Women retiring to Eastport (Caribou, Calais: schools, contractor, property taxes)

[maineguy8888]

Originally Posted by retiredtinbender

Perceptual thing, taxes. Eastport: 3.5 sq miles of land and bldgs assets, tax rate $24/$1,000. Lubec: 33.3 sq miles of assets, tax rate $19.50/$1,000. What was the towns budget in Lubec? I think ours was $2.6 million.

Both places are good and taxes are high in both depending on your income. Still, a lower tax rate than Calais. But they are quite low compared to Mendicino Cal., Boston, Dallas/Ft. Worth. At least that is what folks from these places tell me.

It can't be $2.6 million, as small as Eastport is. That doesn't make sense.

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by Maineguy04654

Go to the town office and ask for a list of ALL the property the town of Eastport owns. Then ask why there mill rate is double to triple the surrounding areas.

Do you know what retiredtinbender does for a living?

[Maineguy04654]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

Do you know what retiredtinbender does for a living?

Nope. From his screen name I am guessing he is like me retired?

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by Maineguy04654

Nope. From his screen name I am guessing he is like me retired?

Eastport's tax assessor. I'd bet on him knowing exactly what buildings the city owns on the waterfront and the rest of the island.

[retiredtinbender]

Originally Posted by retiredtinbender

Perceptual thing, taxes. Eastport: 3.5 sq miles of land and bldgs assets, tax rate $24/$1,000. Lubec: 33.3 sq miles of assets, tax rate $19.50/$1,000. What was the towns budget in Lubec? I think ours was $2.6 million.

Both places are good and taxes are high in both depending on your income. Still, a lower tax rate than Calais. But they are quite low compared to Mendicino Cal., Boston, Dallas/Ft. Worth. At least that is what folks from these places tell me.

Originally Posted by maineguy8888

It can't be $2.6 million, as small as Eastport is. That doesn't make sense.

Yeah, I made two errors on my post. The tax rate in Eastport is $23/$1,000 not $24. And to raise in tax was $2.8 million. Pays the police, public works, city hall, schools, etc. Lubec on the other hand, needed to raise just under $2.6 million w/out the high school.

The majority of city owned land here is the airport. The city owns the walkway downtown but that is only 10 feet wide and the waterfront is privately owned to low water. Other than that the majority is 50x50 lots for the sewer pump stations.

[retiredtinbender]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

Eastport's tax assessor. I'd bet on him knowing exactly what buildings the city owns on the waterfront and the rest of the island.

Not too sure on the "exactly" part, MW. Decent guess-timates though.

[mensaguy]

Originally Posted by Maineguy04654

Easy in Eastport the town owns the waterfront and will not sell to private folks who pay taxes.

Well, since this has already been refuted, I'm just curious why somebody living 40 miles away decided to interrupt a discussion about Women retiring to Eastport to change the subject to taxes (incorrectly I might add) without offering any helpful advice about actually retiring to Eastport.

Back on topic: One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that there is a good health care clinic in Eastport offering a wide range of services under one roof. You can read their ad when you get a Quoddy Tides. The hospital in Calais has done well for us when my father-in-law made several visits a few years ago. (Their imaging services are excellent.) Seniors lunch is a down Boynton Street from the clinic and the nursing home. The grocery store in Eastport is bigger and better stocked that you might expect from such a small city (not town). Eastport also has a large variety of restaurants offering a wide range of great food. You can eat out 3 meals per day and not have a duplicate meal for a very long time.

[Maineguy04654]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

Eastport's tax assessor. I'd bet on him knowing exactly what buildings the city owns on the waterfront and the rest of the island.

Well then look at HIS numbers. Eastport taxes are higher then anything around.

[Maineguy04654]

Originally Posted by mensaguy

Well, since this has already been refuted, I'm just curious why somebody living 40 miles away decided to interrupt a discussion about Women retiring to Eastport to change the subject to taxes (incorrectly I might add) without offering any helpful advice about actually retiring to Eastport.

Read his post Eastport has the highest tax rate around. And when I retired one thing I took into account was that cost thus why we bought the place out here plus I wanted more land to hunt and play on. My house and land in Eastport would make my taxes quadruple at the least. This is relevant to me. Do not get me wrong I love Eastport I go here at least once a week for Greek food!

[mensaguy]

Originally Posted by Maineguy04654

Read his post Eastport has the highest tax rate around. And when I retired one thing I took into account was that cost thus why we bought the place out here plus I wanted more land to hunt and play on. My house and land in Eastport would make my taxes quadruple at the least. This is relevant to me. Do not get me wrong I love Eastport I go here at least once a week for Greek food!

They have already decided to retire to Eastport. Your post was the first one to mention taxes in a thread about moving to Eastport. Every real estate listing discloses the property taxes, so they will find out before they buy. If you wanted to hunt on your land, you needed to be outside city limits anyway, so you already had your incentive to move. Your post definitely sounded negative about Eastport when you said: "Easy in Eastport the town owns the waterfront and will not sell to private folks who pay taxes."
If you didn't intend it to sound negative, that's OK by me. Leaving the waterfront aside, I don't think the city has very many properties that have been taken on tax liens. Occasionally there are 2 or 3 that are offered for sale, but cities don't wat to own lots and houses.