MeInMaine Blog

Tag: homesteading farmsteads in maine

Homesteading, How To Do It In Maine.

Homesteading, finding a property in Maine the easy-does-it sensible way.

This blog post will take it slow and spell out one methodical approach to homesteading in Maine. The desire to create from scratch or buy an existing homestead in Maine stems from lots of acreage with low to the ground price tags hanging off them.

What’s for sale in Maine that is ideal homesteading property is always a smaller cost than what most people are used to seeing where they hang their hat now out of state. The real estate buyer is pleasantly surprised when they search the current listing

No Pretty Reason, No Matter What Season To Homestead In Maine.

inventory of any property for sale in Maine. Which leads to the why is that so answer.

The distance away from high population markets is great which means what you do end up buying is surrounded by wide open space and fewer people to mess it up.

Smaller is better for a sane pace, to enjoy life not race through it. The need for heavy duty zoning, the HOA’s trade in for CSA’s. High traffic and crime are all missing in a small Maine town. And in city settings, large acreages just don’t exist. Got any forty acre lots? Nope. Go fish. Head to Maine for that and simpler living.

So the where to homestead, farmstead all starts with a simple dream, then picking a state like rural Maine.

Then the best region in that state for a location that is affordable. One area that’s not likely to change much or at all to force another rip up the stakes, pack it up and on the road again. For the gotta move again over the next ten or more years. You can only and should only have to do this moving upheaval only so many times in your life. Make it Maine for good once you have all the information needed and questions answered that help you decide if this is the place to homestead.

How old you are, how healthy, the size of the budget, the timing in starting a homestead are all factors. Have kids in high school that are a couple years from graduation? The buying the homestead in Maine property dream may happen now for

Keeping An Eye On Your Homestead Animals. Raising Your Food Makes It Hard To Let Go Of Your “Pets” On The Homestead Spread.

just land. No existing buildings, and where you are going to one by one create them is on the mental drawing board. Secure the property in Maine but stay where you are out of state. Because you have loose end and are not quite ready. Keep saving, reading those seed catalogs and studying the marketing process if you plan to sell more than your raise and consume yourself.

The time ticking by over the next couple years waiting for a high school graduation march around the gym or auditorium may mean using the homesteading land location for just a vacation property use. To dream about what you are really going to do with the Maine land that is put on hold. Until the day when you devote all your time and attention to this location in Maine where you already own land. Slowly putting the transition into gear. Easing out the clutch to move in low to begin the transition from wearing a corporate tie and you’re pretty much pinned to the wall by an office desk.

Selling the home you now own to create the nest egg of money for the improvements on your Maine land could eat up some time too.

Real estate markets go up and down like stock values. When you are flexible and not in a hurry good things happen naturally. Get your land, know where you are going but keep the when loose. Elderly parents that need you close can come with you or be another reason why the move to Maine is going to be a delayed one/ All of us juggle responsibilities to consider right?

Okay, the land you buy, what to look for to create the best homestead location in Maine. Farming of some small scale is

Another Generation Of Farmers In Maine. Remember, No Farmer, No Food!

part of the homesteading to be self sufficient. How far you take it means power or not from utility lines? Year round road or no thank you. You will be taking on the chore of keeping that last property on a dead end discontinued Maine road open and maintained year round.

Like people soils are different is the motto of one local site evaluator named Bill Hersey of Caribou Maine. Study the area USDA soil maps for the best Maine land and hire a soil tester to lay out where the septic, what type of sewerage disposal you are going to set up on the property. Composting toilet, out house, gray water disposal field for the kitchen sink and laundry or the thousand gallon cement septic tank will go here, the leach field over there.

The drilled well if a usable water source is not already in place is going to be located where and who is going to punch that hole in the ground for you?

The slow cooked approach to homesteading in Maine means nothing is rushed and mistakes are not made from the hurry scurry.

Is the land in tree growth, is there shore land zoning to consider in how you develop the Maine property? More on tree growth, how that save on your real estate taxes works in the Pine Tree state. Those

The best homesteading, setting up a farmstead exercise is done without a bank too. You have savings, you sold a property, you set up owner financing on the Maine land and what do you know. It’s been five years or whatever mortgage period, the land part of this life changing experience is now free and clear. More on how owner financing Maine land works.

Had a couple from Florida come up this weekend who was smitten with an online Southern Aroostook County property listing new to the market.

Soil Amendments, The Living Off The Land Means Giving Back, Not Taking Away The Mineral Elements!

