Question for those who moved to Maine (Gardiner, Alfred: health insurance, motorhome)

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by Parrotpaul

When are they going to revalue your property?

When I moved from North Saco in 1998, I owned a 3BR 1 bath ranch on an acre and a third. No basement, no city water, no city sewage, nearest fire department was three miles away, and my last property tax bill exceeded $2,000.

I now own two condos in south Orange County (purchased both for $140K in 1998)..together worth about $600K, and my property taxes on both are $1600 a year. Thank God for Prop 13...and Maine voted down a similar legislation last year. My taxes by law can only go up 2% a year, so my taxes will rise next year about $32.

good thinking paul, ill ask the town that tomorrow morning...wtf??

come on paul,,thats one of them questions,,you just dont ask,,,

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by a51ampFuse

Why did I move to Maine? A number of reasons, but overall I guess just looking for a little more elbowroom, and a kinder/softer place to live.
Would I do it again, too soon to ask/answer that one.
I will say that what I have exsperienced here so far has been disappointing on some levels. (We're talking northern Maine here). The country is nothing short of breathtaking, almost have to remember to breathe. I'm about to say the following things for two reasons. One I have strong faith things will change. Two, because I just don't get it? Where i came from isn't really important. But to give you a clue, I once lived in a darker skinned area of town where for three nights in a row my backyard was set ablaze to send me message of unwelcomeness. But I have never exsperienced some of the resentment and blatant rudety as I have seen up here, apparently for being an -outsider-. I spent over the course of 4 yrs. talking with a number of mutually oriented people of my work on a number of occasions that did everything but beg me to come out and work for them. Once here, only to hear, nope nuthin goin on, nuthin happening, even one (verbatim) "well we decided to hire back the
alcoholic that worked here before". I have been asked in on occasions for lack of better word, interviews that had absolutely no intend to send income my way but rather to just -check me out-. After arriving, one set of neighbors, while waving to them and sayig hello, literally and repeatedly, stopped in their tracks, put their hands in their pockets, and silently just stared at me. And please don't make the assuption that in the move I brought my palm trees or former way of life to inflict upon you. Far from it, I have lived and worked in a half a dozen different states, and when you move to Rome, you do as the Romans do. And I can tell you as an honest fact, many of your "Mainers" have moved elsewhere, including my former home, and we -do-not- treat them the way you do -outsiders- here. Now I have met a few nice and good folks here so far, but they have been few. Just food for thought, not all -outsiders- came with the intent to rape your daughters, fathers, or livestock. Some come with just the desire to live, be happy, maybe offer you somethings of quality you're lacking in workwise and just,,,,,just be.

amp, its too bad,,you've been treated like that,,there are ignorant folks everywhere, you seem to have a colony of ignorants around you..

you arent a warden are ya?? mainers kinda shun wardens,,

[msina]

I'm in a small town. We've never had problems with people "shunning us". I am sorry you have run into some ignorant people. There are people of mixed backgrounds, and a nice woman that moved here from China (the country not China, Maine), on our street. Bangor is becoming quite diverse.
A city returns to its diverse roots; new immigrants enhance culture

[elston]

I didn't know that you were in Bangor msina; wow it just keeps getting better!

[msina]

I'm north of Bangor. About 40 miles in a little town called Milo. I like the space and you can buy a house here for under 100k. There is town water and sewerage in a good part of the town. I "go to town" (Bangor) for things I can't get locally and to shop at Wal-Mart for paper goods and such. If you do end up coming to the Bangor area I would love to meet you for lunch sometime. Bangor has everything you could want. Good hospitals, shopping, you name it. There is a beautiful victorian in town (here) for 125k. It has already been restored.

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by msina

I'm north of Bangor. About 40 miles in a little town called Milo. I like the space and you can buy a house here for under 100k. There is town water and sewerage in a good part of the town. I "go to town" (Bangor) for things I can't get locally and to shop at Wal-Mart for paper goods and such. If you do end up coming to the Bangor area I would love to meet you for lunch sometime. Bangor has everything you could want. Good hospitals, shopping, you name it. There is a beautiful victorian in town (here) for 125k. It has already been restored.

milo,,even has a pats pizza!!!!! now if that aint impressive,,i dont know what is

msina,,i went up thru milo last week,,,id treat ya to a friendly lunch sometime

[msina]

Thanks MBM!! I really like it here.

[elston]

Originally Posted by elston

To 51 amp: I experienced that kind of thing years ago when i moved to NH from "the flat lands". One of the more spleeny neighbors regularly cursed me and my kids as "god d-mn hippies" (my 4 year old once came in and asked, "Whats a pucker?" When I asked him what??? he said "Mrs. Lebreque called me a little pucker and told me we should go back where we came from." We didn't leave for more than 20 years. We were always outsiders, but we did eventually earn some degree of acceptance--but that was mostly thru the kids involvement in Little League and 4H. We truly had little in common with the town folks and our social circle developed in the little city/town nearby where there was a little more diversity of ideas, education and perhaps tolerance. I wish you better luck and hope things improve.

Just to be fair and put things in a more balancd perspective....the first year we were there was a humdinger of a winter. The first day of school for the two kids, first and third grade turned out to be a bitter cold day and developed into a real blizzard! Even tho we had taken several walks to the new school and had admonished the kids to wait because their mother would meet them after school to get them home safe and sound--the third grader came out saw the storm and panicked and decided to walk home--he got lost in the white out. I got a call at work (about 30 miles away) that my son was lost!!!!! and that my wife was out looking for him with the teacher and the principal..all the way home I envisioned him dying in the storm. When I got home a good 45 mins later I found a stranger in my house with my younger two sons (a teacher) and a search party looking for my boy. It got dark! And then a knock on the door, people down the hill said they heard a knock on their door and when they opened it There was my little guy, he said, "I am brand new and I don't know where I live" well of course they knew who he was (isnt that the kid of those hippies who bought the Wolfe place lol) and brought him safely home. Without the kindness and willlingness to pitch in the outcome would have been...I hate to think. We were still the "flat landers"...but if we ever really needed neighbors, they were there. I am so glad I posted this "the other side of the story."

[forest beekeeper]

Originally Posted by msina

I'm north of Bangor. About 40 miles in a little town called Milo. I like the space and you can buy a house here for under 100k. There is town water and sewerage in a good part of the town. I "go to town" (Bangor) for things I can't get locally and to shop at Wal-Mart for paper goods and such. If you do end up coming to the Bangor area I would love to meet you for lunch sometime. Bangor has everything you could want. Good hospitals, shopping, you name it. There is a beautiful victorian in town (here) for 125k. It has already been restored.

The Milo area does seem like a very nice area. I did look at a property that was for sale in Milo, when I was shopping for property.

I was recently in Le Grange and I saw that they have a Lodge there, does Milo have a Masonic lodge of it's own?

[msina]

I know there's one in Dover/Foxcroft, Oh! Yup. Just googled it and there's a lodge on the Dover Road in Milo. My Dad was a Mason.