4 Key St, Eastport - anyone familiar? (real estate, rent, house)

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by OutDoorNut

There was a beautiful 1800's two story colonial for sale a couple years back in Columbia Falls.

It came with couple of acres or so.

It appeared to be in very, very nice condition, and the asking price dropped to $125 just before it was sold. I don't know how much it actually went for.

There were no water views, but there seemed to be a very nice landscape view (it was on elevated land).

Blueberry fields behind and a sheep farm across the street.

Colonials, Greek Revival, Federal, Georgian--all among my favorite architectural styles. One of the reasons New England is so pretty is the wonderful old architecture.

I think we're set on Eastport. We've looked at homes and land in other areas on the internet. We even talked about buying a large piece of land inland instead of on the island. But the point of moving up there is to be on or at least near the water, and Eastport reminds me so much of the island I grew up on. I miss that and really want to be part of a community again. I'm rather tired of being in the middle of nowhere and having to drive to see a human.

I love the old architecture as well. I grew up in south Florida. Old was a concrete box from the 60s. A boring place for someone that likes turn of the century homes and 100 year old hand-carved wood detail in a home. Was so happy to get out of there.

Tennessee has some gorgeous old homes, but most of them are long since abandoned and falling down. I've got two of them that are on our road. I could just cry every time I drive past. Will be nice to be in an area that doesn't see a home as something disposable.

Originally Posted by OutDoorNut

Here's the one on 4 Key Street, originally listed at the tail end of the housing bubble for $399K: Our Listings

I think I saw that too. The house looks familiar. It's really nice too. Still a bit out of our price range. Think we're going to be looking at a home that needs some work. Just hope it doesn't need as much as my money pit here has needed!

[retiredtinbender]

Originally Posted by OutDoorNut

Isn't the one on the same side of the street as the libray, 1 Key Street?

Yup, you're right. I got my north and south reversed. Embarrasment is overtaking me. 1 Key is same side as the library. 4 Key is across the street and used to be the "mentally challenged" boarding home for quite some time.

[corgis]

The house in front of me at 68 Boynton is a foreclosure on the market for 30K - the house at 76 Boynton is on the market for 139K - your price range is there, you just have to really search for those houses.

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by corgis

The house in front of me at 68 Boynton is a foreclosure on the market for 30K - the house at 76 Boynton is on the market for 139K - your price range is there, you just have to really search for those houses.

We've got a few of them saved on our RDC page. Just none that had jumped out at us like that. And we've got some land and a floor plan. We just can't decide if we want to buy or build, but when we saw that house we wanted to buy NOW. We just both really loved it. But we grabbed a lottery ticket on the way home so if we win I'll be making a call tomorrow! LOL

[OutDoorNut]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

We've got a few of them saved on our RDC page. Just none that had jumped out at us like that. And we've got some land and a floor plan. We just can't decide if we want to buy or build, but when we saw that house we wanted to buy NOW. We just both really loved it. But we grabbed a lottery ticket on the way home so if we win I'll be making a call tomorrow! LOL

Looks like more nice plans here: McKie Roth Design - Colonial House Plans & Blueprints

But you can likely buy an existing house for less than it would cost to build a new one in many or most parts of Maine.

And not deal with all the problems associated with finding and using a contractor.

Nice thing about an existing house, is it's already built and been standing for a while. If the builder cut corners in the foundation or elsewhere, it's likely to be more evident than in a new house.

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by OutDoorNut

Looks like more nice plans here: McKie Roth Design - Colonial House Plans & Blueprints

But you can likely buy an existing house for less than it would cost to build a new one in many or most parts of Maine.

And not deal with all the problems associated with finding and using a contractor.

Nice thing about an existing house, is it's already built and been standing for a while. If the builder cut corners in the foundation or elsewhere, it's likely to be more evident than in a new house.

We've been weighing pros and cons. If we build we can get the exact house we want and build it exactly as we have in our minds, right down to placement of light switches.

But it will be cheaper and easier to buy a home that's already built. We can get a 'fixer upper' that doesn't need too much fixing and still make it ours, or at least in our taste.

He wants to be away from town on a bigger piece of land where we'd have some privacy, so he likes the idea of building on a piece out by the airport. I want to be part of a community - tired of never seeing a human face - and be able to walk to the local stores and downtown, so I want to buy.

Just a couple of the things we're trying to sift through and decide what we're going to do. And in all honesty we probably won't really know for sure until we actually get up there and have time to look around ourselves. The internet is a wonderful thing and you can learn a lot, but it will never take the place of actually experiencing it yourself. I think when we get there we'll know what we want. But that'll probably be spring or so.

