Cape Elizabeth neighborhoods? (buying a house, buying, closing)

[cape12]

thank you so much Cape_Elizabeth_5 that is so helpful! what a great post, i really appreciate it!

off to check out some of those neighborhoods now

[jamurphy]

Just curious as to why the taxes in much of ME seem so high if things like trash pickup don't exist? What do the taxes go for? Just curious.

[atrixwolfe]

Originally Posted by jamurphy

Just curious as to why the taxes in much of ME seem so high if things like trash pickup don't exist? What do the taxes go for? Just curious.

I believe they go to the schools, road maintance, city official's salaries. Road maintenance is a big one, snow removal & pot holes. Some Maine towns have trash pick up such as S. Portland. I recently noticed that S. Portland's taxes are actually a bit higher than cape.
When I lived in Alabama the we had very low property taxes but paid for trash pick up in our utility bill. However we had 8% sales tax even on food. in maine its only 5% and not on food.
Point is they all get you some how!

[Jenniferb24]

Originally Posted by atrixwolfe

Dogs and kids fit in any place here. lots of different neighborhoods and price ranges from the low 200s to millions. But I love it here and I know you will too. If you narrow something down and want an opinion feel fee to Direct Message me. Here's a shot on what you asked for.
- Oakhurst and surrounding area is a nice neighborhood close to ft William with an off leashdog
park. Con Lots of leaf pickup in the fall.
- Old Ocean house road area has fair amount of kids, but walkability is not as good as maybe some others how ever its closer to beach and the schools.
- There are a couple nice neighborhoods off spurwink, very convenient location.
- The neighborhood by the school off the south side of scott dwyer sorry can't remember any street names at the moment. Less expensive, but houses are very close togeather.....instead look at the neighborhood on the north side of scot dwyer.
But there are lots of great little streets all over Cape.
Spend Alot of time poking around on Google earth and zillow.

Good luck

If you don't mind my asking a question- your discussion is very helpful! We are a couple with 3 year old, dog and cat relocating to cape Elizabeth from the bay area. Can you tell us how busy Mitchell rd is to live on? And also what the Stonegate neighborhood is like for kids? We've been told Mitchell is "busy" so that it's not a road to play, walk or bike, but does that mean its too noisy to live on or pull out of a driveway onto? Stonegate looks spread out and a bit fancy so were not sure if it's the type of neighborhood a kid can make friends. Any info is much appreciated! I registered just to ask these questions. Thank you! Jen

[atrixwolfe]

Originally Posted by Jenniferb24

If you don't mind my asking a question- your discussion is very helpful! We are a couple with 3 year old, dog and cat relocating to cape Elizabeth from the bay area. Can you tell us how busy Mitchell rd is to live on? And also what the Stonegate neighborhood is like for kids? We've been told Mitchell is "busy" so that it's not a road to play, walk or bike, but does that mean its too noisy to live on or pull out of a driveway onto? Stonegate looks spread out and a bit fancy so were not sure if it's the type of neighborhood a kid can make friends. Any info is much appreciated! I registered just to ask these questions. Thank you! Jen

Jennifer, I live just off Mitchell and just down from stonegate. I'd barely classify Mitchel as Busy and again that all depends on your idea of Busy. It is a North south Throughfare, but not the main ones which would be 77 and cottage. Its not too busy to back out into, and its not noisy at all....occasionally when the ambulance goes by possibly, I see people who Jog and walk their dogs on Mitchell...although its a bit narrow for that in my opinion...the short drive over to the Fort is well worth it for both those activities! Bottom line its not to noisy at all to live on or near.
Stone gate is a bit fancy and new but I've noticed a good number of kids in that neighborhood and those are streets where the kids can hang out in the front yard/street and make friends easily. I believe there is even a trail that leads over to the Fort Williams that starts in Stonegate. Not to mention they will meet all the kids in the neighborhood at the buss stop. Personally I think its a great neighborhood for a family, just my opinion. I also noticed that all the house that went up for sale on Mitchell this summer sold, so that's good, when thinking resale value.
Lastly there is a great preschool just off Mitchel near Oakhurst, for your 3 yr old.
Please feel free to direct message me if you have any more specific questions. I'm happy to help! Good luck on your relocation, I think you'll love it here! Hope to see you at the dog park.

