Owner: Maine's Waterfront Blog URL:http://mainewaterfront.blogspot.com Join Date: Sat, 17 Mar 2007 14:53:28 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: Maine id definitely a "waterfront" state. So, as we come across "cool stuff" to do, or some interesting facts or information that relates to living in Maine, or waterfront activities and issue, or waterfront real estate -- we'll share it with you... Site statistics:Click here
Real Estate Outlook: 2007 2007-03-19 13:48:00 I'm a great believer in cycles -- in the stock market, in politics, in relationships, in life -- and definitely cycles in the U.S. real estate market. After cruising along for many months, or sometimes years, we can be yanked up short with a pronounced change in the marketplace, like now, where a sellers market is evolving into a buyers market.So how should sellers deal with this changing market? Here are some suggestions:1.) REEL IN EXPECTATIONS. Not so easy to do when prices have been steadily increasing for the last few years -- many sellers still haven't quite adjusted their thinking to this emerging buyers market.2.) PRICE PROPERTY REALISTICALLY. Forget about last year's figures -- find out what comparable properties have been selling for in the last 2 to 3 months, and what's currently on the market, and their prices -- and then price your property competitively.3.) GET YOUR PROPERTY SALEABLE. Called "staging", it's now more important than ever to fix minor flaws, think about Read more:Estate
, Outlook
, Real Estate
Cool Stuff: Go to a Country Auction 2007-03-10 13:50:00 Besides community and church bingo games, the second most popular form of indoor entertainment (sometimes outdoors) in Maine is going to a country auction.Have you ever wondered where antique dealers go to get their goods? In Maine, often called the "Attic of America", one of their best-kept secrets is the Burnham Auction
(Houston-Brooks).This auction, which claims to "buy junk and sell antiques", is a primary recipient from all those Maine attics and barns. The sheer variety of items found here will leave you scratching your head. It requires that you get up very early, as it starts promptly at 7 AM almost every Sunday of the year, be it rain, sleet, snow or freezing weather.Operated by Dan and Pam Brooks and many associates, this auction has been a scene to behold for over 36 years. You will need to master the art of saying " yup" -- and be fast -- as many items go for less than $10.00.CAUTION: Guard against getting auction "fever". A worse-case scenario of this ailment was when, Read more:Country
Just the Facts: The Interenet vs. Real Estate 2007-03-09 19:40:00 According to the National Association of Realtors, last year 78% of repeat buyers and 82% of first-time buyers used the internet in their home searches. Read more:Estate
, Real Estate
Cool Stuff: Mail a Friend a "Lobstah". 2007-03-25 17:54:00 Restaurants throughout the world feature "Maine lobster" -- that sweet, succulent stuff that makes grown people don bibs and make a delicious mess. What better gift could you send to a friend, on a special occasion, than live Maine lobsters, complete with bibs, crackers, picks, wet wipes as well as cooking and eating instructions?Shipped in special insulated cartons for next-day delivery via UPS or FedEx, you can be sure to surprise a friend with this memorable gift.If you really want to blow someone away, a few of the purveyors listed below will overnight a complete Live Lobster Bake, which can include steamer clams, black mussels, New England seafood chowder, sweet corn, red potatoes and topped off with a native blueberry pie....The Maine Lobster Council lists 47 members that will ship live lobsters at www.mainelobsterpromo.comThe companys we have selected below are mostly family businesses that have been lobstering for 40 years or more...William Atwood Lobster Company --
Just the Facts: Encouraging Numbers 2007-03-27 21:51:00 The Maine Association of Realtors reported the median sales prices of existing homes were up 4.84% during the month of February when compared to one year ago. The statewide median existing home sales price reached $193,950 for the month, up from February 2006's price of $185,000. The median sales price indicates that half of of the homes were sold for more and half sold for less. A total of 698 homes changed hands during the month, down a slight 1.13%. Nationally, sales of single-family, existing homes decreased 3.4% from last February.My personal opinion is that the current "soft" real estate market is mostly a media-inspired event -- although no doubt there was overbuilding in some markets and other areas where prices needed "stabilizing".But this does give buyers a "window" to shop for properties at more realistic values.... Read more:Numbers
Ten Waterfront Buying Tips 2007-04-18 22:14:00 There are a few twists and turns particular to buying waterfront property in Maine, so we have put together a brochure to help ease you through the process successfully.Learn how to locate property lines, how zoning can restrict what you can do with a waterfront property, determining road and utility access, if you can clear any vegetation, the importance of inspections, legal and broker representation, and much more...If you would like to receive a copy of "Ten Important Tips You Should Know Before BuyingWaterfront
Property in Maine", just Email your request to info@WaterfrontPropertiesOfMaine.com -- giving us your mailing address or Email address.
