxville tell us that the recession may be over sooner than we think, and that good spending and saving habits will prevent us from suffering another one in the near future.