[ilovemycat]

We moved to Cape Elizabeth a few years ago. After our realtor drove us all around the Cape, we chose the section nearer to So.Portland, but off Mitchell Rd, not Shore Rd. We are the types to go to the supermarket almost every day, so we didn't want to be on the other end of Cape Elizabeth, out by the beaches. We love where we live, and love our home. It is only 3 miles from Portland, and has that quintessential Maine look. We can walk to Ft Williams, and my husband, an avid walker, walks home from Crescent Beach, or really from any place he choses to go.I think that you can't go wrong, wherever you find the house, the setting, the amount of land you want. I might be wrong, but I have heard that the Delano Park residents have a lot of issues with one another, so who needs that, but otherwise, happy hunting! The first summer, my husband would sit on our back porch and count every car going down Mitchell Rd, and was upset that the town was not getting any revenue from the tour buses in Ft Williams, but now they do, and I guess the traffic is not terrible. Nothing like Ogunquit, Wiscassett etc. Rereading your question about Mitchell rd, I will just tell you my feelings about my first house in NJ after growing up in apartments in NY.We bought a house on a street, similar to Mitchell, but actually way busier. But, to us, it was like moving to the country. However, after a few years in the burbs, I wished I had bought on one of the side streets. On Mitchell, it all depends on the house and land.Some are set far back, or thee yard or door you use actually faces the side street, which is the case with both my neighbors on Mitchell.

[ilovemycat]

In terms of property taxes, I would say Cape Elizabeth is not very high, unless you are waterfront, etc. I attribute it to having only one school at each level. South portland has more schools, more libraries, curbside garbage pickup, but also more rateables.

[Jenniferb24]

Hi again Atrixwolfe and ilovemycat,

for some reason I just received notice of your replies to my question about Mitchell Road. Thank you so much for the information! We decided against the house on Mitchell Rd for a variety of reasons and are currently under contract on a home on Columbus rd- it's a very long "short sale" so who knows if we will get it (fingers crossed). If you have the time I have endless questions of our future hometown It seems like a great neighborhood for kids (Columbus rd)- is that your impression/experience? Do you have any idea why Cape doesn't have full day kindergarten yet? Are you familiar with the Appletree preschool and Kindergarten? Do you know what people do with their kids in the summer in town (e.g. pre-school age summer school/programs)? Believe it or not, our dental hygienist here in the bay area recently traveled to Portland and said she felt pretty unsafe downtown on a weekend evening in Old Port. That really concerned us because she's pretty urbanfied and not an easy scare. Has Portland gotten seedy at certain times/area's? I really appreciate your time and input! I grew up in York and have been out of New England almost 20 years now. I don't know Cape at all but have researched the world over for places to raise our daughter and really feel we found the right fit.

Thanks so much again!!!!

Jen

[atrixwolfe]

Jennifer,
Columbus should bea good neighborhood for your kiids. I can't speak as to how many live there, but I have seen the buss stop there to pick them up. Its not a busy street. I also can't speak to your school system questions. I'm only aware of ledgemere and the one on spurwink. The one you mentioned is down on two lights....not very convenient to where you plan on living or the direction you'll be traveling in on the way to work, but of course that is the least important thing when it come to picking a pre school. A link you might find useful is to capes local news paper the cape courier, The Cape Courier published every other week you can read the current issues and the past issues.
I can speak 1st hand as to the old port comment from your dental hygienist. The old port has a busy nightlife...there are a lot of bars that are very popular. Most of the time you won't be wandering around there at night, in the day its a whole different story its a tourist mecca and not unsafe in any way. Sure there is a seedy side of Portland, but, you more then likely won't be going there and will avoid it like most do. I work in the old port, I've stayed late or went out after work so I've walked back to my car though these crowds after 9pm...I can't say any one ever bothered me. My 20 year old daughter used to walk back to her car after work in the summer past the bars and nightlife,and she never seemed phased. Again, unless your partying down there yourselves you won't encounter this and you won't see it during the day.
Good luck on your shot sale..it will work out and hopefully you'll be here soon.

[ilovemycat]

Jennifer,
I asked a friend in Cape about Appletree. She has known the owner/director for over 20 years and said it is a topnotch program with a loving and knowledgeable owner. She said kids who go to that program get far more than any other preschool/kindergarten children. In terms of full day K, she also said it hasn't been implemented due to funds and the fact taht most (but not all) Cape young ones go to excellent preschools. The new superintendent is in favor of it, but it might be a challenge with the school board and town council. Coming from NJ, and being on the school board of a suburban town, similiar to Cape in school reputation (excellent), we had the same issue. Half day K was the program, and parents did not want it to change. Because full day is not mandated, and resources are being squeezed, if there is not a huge groundswell of need and support, the change is difficult to make. Classroom availability (facilities planning) is also a big issue. If Cape now has 5 classes, 2x a day, it would mean finding 5 extra classrooms.
I live a few blocks from Columbus (on Manter). I think your new- to- be- area will be chock full of kids. Best of luck.