land lease in Maine

[kirstenling]

Wow, thank you all for your information. I must be looking at the wrong newspapers ,cuz the land and houses I see have no t been under 100,000. and they were not great. can you guide to a local newspaper or agent that might find a home at a reasonable price. "We were hoping to fing an oldfarm house in need of repair. thank you again for you help and advice.

[wingman580]

Originally Posted by kellysmith

Leased land is a thing of the past...or at least it should be...if you plan on putting anything of any value on it. I had one of those $75 a year leases. It was a 99 year lease, but the land owner had the right (in fine print) to alter it for any reason. When the lease got to $1000 a year, I, like many locals with similar leases sold to get something out of my investment. The buildings have little value if you don't own the land under them.

I'm sure many are aware of what happened to the folks with leases on land that Roxanne Quimby purchased. She's the former owner of Bert's Bee's and purchased half of a township near the northern end of Baxter park. All those lease holders were told to remove their property. Bolen Pond Camps was one spot. I seem to remember that property had just changed hands...and the new owners had paid over $1,000,000 for it...and they told were told to get their camps off Ms Quimby's land.

Leased land from paper companies (or anyone else) is definitely not the place for any investment now days.

Thank you Kellysmith, the analogy of Ms Quimby is quite eye opening to anyone not knowing what has happened to many paper companies. I have been watching the realty market in NE, especially in both ME and RI as I own outright and am selling in the latter and moving to the former.
I have come across a few gents trying to sell beautiful homes that are on leased land who were told they either had to remove the buildings or sell them, with new conditions on the lease that equal legalized extortion i.e. paying K per year for the land and in some cases even more. The homeowners I spoke with were bitter that they trusted certain companies/LLC's to uphold their end of leases. These same leases in which new owners with fine print and court rulings destroyed the investments and security of the homeowner having a place to live.
I asked one man why he would spend such a large amount of money on building a truly marvelous chalet that was on land he did not own? He leased 350 acres, built a home with a 50 acre driveway that was straight from Architectural Digest. His answer was he worked for the paper company all his life and was told he could stay for life at little cost $100 per year for life. Well the company was sold in a LOB and he was now in a bad way. He is currently unemployed and fears losing the only thing he invested in, as his pension is not enough to pay the lease, fuel, utilities, and still eat. I wished I could have helped him but the conditions of the lease (after my attorney deciphered it) were prohibitive.
There is an old adage, my father who is 87 told me, "land is the only thing they are not manufacturing more of. When you own it NOBODY can tell you to go." he still believes this even after eminent domain took his bakery, café and grocery stores to make way for I-95 in 1958, as he was paid market value then for the inconvenience.

[Maine hunter]

Does anybody know of any paper company contacts for 99 year leases ?
or contacts for similar types of lease

[7th generation]

Originally Posted by Maine hunter

Does anybody know of any paper company contacts for 99 year leases ?
or contacts for similar types of lease

99 year leases have gone the way of the dinosaur.
Many large landowners in these parts announced any long term leases were null and void and depending on what area, the owners had to purchase the land within an alloted time at market value....this forced the leasees to abandon their camps-they couldn't afford the price.
7 Islands has put many of their land in conservation easements which allows the company big tax breaks, but forces out lease owners.
A friend has a camp on Lake Umbagog owned by 7 Islands and was told a year ago that his lease terminates in 25 years. Sad when big business trumps over good stewardship.
What really killed us is when Meade Paper Group sold their holdings of 668,000 acres in Maine and northern N.H.
....it'll never be the same again.............

[AustinB]

I agree, it's ashame that the leases couldn't be held until the termination date. That's what can happen when you don't own the land though.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

OK folks. I have been in this battle for 37 years. Time for a reality check. There is no paper company land in Maine. That term is a misnomer. The last paper company to sell was Fraser. Yes, there once was such a thing as a 99 year lease at a dollar a year. I know a family who leased a lot on a point in 1900. The lease expired in 1999. The several generations who used that old log lodge were kicked off the land. There are still some camps on leased land. It is a very dangerous investment to buy one. You could be forced to leave.

Around 30 camp owners on West Grand Lake just got the bad news. They have been offered the chance to by the land under their camps at high prices. They have a brief time to take it or leave it. In case anybody has not noticed, banks are reluctant to loan money right now. Banks are particularly reluctant to loan money on a property in the midst of a tumultuous situation.

There is a far better way to buy property in Maine. You make a down payment on a parcel and the seller finances the purchase. You pay the seller instead of a bank. If you build a camp or home you can roll over the mortgage to a bank.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by 7th generation

99 year leases have gone the way of the dinosaur.
Many large landowners in these parts announced any long term leases were null and void and depending on what area, the owners had to purchase the land within an alloted time at market value....this forced the leasees to abandon their camps-they couldn't afford the price.
7 Islands has put many of their land in conservation easements which allows the company big tax breaks, but forces out lease owners.
A friend has a camp on Lake Umbagog owned by 7 Islands and was told a year ago that his lease terminates in 25 years. Sad when big business trumps over good stewardship.
What really killed us is when Meade Paper Group sold their holdings of 668,000 acres in Maine and northern N.H.
....it'll never be the same again.............

This happened to my brother in Little Squaw Township in the mid 80's The leased land was suddenly for sale on a pay for it now basis and he could not come up with the $20,000 to buy the acerage he was on so there went the property.
Someone else bought the lot and built a chalet type place on it.