MeInMaine Blog

Author: Andrew Mooers

  • That Maine Home Raised A Family Of Four, That Farm Nine Kids.

    The Neighbor Kids Around The Home You Were Raised In Had So Many Variables.
    The Neighbor Kids Around The Home You Were Raised In Had So Many Variables.
    Where you grew up, no, not just the Maine town, but the house, the structure in it.

    Think of the direction the address guides the process of growing up, the actual home itself. If your family moved, relocated around a lot, you saw new places, had to adjust in different schools. It could have been a learning experience or one you regretted roots, a community you stay in and were a big part contributing to.

    But the actual home may have stayed the one and only home because of choice, illness, a layout of a parent that kept you from moving to a bigger home. Sometimes older home bought that got rehabbed by the entire family pitching in to remodel, renovate. The home was part of the income, “job” and think of how Bob Vila handy the kids became knowing the business end of a crow bar, hammer or roof shingle nailer gun.

    Or the move if one at all could have been from one to another neighborhood. Or from in town to the Maine country. The home itself had neighbors if in town and those kids you played with, learned from and shared with were buddies during the formative years. A different neighborhood would have meant a whole new set of other kids to help “shape you” and vice versa. One neighbor kid that would end up a career correctional center resident for stealing, building fires or other forms of mischief. That kid two homes down became an inventor, and it started with tinkering in the shop, garage. You remember him up late working on something mechanical in the garage summer evenings while you talked with Grandmother sipping lemonade on the front porch swing, remember? He works for NASA now.

    A country kid became resourceful at fixing things..like the car, snowsled, mini bike to get to town or where there were other kids to play with. That same country kid might have been pretty adept at entertaining himself because only a handful of kids in the area. The country offering more wildlife, outdoor recreation but less social contact. But then again if the kid lived on a Maine farm, large family became the “kids” you played with, learned life lessons from on how to get along.

    And on a Maine farm, you see your parents a lot more.

    Like working with them, when they come in for meals at home, not heading out to a diner or drive thru. Everyone is always home.

    So the Maine home you live in, where it is, the type it is makes a difference in the movie you starred in as a kid in your home town.

    Had your parents installed a pool, or had a lake home, suddenly Jimmy and Jane were pretty popular with the other kids showing up with an extra towel, a bottle of HI C or Kool Aid.

    I’m Maine REALTOR, Andrew Mooers Broker
    207.532.6573
    info@mooersrealty.com

  • Maine Lakes Over 20 Acres Have Public Access Landings.

    Maine Is One Big State With Lots Of Vacation Elbow Room
    Maine Is One Big State With Lots Of Vacation Elbow Room

    Maine is blessed with thousands of lakes, thousands of islands.

    And any lake over 20 acres in Maine has a public landing. Sometimes there are so many lakes in an area of Maine to enjoy that it is not critical to have the location of each and every public access. With 11 people per square mile in Aroostook County, Northern Maine, it’s not as critical to know each and every one. It’s not like Disney and all those people waiting in line for a hour and a half for the Space Mountain ride.

    Many of those landings are concrete ramped, very easy in and out situations to quickly get you on the water. You will also noticed signs about milfoil…evasive plant vegetation to avoid getting dropped in your lake at any costs from a boat prop. Or brought in on a float plane pontoon.

    If you are planning a vacation, Maine has the invitiation, label stamped on every license plate. Vacationland means all you have to do is get here.

    All the fun, recreation is all around you in Maine.

    Camping at our 30 state parks, camp grounds around the state make for high value memory making family trips, coupled with low cost actual cash outlay. I’m President of the Drews Lake Property Owners Association and pretty proud of our boat landing, dam that we bought for a dollar from the state to take over assuring this easy, safe access. Check out our Drews Lake Maine Tumblr site.
    Maine, get here quick as you can.

    I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers
    207.532.6573
    info@mooersrealty.com

  • My Aunt Ruth Had No Kids, Yet A 1000 That Called Her Mom.

    Horses And Kids Make A Great Combination At Maine Riding Camp.
    Horses And Kids Make A Great Combination At Maine Riding Camp.

    As a kid, I was lucky to be able to ride my mini bike, spend lots of time at Camp Little Ponderosa in Houlton Maine.

