The search is on!
We are in Sevierville as our base for searching for property in the southeastern part of Tennessee- near Knoxville.
We got a rental car for driving around to look at real estate and go do fun things- it’s easier to get around and find parking, and the rental car gets MUCH better mileage, so it really saves us money. We are keeping the car for our entire time in TN, SC and NC, so it’s a good thing we have unlimited mileage!
We have been driving around looking at real estate for the past 3 days- mostly vacant lots and a few houses. The “active adult community”, Tellico Village, has a lot to offer, with golf courses, pools, clubhouses, activities, social groups, etc. It’s not far from Knoxville, either, for more shopping, University of Tennessee, and activities. Still high on our list! Our real estate agent gave us a list of all the available lots, with little descriptions so we could tell whether they were on steep slopes or flat- we want flat! I don’t want a house that is barely hanging on to the earth! Here are some of the lots we looked at:
As you can see, there are a lot of trees to be cleared away, but they are fairly flat lots. Here’s another:
We also looked at lots in Rarity Bay, a gated community near Tellico Village. Here are some of the lots:
As you can see they are cleared (mostly) and are fairly flat. Check this one out:
It’s on more of a slope (as you might be able to see from this pic), so it would require a basement- but look at that view! Unfortunately, lots are more expensive here, and building costs are a lot higher because of the development requirements, not to mention the insane HOA fees…. so we ruled out Rarity Bay.
We had dinner at our favorite brewery in the area- Black Horse, and it was delicious! Beer cheese and chips, pizza and a good beer- who could ask for anything more?
The next day our real estate agent showed us some houses for sale:
This one was just about perfect except for 3 things:
1- the exterior color is a bit dark
2- that green door!
3- we need to sell our house first, so are not in a position to buy.
Some of the other houses had very steep driveways:
NO WAY, NO HOW!!!
Another day we drove to Dandridge to look at real estate, and a lot that we were interested in last year (but was too expensive) is still for sale! We couldn’t believe when we saw it- and the price is still the same! We did notice there was a lot of noise from “the interstate”, which is a couple miles away as the crow flies, so we are glad we crossed it off our list.
One of our big takeaways is that there are some pretty new homes (less than 5 years old) that have better prices than building new yourself, AND they are not so old as to be totally outdated- so we may end up going that route once we decide where!
And here is a sunset from our campground, which is right on the French Broad River:
