During our meeting were talking about the different aspects of the home buying process. They had decided they wanted to purchase a 4 bedroom home in either the Farragut or Cedar Bluff  areas. About halfway through our meeting they both asked me is now the time to buy in my opinion?

I told them that I really thought that now is an excellent time to get into the home market. But I also get this question alot form buyers now. So I always have the data with me to back up what I tell people so they can make an informed decision for themselves.

I shared the following information from the Knoxville Association of Realtors statistics about our market. As you can see we still have a large volume of homes on the market. In 2009 there where 14,331 homes on the market and currently we have have 13,939 a drop but nothing huge.  The average days on market in 2009 was 125 currently 123 really no change. But the average sale price in 2009 for a 4 bedroom home was $308,500 in 2011 $251,500..WOW THAT IS HUGE a $57,000 drop in price in 2 years.

Then we called  my loan officer Darren Poppen at MIG and asked him if he could give us the current interest rates today and what they were a year ago. Darren shared the following information with us below in the chart.

After sharing that information with them I asked them what do you think? Is now the right tome for you to buy a home in West Knoxville? Both of them said Absolutely!! What is the next step..

I said let’s call Darren right now and setup a time to get pre-approved for a loan. Then we setup a search for them on TheBigOrangePress.com for the homes that fit the what they were looking for in housing. Currently we are searching for homes in West Knoxville and I’m sure we will find something in the near future.

If you want to take advantage of the buying opportunities right now in this market call me at 865-696-9002 or email me Rick@TheBigOrangePress.com

Need to get pre-approved for a loan Contact Darren Poppen at MIG. Call him at 865-936-3965 or email him at Daren.Poppen@migonline.com . Busy and prefer to get pre-approved on line go here and Darren can take care of it for you.

According to foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings topped 300,000 for the 12th straight month last month as 1 in every 418 U.S. homes received a foreclosure filing.

It’s a small improvement from January and a just 6 percent increase over February 2009.

On a per-capita basis, foreclosure density varied by state:

• Nevada : 1 foreclosure filing per 102 homes
• Florida : 1 foreclosure filing per 163 homes
• Arizona : 1 foreclosure filing per 163 homes
• California : 1 foreclosure filing per 195 homes

Also, as in January 2010, foreclosures across the country were concentrated. 10 states beat the national Foreclosure Per Capita average; 40 states fell below. Like everything else is real estate, it seems, foreclosures are local.

For today’s Maryville home buyers, foreclosures represent an interesting opportunity.

Homes bought in various stages of foreclosure are often less expensive than other, non-foreclosure homes. It’s one reason why distressed home sales account for 38 percent of all resales. However, less expensive doesn’t always mean less costly.  A foreclosed home may be in various stages of disrepair and they’re often sold as-is, as policy.

Buying new or used in Fox Den can be cheaper than buying broken-down.

Therefore, if you’re in the market for a bank-owned home, make sure you know what you’re buying before you sign a contract. Have qualified professionals review and inspect the property, as needed. Damage to pipes or the property’s structure, for example, may not be so obvious on a walk-though and you’ll want to know about it before you buy.

Also, foreclosed homes are federal tax credit-eligible. Buyers must be under contract by April 30, 2010 and closed by June 30, 2010.