For the last month, lots of phone calls and emails back and forth to talk about their homesteading in Maine dream. The land they are considering just under sixty acres in size and in a remote location. The road into it this winter not plowed so high ho high ho in we go. Have used our snow sled to show and sell a place called Crow Hill in Linneus Maine. But this time it was easier to just travel down to the spot where the road is no longer plowed. And dressed warmly to hoof it in on an existing packed down snowmobile trail.

Snow shoes or cross country skis have been used before but a sled trail already packed down made the walk in a beautiful one due to new fresh dusting of sparkling snow and blue skies, bright sunshine. We were able to talk back and forth as we went in and out to the property. The one that already has an insulated cabin with a wood stove, a small tool shed and open cleared land with mixed wooded sections. This land also surveyed so where everything lies is not a mystery for perimeter boundary lines.

What is your property to homestead, what is not is clear as a bell with the plat map and pins, compass bearings and the metes and bounds description. And it was crank your head around. What do you see? Scenery, pasture fields, wood stands but no people around this large piece of land to homestead. Which is what this couple liked best. Winter is an excellent time to scope out the surroundings in Maine. You can see more without the leaves. And hey, no black flies and fewer land buyers to compete for whatever you find interesting to pursue.

Homesteading, what else to prepare for beside gleaning all the local information possible online and from boots on the ground community information gathering from the locals?

Homeschooling or public education? What you do raise for food, is it going to be grown in the ground or raised on the hoof? This latest homesteading buyer wants goats, chickens but is not going to be like Noah with two or more of everything you might see in a Maine barnyard setting.

Homesteading, It Means Working On Buildings, Tending The Crops, Watering – Graining – Haying The Animals. Living Off The Land In Maine!

If the access in and out is too big for one person to tackle in the winter, how are you getting in and out? In retirement you want to make your life easier not harder. The timing of this homestead move to Maine is different for everyone. A young couple full of hope and ideas may be low on money but thinking of raising their kids here. Another later in life couple with grown kids could be thinking part time homesteading. Where a few months of the year are spent as snowbirds in the Sunny South. Pass the suntan lotion please. If you have critters, who is going to milk Bessie the cow, collect the eggs, make sure the pasture fences are strong and all the animals get hayed, grained, watered? Or to call the Vet when needed.

Lots to consider homesteading in Maine. No pesticide sprays? Joining the Maine Organic Farm And Garden group (MOFGA) is a good idea and hitting the agricultural state fairs around Maine will help develop the knowledge base. So you know what you are doing because you have compared notes with others who are planning the same lifestyle and in the learning stage. Or are veterans and don’t mind talking about it to share their triumphs and set back lessons.

Just got back from plowing snow and helping son check the heat inside a storage facility for root crops. Everything stored in bins and sold in truck loads to consumers out of state. The organic farm In Maine, Nature’s Circle he works for in New Limerick also rents out a family farm that has rich fertile soil that produces grade A produce. If your homesteading involves more than growing your own food, raising your beef and dairy producers, you may need to have storage facilities to load out over the winter months.

The scale of your homesteading is up to you and your family size, the thickness of your wallet or heft of the purse your carry. You may want goats like these couple do and they have experience with them from earlier farming experiences. The lifestyle is important to communities catering to golfers and the off grid or however unplugged you go is up to your idea of what this homestead spread in Maine looks like in your head.

There is no better way to raise a kid than on a family farm in Maine.

The skills developed with fixing machinery, being a scientist studying what soil amendments are needed and in what degree… it is all invaluable. The best part of living off the land is the self sufficiency, the independence and fresh air year round working on the farmstead. Crop failure, wildlife eating your profit and if your health takes a dip are all make the risks real. But you quickly figure out what is important in life. You realize you are only here a short time and this old Earth will keep turning once you and I are long gone.

How crunchy, how granola depends on your to dial in. Some folks with the homestead, the family farm have a ticket. They might be a trust fund baby. They could have an income source that takes some of the stick, a lot of the risk out of the agriculture equation. You as a homesteader will be doing as much of everything as possible to hold down expenses. But the reward from standing back and realizing what you created with your bare hands, lots of patience and careful planning makes it all worthwhile. There is much to learn scratching the dirt, preparing the soil, planting the seeds and picking the new crop of rocks that come up every spring on a Maine farm homestead. Maine, where you dream in color.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA

January 20, 2019
Homesteading In Maine, Been Happening For Years.

Homesteading in Maine, living off the land with the birds and the bees, all these trees.

