I'm coming down Oct.6 (Knoxville, Chattanooga: houses, neighborhoods, casino)

[dave w]

I'm going to be around a couple of days checking out areas along the I-75 corridor. knoxville,farragut,lenoir, chattanooga. So I don't waste alot of time, what areas are the best bang for the buck to focus on for housing 250-300k possible mnt. views. I'm 70 not into golf,fishing,hunting. So, I'm leaning toward areas that have good choices of restaurants, big box stores. Things to do. Cook and crossville are too far out. The wife likes the idea of that nice mall in farragut. Any smaller towns w/ amenities I should checkout? On another note, does TN have alot of magnolia trees like further south does?

[JOinGA]

I live in West Knox, near Farragut, and I have a Southern magnolia tree in my backyard. They are very messy trees, dropping seed pods and lots of big leaves all year long. The roots are shallow, so if you don't plant under it while the tree is young, it's difficult to add anything later. But the flowers are beautiful and smell divine.

[danielj72]

I also have a magnolia tree in my yard....they are common trees planted in peoples yards. Are there more of them further south? Probably but still they are fairly common. You will even see an occasional palmetto here (this is likely the furthest north you can get away with that).

From your description of what you are looking for I would suggest West Knoxville, Maryville or Lenoir City. Farragut is very nice but it is the most expensive area in the entire area. You won’t get as much house there as you would in other towns. Oak ridge is also worth a look. All these communities are an easy drive to the big retail/ commercial areas of west Knoxville. Maryville and Oak Ridge have a lot all on their own. Maryville has excellent Mountain View’s as well.

[dave w]

Originally Posted by danielj72

I also have a magnolia tree in my yard....they are common trees planted in peoples yards. Are there more of them further south? Probably but still they are fairly common. You will even see an occasional palmetto here (this is likely the furthest north you can get away with that).

From your description of what you are looking for I would suggest West Knoxville, Maryville or Lenoir City. Farragut is very nice but it is the most expensive area in the entire area. You won’t get as much house there as you would in other towns. Oak ridge is also worth a look. All these communities are an easy drive to the big retail/ commercial areas of west Knoxville. Maryville and Oak Ridge have a lot all on their own. Maryville has excellent Mountain View’s as well.

Yes, Maryville is on my list for sure. I looked at Tellico village on a realtor site, man it sure is nice. But it looks like another golf community, and I don't golf, I don't know if I'd fit well over there.

[dave w]

Any feedback on Sweetwater or Cleveland

[Barking Spider]

Having had a magnolia tree, I would never have one again. Messy, and very shallow roots.

Sweetwater would not be on my list. Not much there that I care about.

My daughter lives in Cleveland. There is a lot of shopping there, so it has just about anything you would need. Some parts are very rural. Houses range from single wides to mega mansions. Prices are about the same as Knoxville (from what my daughter tells me, and she is looking to move back to Knoxville for a job).
Home prices in Knoxville very greatly from place to place. So a 3/2 in one area might be in the $200K range, but place that same house in another zip code or neighborhood, and it might be $375 or more. Location really does matter.

Same goes for very low prices. There is probably a good reason a home is priced really low.

[dave w]

Originally Posted by dave w

I'm going to be around a couple of days checking out areas along the I-75 corridor. knoxville,farragut,lenoir, chattanooga. So I don't waste alot of time, what areas are the best bang for the buck to focus on for housing 250-300k possible mnt. views. I'm 70 not into golf,fishing,hunting. So, I'm leaning toward areas that have good choices of restaurants, big box stores. Things to do. Cook and crossville are too far out. The wife likes the idea of that nice mall in farragut. Any smaller towns w/ amenities I should checkout? On another note, does TN have alot of magnolia trees like further south does?

Got a little time to post what I observed during my short 2 days. I really didn't find one area that I was overly impressed with, not enough time to really explore. Tellico was nice but to far out. Farragut was ok, Maryville,Alcoa,Oakridge,Lenoir city off the list. Of course my wife had to revisit Gatlinburg. I found the roads very congested/ crowded and I think I would get tired of the twisty roads, high tension towers everywhere and the hazy skies.I'm thinking of looking more west toward Nashville or NC side next trip.

[TheShadow]

Did you check out Chattanooga? I really like the artsy vibe downtown there. I'm sure there are malls in the suburban areas of Chattanooga.

[dave w]

Yes I did. 17 to 64 toward downtown then back to 24 and out to 75. Not enough time to check things out. I think I drove through the ghetto by accident.

[onetoughkitty]

Hi Dave,

You don't golf, fish or hunt, me neither. What do you like to do? I like to hike and do a lot of walking. Most neighborhoods here don't have sidewalks and the streets are painfully narrow but when you get a chance, you can always find a place to hike.

That said, the next place I move to, I hope will have better neighborhood planning. I have been looking into Chattanooga, Dalton, Greenville, SC and Winston-Salem. I also like the idea that Bristol, VA will be getting a casino so perhaps up to the Tri-cities area.

Good luck.