The good news is we found out our house is valued at a good bit more than we thought, so it's giving us a bit more room in our budget. Phew!

[OutDoorNut]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

We've been weighing pros and cons. If we build we can get the exact house we want and build it exactly as we have in our minds, right down to placement of light switches.

But it will be cheaper and easier to buy a home that's already built. We can get a 'fixer upper' that doesn't need too much fixing and still make it ours, or at least in our taste.

He wants to be away from town on a bigger piece of land where we'd have some privacy, so he likes the idea of building on a piece out by the airport. I want to be part of a community - tired of never seeing a human face - and be able to walk to the local stores and downtown, so I want to buy.

Just a couple of the things we're trying to sift through and decide what we're going to do. And in all honesty we probably won't really know for sure until we actually get up there and have time to look around ourselves. The internet is a wonderful thing and you can learn a lot, but it will never take the place of actually experiencing it yourself. I think when we get there we'll know what we want. But that'll probably be spring or so.

The good news is we found out our house is valued at a good bit more than we thought, so it's giving us a bit more room in our budget. Phew!

If you build your own house, you should take care that the design you choose is suitable to the climate.

For example, at one point you mentioned you might want to put your house up in the air on stilts--that's fine in a southern climate, but might not be a good thing when your stairs get icy in the winter in Maine.

So consider the need for extra insulation, the need to shovel snow off steps and off porches, water pipes freezing, ice dams at the roof eves, gutters being damaged by snow and ice, and even occassionally having to clear snow off your roof.

I would use plans from an architect who's experienced in designing houses for the New England climate.

And I'd be very worried about contracting a builder in these tough times--I'd take extra care to be sure if he goes bankrupt in the middle of building my house, that I'm insured for any money he might owe me for unfinished or poorly done work. Likewise, I'd be careful to protect myself from liens against materials used in my house that he might not have paid for: the people he owes money to for material used in your house, can legally come after you for the money he owes them if he goes bankrupt.

And if all that isn't enough, you'll have to take precautions that he doesn't economize by cutting corners that could cause problems long after he's taken your money and run. I suspect this is even more of a danger these days when builders are starving, then when they have more money coming in.

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by OutDoorNut

If you build your own house, you should take care that the design you choose is suitable to the climate.

For example, at one point you mentioned you might want to put your house up in the air on stilts--that's fine in a southern climate, but might not be a good thing when your stairs get icy in the winter in Maine.

So consider the need for extra insulation, the need to shovel snow off steps and off porches, water pipes freezing, ice dams at the roof eves, gutters being damaged by snow and ice, and even occassionally having to clear snow off your roof.

I would use plans from an architect who's experienced in designing houses for the New England climate.

And I'd be very worried about contracting a builder in these tough times--I'd take extra care to be sure if he goes bankrupt in the middle of building my house, that I'm insured for any money he might owe me for unfinished or poorly done work. Likewise, I'd be careful to protect myself from liens against materials used in my house that he might not have paid for: the people he owes money to for material used in your house, can legally come after you for the money he owes them if he goes bankrupt.

And if all that isn't enough, you'll have to take precautions that he doesn't economize by cutting corners that could cause problems long after he's taken your money and run. I suspect this is even more of a danger these days when builders are starving, then when they have more money coming in.

I'd not thought of the stilt issue but just from the house here I see your point. We have to open cabinets to help keep pipes from freezing because theres no insulation in the basement.

That said, we wont be able to do a house w/stairs. With hubbys back problems steps are agony now. Cant imagine 20 years from now!

You've given me tons of ammo for my argument to buy!

[OutDoorNut]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

I'd not thought of the stilt issue but just from the house here I see your point. We have to open cabinets to help keep pipes from freezing because theres no insulation in the basement.

That said, we wont be able to do a house w/stairs. With hubbys back problems steps are agony now. Cant imagine 20 years from now!

You've given me tons of ammo for my argument to buy!

You might want to rent the old movie, "Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House."

More realistic than the newer movie, "The Money Pit," the couple in "Mr. Blandings" makes just about every major mistake somone can make when buying an existing home or building a new one (and in New England, too): from not getting a house inspected before they buy it, to bulldozing it without first getting permission from the bank holding the mortgage.

Really an instructive movie. Here's a clip:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32JWU...3E0C72&index=1

[mrs1885]

Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! No info on problems with buying!! LOL

You've honestly given me lots to think about though. Thank you!