Tony LavelleBerkshire Hathaway
Insights

Straight answers on Mid-South real estate.

Thirty years of buying, selling, building, and renovating property across Greater Memphis, West Tennessee, and Northern Mississippi. These are the things I tell my own clients.

SellingSeptember 18, 2026

The Two-Minute Walkthrough: What I See in Your House That You Don't

The small, cheap fixes a listing agent notices in the first two minutes, and why buyers notice them too, whether they say so or not.

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SellingSeptember 16, 2026

What Sellers Owe Buyers: Disclosures, Honestly Explained

Disclosure forms scare sellers more than they should. Here is what you actually have to say, and why hiding a problem always costs more than naming it.

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InvestingSeptember 14, 2026

The Emerging Market Playbook: Equity on the Other Side of Patience

By the time an emerging market is obvious to everyone, most of the equity is already gone. What to actually look for before that happens.

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InvestingSeptember 11, 2026

One Payer, One Point of Failure: A Rental Lesson That Cost Me

One tenant covering the whole building sounds simple, until that one tenant is the whole problem. A straight look at concentration risk.

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InvestingSeptember 9, 2026

Fix and Flip in the Mid-South: Where the Margin Really Comes From

You do not make money on a flip when you sell it. You made it or lost it the day you bought.

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RelocationSeptember 7, 2026

Relocating to the Memphis Area: How to Choose Where to Land

Relocating here means choosing between three states inside one commute. Here is how to narrow the map before you buy.

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InvestingSeptember 4, 2026

Finding Deals Nobody Else Sees

Most off market deals are not secrets. They are listings everybody scrolled past and sellers nobody called back.

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SellingSeptember 2, 2026

Why the First Two Weeks on Market Decide Your Sale Price

A listing gets its largest audience in the opening days and never gets it back. What that means for how you price and prepare.

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Under ContractAugust 31, 2026

After the Contract: Speed Protects the Deal

Signed is not closed. What has to move fast between acceptance and closing, and why silence is the thing that kills deals.

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Home MaintenanceAugust 28, 2026

The Cheapest Insurance Your House Has: Clean Gutters

Water is what takes a house apart. A short home maintenance checklist that keeps small money from turning into big money.

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BuyingAugust 11, 2026

How to Read an Inspection Report Without Panicking

Every report looks alarming the first time. How to sort the real problems from the noise, and which items are worth asking a seller to fix.

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SellingAugust 10, 2026

Questions to Ask Before You Hire a Listing Agent

The questions that actually tell you whether an agent can sell your house, and what their answers really mean.

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NegotiationAugust 8, 2026

Reading the Seller's Clock: Days on Market as Leverage

A fresh listing and a listing at forty days are two different negotiations. How to read the clock before you write the offer.

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NegotiationJuly 29, 2026

Negotiate Verbally. Paper It Once.

Written counters kill deals. The story call, finding what the other side actually needs, and why the contract should go out one time, clean.

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SellingJuly 25, 2026

The Forever Home Fallacy: Which Upgrades You Get Back

Most forever homes get sold in about five years. Which renovations come home with you at resale, which never do, and the five-year math nobody runs.

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BuyingJuly 23, 2026

What a Buyer's Agent Actually Does (And Why It Matters in Memphis)

The door opening is the smallest part of the job. Flood plains, septic, lot problems, and the inspection: what a buyer's agent catches before you own it.

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BuyingJuly 22, 2026

The First-Time Buyer Money Map: DPA, FHA, and Seller Concessions

Down payment assistance, FHA vs conventional, concession caps, and what pre-approval really means. The money side of your first home, in order.

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BuyingJuly 21, 2026

How to Read a Neighborhood Before You Buy

The house is only half the purchase. A slow drive, green shoots, what the big builders know, and why you cannot renovate a street.

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SellingJuly 7, 2026

Shoe Covers, Light Bulbs, and a Clean Attic: How I Prepare a Listing

The difference between agents shows up in a hundred small details between the sign going up and the closing table. Here is what preparing a listing actually looks like.

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Land & CommercialJune 16, 2026

Buying Land in West Tennessee and North Mississippi: Ask These Questions First

Land looks simple until you own it. Utilities, access, zoning, soil, and the seller's story. The questions that separate a good buy from a headache.

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SellingMay 26, 2026

What Really Happens When You Sell Your Home Without an Agent

The no-shows, the contracts, the inspection meltdown, and the discount at the end. The FSBO reality, step by step, so you can decide with your eyes open.

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NegotiationMay 5, 2026

Price Gets the Attention. Terms Make the Deal.

Real estate transactions are not only about the number. Financing, timing, concessions, and contingencies can create value for everyone involved.

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InvestingApril 14, 2026

What 30 Years of Owning Property Taught Me About Investing in Memphis

There is a difference between selling real estate and living real estate. Maintenance, cash flow, financing, risk. Lessons from actually owning the asset.

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BuyingMarch 24, 2026

Buying Your First Home in the Mid-South: Crawl, Walk, Run

Important decisions should not be rushed. A first home purchase done in the right order, information first, decision last, is how you avoid expensive regret.

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SellingMarch 3, 2026

Pricing a Home in the Memphis Area: How I Actually Think About It

The right price is not a guess and it is not a wish. It comes from the story behind your move, real comparables, and an honest look at condition and timing.

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InvestingFebruary 10, 2026

Ten Roofs, Ten Water Heaters: Why I Moved from Single-Family Rentals to Multifamily

The most-doors-per-roof rule, where deals actually come from, and the honest version of emerging market investing that nobody puts in the seminar.

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My StoryJanuary 20, 2026

How a Broken Snowblower Started 30 Years in Real Estate

A free broken snowblower at 12, a no-money-down duplex at 17, ten rentals by 22. Where the whole thing started, and the lessons that never changed.

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