Archive for August, 2008
Charles & Myrtle’s Coffeehouse - A Hidden Gem for Saturday Night Music
Categories: Chattanooga Community Events, Flavors of Chattanooga, Things to Do in Chattanooga
By Jay Zuckerman - Guest Blogger
I love the downtown music venues in Chattanooga. However, I don’t always enjoy returning home smelling like a 6′3″ cigarette, partially deaf from inebriated audience members who yell “Play Free Bird” at the top of their lungs at the end of every dadgum song. The Tivoli and Memorial Auditorium bring in talented artists, but on my budget as a writer, I can only afford a couple $60 concerts a year.
If you’re looking for a change of pace with equally talented rock, blues, and folk musicians, consider Charles & Myrtle’s Coffeehouse located on 105 McBrien Road in the Brainerd area of Chattanooga. The concerts are held in a converted entertainment room in a residential area. Charles and Myrtle’s provides an intimate area for musicians to share stories, interact with the crowd, and usually try out new material.
I learned about Charles and Myrtle’s two years ago when noted Nashville Blues Rocker Kevin Gordon, a good friend of mine, had a gig there. Since then, I’ve attended several concerts a year there. When Marshall Chapman makes her annual appearance there, it’s always amusing to see 200 people cram in to an area not much larger than a combined living/dining room.
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Transaction Specialist - Wow That’s a Great Idea!!
Categories: Chattanooga Real Estate News
By Stephanie Arnold, Transaction Specialist
So . . . What’s a Transaction Specialist? On The Scenic City Team, it’s me! I handle all the details and negotiations from the time one of our clients have an accepted contract straight through to the end of a successful closing. Working with Andy, Kacey, the other Realtor and our seller or buyer, I coordinate home inspections, “
termite” inspections, surveys, appraisals, home warranties, repairs, switching over utilities, cleaning services etc., plus I work with the lender and the title company to facilitate a smooth closing. (Basically I make sure our contracts get closed and keep things running smoothly; we call it “bullet proofing” a transaction).
The Scenic City Team strives to provide our clients with a highly specialized level of service during our entire relationship. Andy focuses on working with our sellers to get our listings marketed and sold. Kacey specializes in working with buyers to explain the process, answer questions and help them find the perfect home. Taking care of the transactions is my job so I’m able to devote my full attention to all the deadlines we need to meet and the many details that need to be handled for an “on time” arrival at the title company.
Handling a tranaction is complicated and I bring to the table a systematic, proven approach, over five years experience as a Realtor plus the organizational skills and tenacity it takes to get it done. I’m licensed in both Tennessee and Georgia. A couple of years ago, I worked with Andy as a Buyer Specialist and was able to take advange of extensive one on one training with him plus the great training offered through Keller Williams Realty. I left The Scenic City Team to work on my own but quickly realized that I could offer my clients a higher, more focused level of service through a team experience where each person specializes in what they do best. I’m back to stay on The Scenic City Team and look forward to working with all of our clients to make their transactions a GREAT experience that they’ll never forget.
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Andy Hodes - “Realtor Extraordinaire” On Chattanooga Radio
Categories: Ask Andy, Chattanooga Market Conditions, Chattanooga Real Estate News
Andy - The “Local Econmist” on the Radio
Below is a link to the first part of an interview with Andy conducted by Richard Winham of WUTC 88.1, Friday August 22, 2008. This was part series entitled “Around and About,” a Public Affairs Program on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s Radio Station, an NPR Member Station. This interview was done in our office and aired this past week. The topic was of course, Chattanooga Real Estate! This interview is about 7 minutes long. We welcome all comments, ENJOY!
Andy Hodes on The Radio - Click Here to Listen
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What These Three Penalties Can Teach You About Selling Your Home
Categories: Chattanooga Real Estate News, For Home Sellers, Home Maintenance
by Jay Zuckerman, Guest Blogger
As August rolls around, Chattanooga residents love to say, it’s “Football Time in Tennessee.” All the local high schools are
going through Two-A-Days in the warm summer sun. The Chattanooga Mocs are preparing for their opener against the University of Oklahoma… and most Scenic City denizens are ready for SEC play to start. NFL Fantasy Football magazines cover shelves at the bookstores and the Scoop’s David Israel is already looking ahead to the 2009 NFL Draft when his Miami Dolphins will likely have the Number One pick… again.
Any coach will tell you that one of the keys to winning any football game is to limit penalties… Much like football, you must not commit these three penalties when selling your house.
#1 Interference: When a Realtor brings a potential buyer into your house or holds an Open House, do not commit “interference” and remain in your house. Buyers cannot visualize themselves in your home if you and your family are around. Most buyers are uncomfortable to share what they do not like about the house with their Realtor if you are there. Finally, your favorite features of the home that you can’t wait to share with a buyer may not be what they are looking for. You may love your large backyard where you can practice chipping golf balls. However, your potential buyer sees that backyard and doesn’t want to have to mow an area that large once a week. So go out and visit some friends, eat at a nice restaurant, or go to the movies and catch The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. On second thought, don’t. That’s two hours of my life and $12 I’m never getting back.
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The Closing - The Final Steps
Categories: Chattanooga Real Estate News, First Time Buyers, For Home Buyers
By Kacey Sides, Buyer Specialist
So you found the house, made the offer, removed all of your contingencies, and all that’s left is to close. Whether it has been a smooth ride or a bumpy one, it’s exciting to know the end is near, and soon you’ll be 
relaxing in your new home.
The hard part may be over, but your not quite done yet. Here are a few final steps to help slide you into your new home smoothly:
The Final Walk Through - This is done to verify all of the items that you negotiated to be done during your inspection period are completed and that the home is in similar condition as it was on the day you made your offer to purchase it. If there are items that needed repair that cannot be seen with the untrained eye, have your home inspector come with you and your Realtor. That way, you are sure not to miss anything. Your Home Inspector will usually charge a small fee for this, (here in Chattanooga, it runs about $75) but it’s well worth it. If the work has not been completed, make sure it gets done BEFORE you close!
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Chattanooga’s own Tennessee Aquarium Ranks No. 2
Categories: Chattanooga Real Estate News, Flavors of Chattanooga, Things to Do in Chattanooga
By David Israel, Business Manager
As I, and other “Scoopers,” have said many times before “Chattanooga is a great place to live and play.” Our claims are backed up once again by TripAdvisor.com - the world’s largest travel community as reported by the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Our own Tennessee Aquarium was just ranked No. 2 on their just released Top 10 U.S. Aquariums list. I must say that this is no surprise to me at all as I’ve been to two of the top 3 and have always asserted that our Aquarium is my clear favorite.
Below is the TripAdvisor’s Top 10 U.S. Aquariums:
1. Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, Gatlinburg, TN
2. Tennessee Aquarium, Chattanooga
3. Monterey Bay Aquarium, Monterey, Calif
4. Ripley’s Aquarium, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
5. Oregon Coast Aquarium, Newport, Ore
6. Dallas World Aquarium, Dallas
7. National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium, Dubuque, Iowa
8. Shedd Aquarium, Chicago
9. Downtown Aquarium, Denver
10. Florida Aquarium, Tampa, FL
My wife and I spent some time at the Monterey Bay Aquarium on our honeymoon and thought it was a beautiful place to visit with incredible window views of our ocean. We’ve also recently visited the Georgia Aquarium and was not as excited about our visit as we have been about our own Tennessee Aquarium - the new Georgia Aquarium is the largest in the U.S. and didn’t even make the list.
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