East Tennessee Luxury Living

Retirees should look beyond state taxes when considering where to move

The Retirement Living Information Center’s 2008 Taxes by State Guide summarizes tax requirements for each state including income taxes, exemptions for seniors, and how retirement income and property are taxed.  Although a lack of state income tax alone may make a state seem desirable, other taxes may add up to more than you think.  The guide from the Retirement Living Information Center will allow you to get a good feel for what your total tax burden will be. 

SmartMoney Rates Knoxville Real Estate as Fairly Valued

SmartMoney Magazine recently rated the 330 biggest cities in terms of their home values.  As with the rest of the media, there is much doom and gloom in this article about the housing market...buyer's are wary even though it is a "buyer's market" and are waiting for prices to fall even further, there is a shrinking pool of potential buyers due to the increasing cost of obtaining loans and there is an average of a ten month supply.  You can read the full article here. 

However, not all news is bad for the Knoxville area.  Based on the statistics studied, Knoxville was rated as "fairly valued" and therefore predicted to not see home prices drop too much further.  There is definitely an over supply of million dollar-plus homes in Knoxville right now, but they are selling.  So far this year, there have been over 50 sold. 

Luxury Home Trends

What defines luxury?  We all have our own definition.  Mine can actually change sometimes depending on my desires of the moment.  One evening I may wish to dine ocean side with a loved one, toast fine champagne and eat lobster under a full moon.  Another day I may wish to awake in the mountains and feel the crispness of a fall day, sip freshly ground Guatemalan coffee from fine china while snuggled up under down and fine Italian linens, looking through a wall of gleaming floor to ceiling Pella windows.  That’s just me though.

 

For the purposes of standardizing a definition of luxury homes, however, let’s consider properties that are one million dollars and above.  Hopefully, they each have some remarkable characteristics that make them wonderfully unique whether it be historic significance, artistic details, exquisite gardens and the like.  Regardless of what makes these homes special, there are a few trends that you can expect to see in “luxury homes” of the day.  According to a survey conducted by the Institute of Luxury Home Marketing and Unique Homes, you can expect the following:

• More then four bedrooms - 78%
• A home office - 84%
• More then four bathrooms - 92%
• Home theater - 38%
• Outdoor kitchen - 38%
• Mini-kitchen found in master bedroom - 11%
• Home gyms - 59%
• Pools - 54%
• Separate guest houses - 19%
• Waterfront or water view - 58%

There are other statistics in this profile, but these areas had the higest rankings in terms of popularity.  Upon sampling the luxury homes on the market in our local area, East Tennesseeans are doing a pretty good job on stacking up in the luxury living department.   

Currently, there are approximately 75 homes listed over $1 million in Knox County today.  A sampling of them proves that although the personalities of the owners and builders of these homes make them distinctly different than the next, they have many of todays luxury standards - even in the historic homes.  I randomly selected 10 of these homes, and here is what I found.

• More than 4 bedrooms - 2
• Home office - 6
• More than 4 bathrooms - 3
• Home theater - 5
• Separate guest house - 2
• Pool - 3

So...if you are thinking of selling your luxury home and are wondering what to do in preparation for getting it sold, your home office and home theater are a great place to start.  Please let us know if you need any help with staging these or any other areas of your home to make it really stand out in the market.  Call 865-379-8729 or email us here. 

Second Home Market Research

It's been a busy and exciting couple of weeks in the set up of East Tennessee Luxury Properties which we have spent mostly developing content for our web site, designing our marketing programs and doing market research on the second home market for a local developer looking for advice on the direction of his 600 acre development in the Smoky Mountains. 

Today is our first official day of business, and we are thrilled to be serving the luxury market in East Tennessee.  You can meet us here.  Since our first order of business for a client was to provide research on the second home market, we've shared a synopsis of it here. 

As 70-80 million baby boomers retire over the next 15-20 years, vacation and second home sales are expected to remain strong.  As they are delaying their exit from the job market, boomers have huge business and investment opportunities available.  Because of their higher earning potential in the years before retirement and children likely out of the home, vacation home sales are expected to increase while investment property purchases will be on the decline.  This generation is ready to bring their family back together and prefer not to rent out their vacation home for a return on their investment.  Recent tax laws allowing up to a $500,000 exclusion from capital gains means they won't be penalized even if they decide to downsize their primary home. 

The majority of second home buyers are coming out of the midwest and the south which comprise over 60% of vacation home buyers.  Most are looking for waterfront homes or those with a view and desire an abundance of activities nearby.  Some top desires for those planning to purchase a second home, condominiums, gated communities and golf communities are among the highest. 

Whether you are searching for your perfect dream home or you are a developer creating a community in a second home destination, please contact us with any questions on this exciting market.  The sources of our research come from The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing, The Wall Street Journal and the National Association of Realtors.