Is not something only tie dye wearing folks from out of state did back in the late 1960’s early 1970’s. While an unpopular war raged on.

The image of someone heading north on the highways twisting and turning through Maine in a VW micro bus, a couple thick Mother Earth News or Whole Earth catalogs riding on the dashboard. The mission, a burning desire to get closer to the Canadian border that surrounds Maine on three sides.

“X” Marks The Spot For Crow Hill Linneus ME

No AC cooling the vehicle space but all the windows down and the little triangles up front cranked to catch a breeze. Harness the momentum of the highway travel north up into Vacationland.

Pass me another Moon Pie would you and a tin of pop, an Orange Crush or Fanta to wash it down along with the road dust will you please and thank you?

With Arlo Guthrie, Melanie or Jerry Garcia, someone taking a turn through tinny tiny speakers providing the tuneage. The background sound.

Maybe Canned Head explaining the life and death, do or die need to get out into the country. I’m gonna do just that.

Seeking a place to roost like underpopulated, sparse but heavily wooded rural Maine. Where Maine land is almost in endless supply and priced so so low to the ground.

Getting away to unplug, recharge, breathe. Hear yourself think. To avoid the suffocation of the city that can choke a person, drive them black flies in spring crazy. Suffocation, not to be confused with another long “S” word, a classic RIP Bowie’s Suffragette City.

There were five young men fresh out of school and ready to take on the World. To set it on fire and make a difference, take their bite of the apple. Create a new untraveled path. One lad returned home to New Jersey where the gang all hailed from, roamed the halls, went to high school. After a stint in California. To round up his personal belongings and head west to the coast or maybe British Columbia. He had a classic case of wanderlust.

Not As Much Ice On Maine Lakes. Still Ice Shacks, Fishing Through A Hole Underway During A Mild Temperature, Snow Load Too Winter.

While home in Jersey, he hit up his buddies and heard about a land auction going on this weekend in New York.

For 200 acres of land in Linneus Maine.

A place dubbed Crow Hill that was located on the back way to Oakfield on a stretch of Aroostook County back woods. Before wind generators and similar modifications to the Bagdad like Highway that was a buck board ride. Like after some progressive B-52 thorough carpet bombing treatment rained down from up in the clouds.

The land in Maine for sale cost $7500 for 200 acres of property sans buildings.

There was another $500 needed for the freight, to settle up and pay the damage for the esquire, for the legal beagle to officiate the paperwork exchange to be recorded at the registry of deeds..

The lads did not possess pockets lined with gold. But collectively, if they dug deep enough, they could each scrounge up their share of the $8000 split five ways Evie Stevie. Stop the auction, put in our bid and they did.

Got themselves a chunk of Northern Maine land bought by joining forces. Doing what the group together but not the individuals could pull off alone.

So suddenly, on a whim life took a turn for the five man band that pointed the loaded to the gills pick up north to cross the big green bridge heading into Maine. Whew, you made it, the way life should be. Maine.

(Sang Way Way Off Key) “Whole Earth In Your Hand… You Have The …. “

Destination Linneus Maine, a patch of hilltop woods where “Crow Hill Lodge” was built from scratch.

Just over the valley from Meduxnekeag Lake that makes locals scratch their head that on maps is labeled Drews Lake. Other lakes near by scattered in the other three compass directions around this 200 acres of high top Maine land.

The boys each turn turns with the construction tools and together pieced together the post and beam barn like structure. I asked one of the original Crow Hill members if any of them were trained to be carpenters.

Nope.

None a Bob Vila. Average shop class students. But they went into a NJ housing development or two, toured a few places, the model homes and the framed early versions. Took pictures, made notes. All she wrote. The whole nine yards. That was their bootstrap training full of ambition, buckets of youthful hope and a lot of wetness still behind their ears.

Crow Hill Lodge, the mansion. Did not happen, go up quickly when money was scarce, knowledge was limited. It took years to take shape. And winters off happened where four of the five went south to look for work. That interruption cooled their jets. After local potato house, woods work took it’s toll on the majority and dulled their enthusiasm as the newness wore off. And familiarity with each other built contempt.

You hunt and pecked for what you could with what there was that was meager jobs in Northern Maine and not so financially rewarding happens in the weekly pay envelope. It is why Maine land is so cheap, has to be teasingly attractive and alluring.

Hard work, time to think, reflect on was this the right move and should I go sideways. in a new direction, usually back south played on the backs of the insides of all five original Crow Hill lodge, mansion creators.

Maine Explained With Social Media Examples.

