Best areas to invest in Chattanooga, Tennessee

Chattanooga, Tennessee, may be the best city you've never heard of. A recent winner of Outdoor Magazine's "Best City Ever", let's take a look at some of the dynamics that make this an awesome city to invest and then jump into some specific areas along the way.

If you love the outdoors, Chattanooga is for you. The diversity of outdoor activities less than an hour away from the city center is almost comical. A few off the top of my head are white water rafting, mountain biking, rock climbing, hiking, trout fishing, and boating/skiing.

It's also a very popular regional destination for southern weekend warriors looking to tap into the close proximity of the outdoors or, for those of us with children, the famous Rock City, Ruby Falls, Lookout Mountain, and the world-famous Tennessee Aquarium.

Because neighboring Nashville has been such a hot investment home market for so long, Chattanooga has benefited from the investment dollars seeking less competition and more desirable returns - this also includes the North Georgia area.

Investors are finding value there in both the rental market and the fix and flip market.

Let's take a look and start with North Georgia.

Many investors are flocking to North Georgia due to the value it provides and its proximity to the city of Chattanooga.

Word on the street is that they have great public schools and you can find some incredible deals in the fix and flip (A properties) and the rental market (C properties).

The next area we will look at is East Chattanooga.

This area is most primed for the rental market. Rental investors see a high rent to their investment dollars in this area. The majority of the homes are in the C class, but you can also find A class and B class. This area is very diverse, in terms of the type of properties available, and has something for everyone.

If you head out very far east you will run into the town of Ooltewah.

Ooltewah is filled with Class A homes. There is a lot of new construction going on this area as well. Might be a place I would invest if I was doing Build to Rent (B2R). It’s also worth mentioning that there is an Amazon fulfillment center as well as a Volkswagen plant, both a short drive on I75 away.

Downtown Chattanooga has many traditional condo developments and the City has done a really good job of revitalizing the area.

Like most revitalized cities you will find a mix of coffee shops, trendy restaurants, Coolidge park near the river and many other family activities - including the famous Tennessee Aquarium.

People looking to invest downtown will need to get in line as they will find the competition is stiff for Millennials moving to the area. Ever since the local power company, EPB, wired the town with fiber internet, it has been a popular spot of many young people. Wi-fi throughout the city, and EPB recently increasing everyone’s minimum internet speed to 300 megabits per second (for free!), make it one of the next hotspots in tech.

Much like downtown, the North Shore has gone through some recent gentrification and revitalization. It's proximity to town, makes it a favorite area for Millennials looking to have families that do not want to live in a loft or condo.

Driving through this area is quite exciting as even people who have a challenge seeing the vision of a revitalization, sure can't miss this one.

Traveling out of the North Shore up along Highway 27 will lead you to the town of Red Bank.

Red Bank is a traditional suburb with a mix of A through C properties. An investor can find tremendous value here with either a fix and flip strategy or a buy and hold strategy.

Lastly, moving out of Red Bank you would hit Hixson.

Hixson is kind of the last stop of the populated areas as you move north. The further you move up into Hixson, the less densely populated the area becomes. Hixson is not incorporated, so there’s a smaller pool of renters than you would find in Red Bank or East Chattanooga. There are still some decent deals to be found here.

If you've never been to Chattanooga, Tennessee, you need to go. You will be in for a pleasant surprise. The majestic views of the surrounding mountains, coupled with a progressive city on a beautiful river make it a hot spot for weekend tourists.

I've taken my family here a number of times. So when you go looking to invest, bring the family tagging along, you won't be disappointed.

Cheers!