Where I'd Buy in Knoxville With $350K (2026)
You've got $350,000 pre-approved. You open the listings, and every house you like says $450,000. So is $350,000 still enough in Knoxville?
I pulled 55 Knox County homes that sold between $315,000 and $375,000 from July 23 to October 16, 2026. Real closed prices from our local MLS, not asking prices. Here's what that money actually bought on each side of town, and where I'd spend it.
1. What $350K Buys in Knoxville
The typical house: The median sale price was $345,000. That bought about 1,600 square feet, three bedrooms and two baths on about a quarter acre. That works out to about $210 a square foot.
How fast they sold: Half went under contract in about three and a half weeks or less.
Room to negotiate: 22 of the 55 sold for full asking price or more. The typical discount off the original price was about $5,000, so don't plan on knocking $30,000 off a fairly priced house in this range.
Who you're competing with: 11 of the 55 buyers paid cash. That's 1 in 5. If you're financing, get fully pre-approved before you start touring.
So $350,000 is not a starter budget anymore, but it's not dead either. It buys a real house in Knoxville. You just have to pick your trade-off, and that mostly comes down to which side of town you're on.
2. North Knoxville: The Most Options
The numbers: 21 of the 55 sales were in North Knoxville zip codes, almost 4 in 10. The median was $345,000 for about 1,630 square feet, and the typical house was built in the 1990s.
Real examples:
A 1,340 sq ft, three-bedroom house built in 1993 sold for $338,000. It's outside city limits, so it pays county tax only.
A 1,700 sq ft ranch from 1972 sold for $345,000. It's inside city limits, so it pays two tax bills.
A brand-new, four-bedroom house with about 1,650 sq ft sold for $345,220.
What you give up: A lot of these are older houses, so budget for updates. And check the city line on every address, because the same price can come with very different tax bills.
3. East Knoxville: The Most House for the Money
The numbers: The median house was about 1,770 square feet, the most space in this data, at about $196 a square foot, the lowest of any side of town.
Real examples:
A 2,300 sq ft, five-bedroom house from 1950 sold for $373,000.
A brand-new, four-bedroom, 2,075 sq ft house sold for $340,000.
What you give up: Depending on where you are, East Knoxville can be a longer drive to west-side jobs. Drive it at 7:30 in the morning before you buy.
House hunting around $350,000? Text me your budget and where you'll be working at 865-548-7676, and I'll send you what actually sold near there, with real prices.
4. West Knoxville: Bigger Yards, Less House
The numbers: 14 sales, with a median of $348,500. But the median size was only about 1,500 square feet, and the typical house was built in the 1970s.
The upside: Bigger yards. The median lot was almost four-tenths of an acre.
How fast they sold: Half went under contract in nine days or less.
Real examples:
A 1,215 sq ft house from 1955 near West Hills sold for $347,000. Under contract in one day.
A 1,644 sq ft house from 1977 on more than half an acre sold for $360,000. Also one day.
A 1964 house on almost two acres sold for $360,000, one of only three homes in this data with an acre or more.
What you give up: Square footage and age. If you want West Knoxville at this price, be ready to move fast and plan on an older house.
5. Halls: Newer and Bigger
The numbers: Only four sales landed in Halls in this range, all between $350,000 and $360,000. Three of the four went under contract in five days or less, the fastest of any area.
Real examples:
A brand-new, four-bedroom, 1,774 sq ft house sold for $350,000.
A house built in 2021 with about 2,400 sq ft sold for $360,000, the biggest house in the whole data set.
What you give up: The drive. Halls is about 25 to 30 minutes north of downtown. Drive Maynardville Pike at 7:30 on a weekday morning before you buy.
6. New Construction
Yes, you can still buy brand new for $350,000 in Knox County.
The numbers: 11 of the 55 sales were built in 2023 or later. The median new build sold for about $345,000 with about 1,650 square feet, and a lot of them had four bedrooms. Most were in South, East and North Knoxville.
The trade: The median lot was about a seventh of an acre, and most come with an HOA. The typical fee was about $450 a year.
What you get: A new roof, new systems and less to fix. What you give up is yard space and usually some drive time.
7. South Knoxville: Location Over Yard
The numbers: Eight sales, with a median of $345,000. Half were new or nearly new builds, and the lots were the smallest in the data, around a tenth of an acre.
What you get: Location. South Knoxville is about five minutes from downtown and right by the Urban Wilderness trails.
What you give up: Yard space. Two of these sales were condos with monthly HOA fees.
Negotiating tip: Not every new build sells fast. One new house in South Knoxville took 268 days to go under contract. If a new build has been sitting, ask the builder for help with closing costs or a rate buydown.
8. Condos
The numbers: 7 of the 55 sales were condos. The median condo sold for $340,000 with about 1,500 square feet, and most had two bedrooms.
The catch: The HOA. These condo fees ran from about $110 to $305 a month. A $205 monthly fee is almost $2,500 a year, compared with about $450 a year for the new-construction houses.
A condo can make sense if you want to lock the door and travel. Just put that monthly fee into your budget before you compare it to a house.
9. Older Houses
20 of the 55 were built before 1980. That's not a bad thing. Older houses often sit on bigger lots in established neighborhoods. But it changes what you check:
Get a full inspection.
Ask how old the roof and the heating and air system are.
Have the sewer line scoped with a camera before you buy.
Those three things can add up to tens of thousands of dollars if they go wrong in your first few years.
10. What $350K Won't Get You, and the Costs on Top
Only 3 of the 55 sales had an acre or more.
Nothing was over about 2,400 square feet.
7 of the 55 were condos, not houses.
Taxes: In this data, homes inside Knoxville city limits had a median tax bill of about $1,730 a year. Outside the city, about $960. Inside the city you pay two bills, county and city. These are the current bills listed in the MLS, and Knox County just reappraised, so plan off the new tax bill, not the seller's old one.
Insurance: One national survey puts the Knoxville average at about $2,500 a year.
HOA: Add it if you're buying new construction or a condo.
Good news on financing: 19 of the 55 buyers used an FHA or VA loan. You don't need 20% down to compete at $350,000.
Set your budget on the full monthly payment, not just the price.
Where I'd Spend $350K
Most house for the money: East Knoxville
Older house with a real yard (and you can move fast): West Knoxville
Brand new, no need for a big yard: new builds in South or East Knoxville
Newer and bigger, and you don't mind the drive: Halls
The most choices: North Knoxville, where almost 4 in 10 of these sales were
Wherever you land, do three things: check which side of the city line it's on, get a real insurance quote, and drive to work at 7:30 in the morning. Do that, and $350,000 still buys you a good house in Knoxville.
Shopping Around $350K?
Text me three things at 865-548-7676: your budget, where you'll be working and your top two must-haves. I'll send back what actually sold in the parts of Knoxville that fit, with real prices.
Want to browse first? Search Knoxville homes here, or read the Knox County Property Tax Guide and Neighborhood Guide.
Source: 55 closed Knox County sales from $315,000 to $373,000, sold July 23 to October 16, 2026, from the Knoxville-area MLS (48 houses and 7 condos). Areas are grouped by zip code.