With pot auger, a bohemian existence underway to survive. Salt and peppered with around the clock frugality.

Bill Bernat stayed behind to tend the home fires and scratch out a living locally high on the hill covered with a blanket of pure white Maine winter snow.

The band eventually disbanded. The music of the rattle and hum excitement soured. In-fighting and the silent treatment both worked together to buzz kill the dream of the Crow Hill Mansion. It had been a long hard haul.

The place left empty for a spell until listed, we sold the big land tract and structure. To a fellow from the same state where the auction for Crow Hill was held back in 1971.

It now being the early 1980’s during a time of 16.5% adjustable interest rates for mortgages. And A Derek Content, his wife Rosa decided to give hill top living a shot.

Derek dealt in rare manuscripts, selling early historical artifacts to colleges, universities and to private collectors. Gems, other collectibles not found at your typical Saturday morning Maine garage sale were bought and sold overseas too. He made a good living but was gone like a merchant marine half the year.

He knew seven languages, was from Holland originally and did not have a driver’s license when he landed in Linneus Maine. Relying easily on NYC mass transit for his moving, shaking, grooving to get from point A to point B. Using silver birds to make a living too. Rosa was from Puerto Rico.

Maine Is Rich Colors, Simple Pleasures, Natural Beauty.

I showed him the Crow Hill “Mansion” real estate using a 1980 Polaris snow sled with Derek on the back holding on. And with my pleadings forcing him to put on a winter wool cap. He was not dressed, not prepared for the harsh realities of outdoor Maine in winter weather.

The bright orange hat to protect his exposed ears from frost bite on a nippy Northern Maine winter day where you could see your breath. Every time it exhaled.

They created a daughter together named Phillipa. Ended up untying the marital knot with Rosa moving in town, creating a new pad over the now Hollywood Pet Salon on the corner of Main and Mechanic Streets in downtown Houlton Maine. Leaving Linneus Maine in the rear view mirror.

But before the parting of ways lots of money invested.

Plowed into improving the mile long private steadily rising road, finishing off the Crow Hill structure and adding supporting outbuildings to feather the small family’ nest. Their home sweet home.

Being Able To Hear Yourself Think Is Easier In Maine.

Slowly accumulating more Maine land too. To protect and insulate the holdings up here in Northern Maine. That was one of a kind.

Where you entertain yourself, your living room, all the real entertainment is parked outdoors pretty much all four seasons in Maine.

Never being afraid of being different, but more concerned, afraid of being like everyone else.

That’s one story of homesteading, starting an off grid, back to the land property in Northern Maine. Hit us up for lots more where those came from that should be hunt and pecked about in the days ahead.

Thank you for following our Me In Maine blog post stream.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North Street Houlton ME 04730

April 27, 2016

Tag: homesteading farmsteads in maine

Homesteading, How To Do It In Maine.

Homesteading, finding a property in Maine the easy-does-it sensible way.

So the where to homestead, farmstead all starts with a simple dream, then picking a state like rural Maine.

Selling the home you now own to create the nest egg of money for the improvements on your Maine land could eat up some time too.

The drilled well if a usable water source is not already in place is going to be located where and who is going to punch that hole in the ground for you?

Had a couple from Florida come up this weekend who was smitten with an online Southern Aroostook County property listing new to the market.

Homesteading, what else to prepare for beside gleaning all the local information possible online and from boots on the ground community information gathering from the locals?

There is no better way to raise a kid than on a family farm in Maine.

Homesteading In Maine, Been Happening For Years.

Homesteading in Maine, living off the land with the birds and the bees, all these trees.

Seeking a place to roost like underpopulated, sparse but heavily wooded rural Maine. Where Maine land is almost in endless supply and priced so so low to the ground.

For 200 acres of land in Linneus Maine.

The land in Maine for sale cost $7500 for 200 acres of property sans buildings.

Destination Linneus Maine, a patch of hilltop woods where “Crow Hill Lodge” was built from scratch.

Hard work, time to think, reflect on was this the right move and should I go sideways. in a new direction, usually back south played on the backs of the insides of all five original Crow Hill lodge, mansion creators.

The place left empty for a spell until listed, we sold the big land tract and structure. To a fellow from the same state where the auction for Crow Hill was held back in 1971.

I showed him the Crow Hill “Mansion” real estate using a 1980 Polaris snow sled with Derek on the back holding on. And with my pleadings forcing him to put on a winter wool cap. He was not dressed, not prepared for the harsh realities of outdoor Maine in winter weather.

But before the parting of ways lots of money invested.