    A place for horse riding, arts and crafts, learning to swim, and pitching in on a Maine farm. There was haying, horse shoes, always something fun to do with the campers that came from all over the northeast to Houlton Maine to spend the summer in the country.

    My Aunt Ruth never married, nor had any biological kids. But with a swarm of nephews, nieces and with paying campers coming to learn the fine points of English and Western horse riding disciplines, she had many kids who thought of her as a mom. And she was to many local children as well from her years teaching music in the schools around Houlton Maine. The woman could sing. Had been accepted at Julliard School of Music. So between all the school kids over the years that had her for a music teacher around Aroostook County, many who could not carry a tune if it had handles but with Ruth’s help, they did the best with the talent they had or lacked. Also, kids that just would have fallen thru the cracks with home problems and parents that just lets say were distracted, not there for the kids. Aunt Ruth was the “mom”.

    Many of the kids who rode horses were either locals for a day program, or over night campers who came often for the entire summer. Some of the kids from large cities had never seen the business end of a barn shovel. The one used to shovel horse manure. Intially they were fish out of water. But kids watching other kids, and the way they keep each other honest, all the campers got a turn, became profficient at the art of cleaning out horses. Watering, graining, throwing down hay from the loft and preparing for horses shows was a big part of working together at Camp Little Ponderosa.

    Once a week we went to the Borderland Outdoor Movie Drive In. Everyday we except Sunday we hit Cary Lake in Littleton for swimming lessons. Once a summer at least we climbed Mt Katahdin with Aunt Ruth’s “beau” who never married but was a fixture at Camp Little Ponderosa. More than once Freeman Taylor asked my Aunt to marry him, and they were the first couple I knew that lived together on the Callaghan Road farm. It never happened.

    My Aunt Ruth was a strong willed woman, determined, more fun to get along with. Emotionally and able to relate on a higher level with kids. A little lower notch with some adults.

    Her heart was big, she was generous to a fault.

    She was not a business woman and would be the first to admit it when the going got tough. She would give her last dollar away and look over to you with a mental elbow in the ribs to nudge, make you question why are you not doing the same. Right now with a glaring force that “No” was not an appropiate answer. My Aunt Ruth died a few years back and it is amazing the number of kids now adults influenced by her in their life that approach me, share stories, tales.

    I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers
    207.532.6573
    info@mooersrealty.com

  • Buying Maine Land, Waterfront Real Estate Does Not Cost All Outdoors.

    Maine Lake Sunset...Not Two The Same.
    Maine Lake Sunset…Not Two The Same.

    If you have been following the MeInMaine blog posts, the images, stories, links, video embeds may have you pushed off the property buying real estate fence.

    And if you are in an area of out of state high priced land, waterfront real estate that is in the nose bleed section, your wallet will smile. It can be thinner because the number of zeros in the property price for Maine waterfront listings. You’re In Maine now, things are very very different than what you are used to where you live, call home now.

    But the icing on the ME waterfront property cake is in addition to lower cost, there are way way less people around the land, camp, cottage, home you buy on that body of water in Maine. The water is cleaner, area quieter. Basically, less people because we are little further up the pike means, boils down to you shell out less for any Maine waterfront real estate.

    But do’s and don’t around the Maine waterfront due to ME shoreland zoning regulations, the buffer of 250′ feet surrounding a Maine lake, pond, oceanfront, river, stream means study the regulations. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Land Use Regulation Commission (LURC) want to protect the natural resources with rules, statutes, laws toward that goal. Giving the waterfront property in Maine you are so fortunate to own, be the steward of means responsibilities. Handing that property to the next generation in better shape than you receive it.

    And remember, if a Maine lake could talk, it would ask you to please go easy on the lawns, open space. Bag the weed and feed for the golf course close manicured look.

    Shift the focus to vegetative buffer plants. Putting in trees to protect the Maine lake from silt, dirt, debris that chokes fish.

    And “feed” vegetation with phoshorous, other silt nutrients in the wash out, erosion and water racing to the Maine lake. Dumping everything it caries during a rain storm in to that lake. Think like a Maine fish. You are choking them if you don’t protect them.

    Land for less than a thousand dollars an acre is Maine is plentiful. In fact we have parcels close to 200 acres in the $70’s if you need, want to invest in something that big. The larger the acreage of Maine real estate, the lower the cost per unit acre.

