Moving to Maine... and FAST! Need help! (Portland: appointed, insurance)
Portland areaPortland, ME metro area
Please register to participate in our discussions with 1.5 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It is nice to be carefree and live for the moment.. but to me it is not responsible and especially when you are pregnant and have no place to live, and no health insurance.. I don't think you would enjoy living in a cabin in the middle of a Maine winter, with no electricity and no phone..especially when you have a baby on the way.....Times are hard everywhere, I think you are looking at a huge amount of trouble.... Good luck to you..
Did she ever say she had no insurance? Did i miss that part, over look it some how because i never seen that she said she had no insurance!
She may have insurance now, but will she have insurance in Maine when the baby is due? Maine has ONE insurance company that will underwrite individual families. If she has insurance in Kansas, her coverage may not apply if and when she is living in Maine. She needs to be VERY sure about this and not make assumptions.
The only natural resource we have here is lobsters and hot air. By that I mean the internet. the Lion is right. There had better be a virtual job that that simply will not go away, because you do not have a lobster boat and because everyone needs a vehicle here, and everyone needs vehicle insurance here, so that everyone can spend a lot of gasoline-energy shopping for very expensive wintertime food here. I have purchased my half-a-pig, and it's coming in a week or two, frozen. I have joined my food coop with the organic farm and am going to get my share next weekend, and will put it in the cellar of my rented apartment. Therefore I will have good local food. But no food is local, beyond that, here in Maine. I don't know what to think about this post. Maybe it is a joke on us, like the one last month. No job. No job. Now I, too, am worried.
Debroah im just going to ignore you because you never make any sence to me and if you do you always have something negative to say about Maine!
I know you want to disregard the negatives, but if there's an explanation as to why someone feels negatively about something it can be just has helpful as a positive post. In fact, when you have some of each, it really adds perspective and helps. The balance is a good thing.
Keep in mind, some people's positive posts are just as off-the-wall as some of the negative posts you may have seen. People get extreme on either end. I've heard Maine described as both Heaven and Hell on Earth depending on who you're talking to... the reality is generally a bit closer towards the middle of the road. As long as someone can tell you WHY they don't care for it, it can be helpful. Which side of the "middle" you feel it's on is entirely up to you. I certainly wouldn't call it Heaven, but it's definitely closer to Heaven than it is to Hell in my opinion.
I'm getting long-winded. In short, take the good with the bad. You may not like the negative post because it doesn't fit the ideal you're hoping for, but to disregard some of it can be very dangerous. Sure, some people just say negative things for the sake of negative things and there's no point, but some people are also living in a world of puppy dogs and rainbow factories where every day is perfect. The extremes on either end are just as useless.
You know, you people are right. I should stay right here in Kansas. I mean, we are miserable here.. that's always a great way to live... and we'll be paying just as much or more here in a horrible rental as we would in Maine for a place that's much more worth it.... all the while having to put my son in a worse school in Salina due to the change in areas...dang, why didn't I see it before?! THANK YOU INTERNET!
Obviously that's sarcasm, and it's directed to the few oddballs who have chosen to grace this thread with their negative opinions.
The rest of you, I cannot thank you enough for your input and helpful stories. You are all wonderful! To the negativity junkies... go elsewhere please.
We found some AMAZING rentals in the Portland area that we feel are just awesome, especially for what you get for the price! And there's some great places just outside of town that are even better for cheaper! Seriously, trying to find a decent rental in Salina, KS is like finding a needle in a haystack. We already have a list of 5 we are considering in Maine. EEEE I can't wait!
Also did more research into Kansas vs. Maine living expenses, and we actually think we'll end up breaking even, or even possibly spending less.
The income tax in Maine was higher, but apparently that is going to a flat rate comparable to Kansas in 2010.
The sales tax in Maine is only %5 and you don't tax groceries!!! Yay! We play close to %8 on EVERYTHING here!
We are certain our utilities will be less in Maine now. Even if heating if Winter is the same price, the simple fact that you don't have to run the A/C every single day from May to October is a HUGE SAVINGS!
Sorry if all of this is boring, and if my excitement is too much, but I am SO excited!!! Some other things that have entered my " Pro's to moving to Maine" list!
