Posted on 04/22/2021 6:40:36 AM PDT by LurkedLongEnough
Hey y'all, soon we plan to build a mountainside home overlooking the Smokies on county land in Tennessee.
What kinds of legal, regulation and other things do we need to know moving from Texas to Tennessee?
If you hear a banjo, run.
There’s a big Drum Corps show in Sevierville every year. Sometimes Dolly shows up.
Myself and two other longtime buddies and their wives are doing the same. We’re looking to buy lots to build on near each other in Tennessee. We all grew up in Oregon but currently live in Oregon, Washington state, and South Carolina.
We all retire in around 8 years or so.
The only regulation we have for new comers is you are not permitted to vote “Blue”. If Liberal, they must stay in the utopia they created elsewhere. We have no room for them.
Other than that, trailers must be underpinned and no fighting roosters in some counties.
Welcome to Tennessee and I hope you enjoy our culture :)
My wife and I and two people from work want to move to Tennessee, as well.
Income taxes are only paid by half of the population. Property taxes are disproportionately paid by home owners over apartment dwellers—greatly encouraging apartment dwellers to pass local bills to raise property taxes for “benefits.” Tennessee has a fraction of the property tax that Texas has and still no income tax. The sales tax is higher, but I fully support use and consumption taxes over the other tax forms.
Tennessee is a prettier place than Texas, but far more humid.
What do the three stars on the Tennessee flag represent ?
We’re currently building a house there too. We ended up choosing Jasper Highlands after looking at lots of places. My wife wanted something of a planned community rather than a house in the woods so this was our compromise.
If you hear a banjo, bring your fiddle and some whiskey.
The “Three Great Divisions” of Tennesssee: East, Middle, and West. The Tennessee River cuts us into three pieces, and for West and Middle Tennessee that’s the boundary. Between Middle and East, I’m not sure if that’s a hard and fast rule...
Note from an old-timer: Signs coming into Tennessee used to say, “Welcome to the Three Great States of Tennessee”, but that was done away with a long time ago.
We’re the 16th state in the Union...TN ratified the COTUS in 1796...
13 original states plus us, the 3rd extra...after Vermont and Kentucky..
The three stars represent the three “grand divisions” - East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee and West Tennessee. In some ways, each has its own culture and, of course, the geography is significantly different.
Know all alternate routes to and from your property. Store all compustibles away from structures (home, storage buildings, etc.). Keep trees and shrubs away from your homes. Look up Gatlinburg fires 2016. Tragic. This advice pertains to all of Sevier County. Don’t rely on the towns to alert you to fires. If you see smoke, leave. If you have to slide on your backside down a slope to get to main roads; do. Don’t die on the access roads because your car can’t get the heck out of Dodge due to burning trees fallen across the roads. DO NOT FEED WILDLIFE!!! You’re signing their death warrent. Do not think black bears are cute and semi-tamed. It may be a female with cubs who will attack. Don’t leave groceries in your vehicle; it may be broken into by a scavenging bear and the interior totally destroyed. Read up on past news articles regarding fires, bears, etc. I suggest your new home be made of fire resistant materials. One good site to read about the devastating fires of 2016 is thesmokies.com and click on gatlinburg fires 2016.
Though zoning restrictions and building codes within Tennessee in general are less onerous than many other states, they can vary significantly by county. In most rural counties, they are negligible. Though the pluses far outweigh the minuses, this also means you should be very careful when selecting contractors.
I used to have a funny list that addresses your question - Things You Need to Know if You Move to the South. (I know you are coming from Texas, but this is pretty good...)
I can’t put my finger on that list, but I do remember the first and last of it:
1. You’re going to hear this a lot: “You ain’t from around here, are ya?” When you hear it, be prepared to run.
20. We are glad you decided to move here, and we love it you came, but you need to know, you’ll never be a real Southerner. Neither will your children. After all, if at cat had kittens in an oven, you wouldn’t call ‘em biscuits...
My advice? Hire a local (TN) real estate attorney to advise you. Don’t rely on social media advice.
Other than that...I envy you.
LOL! You beat me to it!
It depends on the county. Johnson City is nice. They have/had a man store there.
I’m right on the border in North Carolina. You should move somewhere else so you don’t ruin my view...
I bet your a real joy at parties.
Welcome to Tennessee where you’ll probably die in a forest fire!
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