    Maine land, with or without water frontage, lake views, or parked on a river, stream is cheaper property than you ever imagained here.

    I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers
    207.532.6573
    info@mooersrealty.com.

  • Maine Real Estate Buyers From Out Of State Ask “Any Bad Areas, Towns To Avoid?”

    Maine, Less Of What You Don't Need, Want. Way Way More Of What You Do.
    Maine, Less Of What You Don’t Need, Want. Way Way More Of What You Do.

    Hear the question from Maine real estate buyers… a lot when the caller, emailer, visitor to the Houlton Maine office wonder, worry about bad crime riddled areas or blighted towns like where they come from.

    They explain that where they live now in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island or Connecticut there are some neighborhoods, towns that you avoid like the plague. Night or day.

    The type of areas where you don’t stop at that next red octagon sign…rolling thru and at the same time, nervously hit the automatic door lock button manually, for the thrid time. Risky places where things happen. Bad things and you just don’t take a chance. Often these areas are a short cut to the place you are ten minutes late getting to but hung up in slower than death city, urban traffic.

    So the answer to are there any bad towns Mr Maine Real Estate Broker Man, to program in to gps to steer clear of, make a wide berth around? No. Can not tell a fib and the consideration of which town to pick in Maine to retire, relocate, move to depends more on how far from Walmart, the hospital, shopping, schools do you want to be? Knowing traffic has been wiped out of the equation with 11 people per square mile in Northern Maine, Aroostook County.

    If a ten mile circle with magic marker, one of the 8 primary crayons in the top real estate office desk drawer is used as the perimeter to stay within, it is for time reasons, not jitters over crime, damage to personal property or your person. The taser you use in the city, have the safety off and ready for anything as you race out the back door to hop in the car and head off to work is going to be gathering dust in Maine.

    Maine is water and air. The kind that is crystal clear, clean, that you can not get enough of like a horse turned out in the spring for the first roll in the rich clover.

    Pace yourself, you’ll get used to a lot of things in Maine that are so different than where you live now.

    Maine, you’ll love the four season outdoor recreation options, the hard working friendly family comes first people. But the long long list of what we don’t have in Maine, in Vacationland that includes crime, traffic, crowds, noise, pollution is bound to make you smile too.

    I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers
    207.532.6573 info@mooersrealty.com.

  • Retiring, Relocating, Moving To Maine, What You Wonder About.

    Small Towns Make Up Most Of Maine.
    Small Towns Make Up Most Of Maine.

    In my job as a Maine real estate broker, questions about Vacationland, especially by folks thinking of retiring, relocating, moving here come up.

    Maine’s sale tax if five percent. A pack of cigarettes in Maine gets taxed two dollars per package of 20. What about personal income, pensions and how the state of Maine retirement income is figured….learn more on Maine taxes.

    What about Maine property taxes? All Maine real estate and personal property of ME residents is subject to local and, if authorized by the legislature, state property taxes. Local property taxes, based upon assessed valuation, are assessed, levied and collected by municipalities. Homestead and veteran’s exemption programs, administered by the state, are available to reduce property taxes for those who qualify. The Homestead Exemption program provides a measure of property tax relief for certain individuals that have owned homestead property in Maine for at least 12 months and make the property they occupy on April 1st their permanent residence.

    Property owners receive an exemption of $10,000 on the assessed value of their home. A Veteran exemption of $6,000 is available to those who served during a recognized war period, are 62 years or older, are receiving 100% disability as a veteran or became 100% disabled while serving. Paraplegic veterans who received a federal grant for a specially adapted housing unit may receive a $50,000 exemption. A blind exemption of $4,000 is available to those who are legally blind.

    What about the Maine inheritance tax on your estate upon your death, dying?

    There is no Maine inheritance tax.

    Maine has partially decoupled from the federal estate tax law. The amount exempt from the Maine estate tax is different from the amount exempt from federal estate tax. A decedent would have their estate exempt for up to $1,0000,000.

    FAQ Maine weather questions about our winters, why ME real estate is so low come up often too. Also, surprise from folks moving to Maine about how cheap car insurance is due to less people, 4th best crime statistic in the country too.

    I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers
    207.532.6573
    info@mooersrealty.coml