I think the Lookout Valley area will be a "hot " area soon. It is a short drive to downtown, has new businesses in the area including a Wal-Mart and there are some attractive older homes there that can be bought for under $100,000. It is already a good location for people that work in Chattanooga, Trenton or Marion County.

As "hot" usually means an area that is rapidly gentrifying you will find "hot" in areas that have reached the bottom of a cycle of appreciation /depreciation and are on their way back up. Also to make them "hot" you have to have a cultural draw i.e. shopping, restaurants, museums, etc. This is why the North Shore and St. Elmo were/are so successful.
The next areas that will undergo the "hotness" will be closely related to the last areas. You can see it beginning now on the North Shore to the West of Market Street into the tip of Red Bank. Also you will see it in St. Elmo on the East side of St. Elmo Avenue.
Finally, just off the horizon we'll see the Lupton City/SW Hixson area along with the Martin Luther King/McCallie Ave. area up to Central Ave. gathered into the "hot". Once this happens the promise of Highland Park that many invested in will come to fruition.
Hope this helps!

I agree with the great people below. Signal Mtn. has been a solid market.

I agree with Barry, Signal Mountain is a safe consideration and will grow and grow. Look at the Main Street area for redevelopment and if you want an in town, urban feel.

Signal is as close to Mayberry as it gets and we like it that way!

wishmyer@realtycenter.com

I think it all depends on what you are looking for and price. There are a lot of theories that St. Elmo at the foot of lookout could catch on, and the Highland Park area as well. There homes in these areas that need updateing and could be bought for $100,000 and less in some cases. If you are looking for an area that could return you more money in the long run, I would definately look into the Signal Mountain area because of the new High School and Middle School that just opened this past year, and prices are going up, but you will pay more onthe front end. Note of caution, all of these areas are still hard to flip homes in if that is what you are thinking of doing, in my opion.
Sincerely,
Barry