Difference Between "Camps" and "Houses"? (appointed, real estate)

[Nor'Eastah]

OK, I thought I was doing so well with research on my own, and then this keeps popping up! In real estate ads, one building will be referred to as a "camp", while another will be a "house". The size doesn't seem to be the determining factor, nor does the acreage size or type (lake-front or just woods). There are "camps" that have electric and phone, with 2 bedrooms. There are "houses" with just 1 bedroom. To make matters even more confusing, some Mainers have both a "house" and a "camp".

What is the difference???

[MRVphotog]

This is a very interesting question in that hicks like myself are very familiar with the diference while I guess urban/suburbanites might not be familar with the concept.

I'll just start by saying you don't live yearround in a camp, although you could. It's not a Maine thing, it's a rural thing. You have a fishing camp, a hunting camp or just a house/cabin by a pond or lake you and your family spend weekends. Most folks who own a camp also have a house.

If it has electricity, running hot water, cable tv, phone, indoor plumbing including bathroom then it's more a vacation home than a camp.

[Newdaawn]

Many refer to their vacation homes as camps. When I think of camp - something on a lake or pond comes to mind, usually a bit more modest than "cottages" on the ocean.

[Zymer]

A "camp" generally does not have all the luxuries of "home", though due to personal definitions of "luxury" the actual condition and furnishings may vary wildly.

A generally accepted condition is that a "camp" is uninsulated and not really suitable for year-yound habitation, but that isn't always the case.

[starwalker]

Originally Posted by Zymer

A "camp" generally does not have all the luxuries of "home", though due to personal definitions of "luxury" the actual condition and furnishings may vary wildly.

A generally accepted condition is that a "camp" is uninsulated and not really suitable for year-yound habitation, but that isn't always the case.

Many of the properties we have been looking at are "camps", but as you said, luxuries are a personal thing and my sense of it is pretty bizarre... Camps -- from what I have seen -- are more likely to be on rougher roads, less likely to be paved and not always plowed to the end (so we found when looking while the snow was still high). And they also may have neighbors much closer than the "rural" aspect might suggest... we have been disappointed in our looking a couple of times after driving through what appeared to be a wonderful setting for a "camp" home for us, to finally come upon a group of cabins, small houses, trailers, etc all crunched in closer together than we are at present in our substandard trailer park. And the realtor's photo showed NONE of this.

[Zymer]

Originally Posted by starwalker

Many of the properties we have been looking at are "camps", but as you said, luxuries are a personal thing and my sense of it is pretty bizarre... Camps -- from what I have seen -- are more likely to be on rougher roads, less likely to be paved and not always plowed to the end (so we found when looking while the snow was still high). And they also may have neighbors much closer than the "rural" aspect might suggest... we have been disappointed in our looking a couple of times after driving through what appeared to be a wonderful setting for a "camp" home for us, to finally come upon a group of cabins, small houses, trailers, etc all crunched in closer together than we are at present in our substandard trailer park. And the realtor's photo showed NONE of this.

LOL! I used terraserver to scout the landscape and eliminate some properties that had too much local "congestion".

I saw a number of properties that really would not have taken a lot of money to turn into a nice year-round home, but the XYL was insistent that she didn't want to have to wait while I did the work...turned out that, by the time we *did* finally get our deal put together, enough time had passed that I could have bought raw land and finished a brand new house. C'est la vie.

[kaby]

Do not forget that Maine also has a large amount of "Camps"...the type where children go to spend the summer doing fun water/land sports and activities!!

[maine4.us]

Some of the camps I looked at did not have a septic system. Most did have a well and pump, but the septic is a mystery, unless they have a proverbial outhouse for that. The camps aren't insulated, and really are for summer. As stated earlier, the camps are usually out in the middle of nowhere, except when a land owner has sold off small parcels for camps. Then you aren't any better than in a city situation. A real camp would have some acreage so that you can do your own thing without any peeking.

[7th generation]

We call anything on a pond or lake, whether built last year or a 100 years ago, a camp. The term is also used for a structure in the woods that is off grid.

[Coaster]

Originally Posted by Nor'Eastah

OK, I thought I was doing so well with research on my own, and then this keeps popping up! In real estate ads, one building will be referred to as a "camp", while another will be a "house". The size doesn't seem to be the determining factor, nor does the acreage size or type (lake-front or just woods). There are "camps" that have electric and phone, with 2 bedrooms. There are "houses" with just 1 bedroom. To make matters even more confusing, some Mainers have both a "house" and a "camp".

What is the difference???

Generally speaking, a camp is a seasonal vacation dwelling, usually without a full foundation, often (but less often all the time) lacking indoor plumbing and/or electricity. Camps can be insulated for winter use (or just have a honking big wood stove in them) for snowmobiling or ice fishing. They can be on a pond or lake or deep in the woods. Vacation homes on saltwater are usually called cottages -- especially the expensive ones. (Is there any other kind these days?) Sometimes you hear the word cottage used to refer to a freshwater vacation place, but it's less common in Maine. In Canada lakeside vacation homes are often called cottages.

Or another definition: Mainers own camps, out-of-staters own cottages.