How to Talk Yankee 2007-05-18 21:52:00 Visitors, traveling the back roads of Maine, stopping at a country store, or a farm stand or a yard sale, quickly pick up on the fact that Mainers have their own lingo. They use words not heard in other states and use pronunciations that are unique and sometimes difficult to understand. It is not only remarkable that these localisms have survived, but that they are delivered with unusual brevity and a dry humor that's hard to grasp at first.From "ayuh" (yes) to "daow" (emphatic no), for those interested in learning more about the language of Maine, we would refer you to "How to Talk Yankee
" by Gerald Lewis. See our Publications section.
Snow Going 2008-02-26 07:42:00 Snow is a fact of life in Maine, even along the coast where temperatures are milder than the interior. You can rail against it and stomp your feet until it finally melts away in spring---or you can play in it. I heartily recommend the latter. In early February, the Owls Head Transportation Museum celebrated one of the many winter pasttimes here in the Midcoast: snow mobiling. In true fashion, the museum focused on the history of motorized sleds. Included were machines from the early days of the sport as well as a tracked Model T-style truck. Ironically, a major storm was forecast for the day of the event, keeping many of the exhibitors from trucking their snow machines from all over New England to the museum. Even so, the event drew a pretty good crowd. Demonstrations included an o Read more:Going
Sailing on the Edge 2008-02-24 14:21:00 I hauled the mainsheet in tight and the starboard runner lifted off the ice. I tugged it in a little more and the iceboat took off like a shot, chattering across the rough ice at about 30 miles per hour. From my steering position a few inches above the surface---flat on my back and staring over my insulated boots---it felt more like 130 m.p.h.Several tacks across the lake and I maneuvered the waterbug-like contraption back to shore where the boat's owner stood grinning, anticipating my reaction. Spinning the iceboat around into the wind, I rolled out while Wes set the brake, a toggle-like device on the front runner that digs into the ice. "Man, oh man, what a ride! That was fantastic!" I said, or something to that effect.My friend Wes (in the photo) is one of a group of avid iceboaters in Read more:Sailing
Down the Chute! 2008-02-24 12:53:00 It was tough putting your finger on it, but there was something unusual about the people talking at the edge of the woods. Maybe it was the large moose hat with antlers that two of them wore. Or the guy in the orange Care Bear outfit next to the woman in a pink bear suit. Except that none of the other few hundred people walking around seemed to notice.Welcome to The U.S. National Toboggan Championship.Started as a lark by a handful of locals, the event celebrated its 18th birthday this February. More than 500 teams---consisting of two, three and four-person sleds---raced the clock down the slope over two days. The costumes were as fanciful as the names, like The Wing Nuts, Hogs & Heffers and Killer Honey Bees (yes, they were dressed as bees and their striped costumes with yellow stinge Read more:Chute
How religion is shaping world affairs 2008-03-14 13:26:00 In late February, some 800 people packed the downtown Camden Opera House and a few other remote locations to hear a mighty lineup of speakers discuss a topic of keen interest: Religion as a Force in World Affairs. The occasion was the 21st annual Camden Conference.Starting Friday night and continuing through the weekend of Feb. 23-24, panels took on subjects ranging from The Role of Fundamentalists in Recent U.S. Foreign Policy and Religious Identities in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict to The Clash Between Sunni and Shia Muslims Across the Middle East and Religious and Ethical Challenges in Seeking Global Social Justice. Panelists included recognized experts such as Rev. J. Bryan Hehir of Harvard University’s Kennedy School; Andrew Preston, Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge University
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