- Choice of hospitals to have my baby in! NEVER had that option!
- Lower crime rate! Maine is MUCH lower than Kansas!
- Rentals are much more accepting of pets!
- The schools all looks so wonderful.... My children are going to be so happy!
- Maine is more liberal. We are not political by any means, but we tend to like places where we're not glared at simply because we happen to say "Obama" out loud in public. This tends to happen quite a bit here.
- More culture! As well as multiple comic book conventions in the area. We work in comics, and this is a major plus! Usually we have to fly out from Kansas City to reach one. They're essential to our careers.
Obviously we are aware Maine is not perfect, but it is a definite improvement from where we are now. We're are in a great spot in our lives for this move, not text-book perfect in most people's eyes, but good enough for us.
Anyway, I'll update when I can, if you guys want me too! I want to hear more about you guys, and stories of your lives in Maine!
NJ2ME and Starwalker - Yay, fellow jumpers! I REALLY appreciate you telling me your stories! I would love to hear more. I am definitely in the same mindset as you. I feel it is an adventure, and even in the worst of times we are positive, and make the best of what we have, and strive to make it better.
We tried to think of our worst case scenario in Maine, and it still sounded better than where we are, lol!
Forest beekeeper, thanks for all your support! I'm glad your son found friends, we have trouble in that area here as well, mostly due to the fact that we're more untraditional with our comic books jobs, and up and go attitudes and people here seem to not prefer that
Also, for anyone who is concerned for my son, don't be, he's very excited. He loved the move from Oregon to Kansas when he was 3. He loves the idea of going to a new house and school now. He travels all over the country with us to the conventions we go to for work. He seems a lot like his mother, wanting to see the world. And after all I've seen I'm positive this is a great choice of places to be for my newborn.
Did I mention we're SURE of our choice? So please don't worry?
... The income tax in Maine was higher, but apparently that is going to a flat rate comparable to Kansas in 2010.
The sales tax in Maine is only %5 and you don't tax groceries!!! Yay! We play close to %8 on EVERYTHING here!
We are certain our utilities will be less in Maine now. Even if heating if Winter is the same price, the simple fact that you don't have to run the A/C every single day from May to October is a HUGE SAVINGS!
Each person's cost-of-living is different, and each person's tax situation is different.
In our case, moving to Maine did lower how much we pay in taxes [income taxes, property taxes, vehicle taxes, sales taxes, ... ].
And it did lower how much we have to pay to maintain our standard of living.
So for us, in our circumstances, both taxes and the general cost-of-living is much less here.
Fresh veggies are not as cheap here as they would be in California [where I am originally from]; however produce is much cheaper in Maine than it is down in Ct where we were living immediately before moving to Maine.
If you were looking for local grown and/or organic produce and meat; that is also available here for much better prices.
Quote:
...
- Lower crime rate! Maine is MUCH lower than Kansas!
- Rentals are much more accepting of pets!
- The schools all looks so wonderful.... My children are going to be so happy!
Crime is very low here.
We had no difficulty finding a rental for our family which included our dog and cat.
We were very pleased with the schools here [even though we have been long-term homeschoolers].
Everyone- I did not come here to be talked out of moving, or to be judged. Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but if you don't think we should move please keep it to yourself. We have decided. It's final. So please leave us be about it! I came here because everyone seemed friendly and helpful, and I was dying to find a nice community to talk about moving and Maine. So far most of you are! I thank you so much!
As for hearing negatives, I'm happy to hear negatives about MAINE RELATED THINGS, not our move!! That is why I am asking questions, to get opinions of how you like it there!
Two common comments we get here in town, or online
"Do you realize it's COLD?" - lol, YES! We love it! We live in Kansas where it is -20 in the winter, and we want MORE snow!
" Do you realize about the population?" Again, yes! we live in a town of 80,000, with NOTHING around us. Well, Wichita, which we shall not speak of.
Thanks Dramamama for the support! And forest beekeeper for the information!
Last edited by 7th generation; 10-14-2009 at 05:15 AM..
Reason: Removed orphaned content from reply.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $53,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 1.5 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
